Services & Unservices

Highly Specialized
–


Furnace and Air Conditioner Repair

I repair central heating and air conditioning equipment for homeowners in their primary home.* Equipment repair is an underserved niche in which I excel. Even so, as this recording explains, I’ll certainly recommend equipment replacement when it makes sense.

If you’re not sure if your equipment needs repair, call me. We’ll figure it out over the phone. Even if I don’t provide the service you need, I can still probably help you over the phone. I have lots of knowledge that comes from decades of experience that I’m happy to share with you.

Click Here for Installation

If they’re a good match for your project, there is another contractor I refer for installation. To be frank, “good match” really means “Can you afford them?” They aren’t the most expensive, but they’ll probably cost significantly more than a cheap contractor.

As for me, I currently perform equipment repair only. Repair requires more brain and less brawn than installation, hence the preference. I also don’t do most things that are related to installation, like correcting another contractor’s poor installation.

You can learn a lot about installation here. I wrote that back when I was still doing installations. When it comes to buying new equipment, you can’t rely on Consumer Reports, Yelp, or anything like that. You have to rely on yourself by learning what’s on that page.

Click Here for Unservices

Unservices is not a word? I reconcur!


* With some exception, I only work for homeowners in their primary home. Exceptions include some past customers, etc. I usually ask for the homeowner to be there during the diagnosis. Not all second opinion requests are accepted. I’m happy to talk about it on the phone.

I don’t offer purely elective inspections or checkups or maintenance or tune-ups. (Those services are similar in my opinion.) In other words, if you know that your equipment is working just fine then I won’t be looking at it. If you’re not sure how your equipment is doing, we can talk about it on the phone.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Even though I don’t offer purely elective inspections, that does not mean should not have them periodically. You most certainly should have periodic inspections of your HVAC equipment, especially if you have gas appliances. PG&E provides free safety inspections of gas appliances.

I don’t work on ducts, ceiling-wall-window mounted equipment, portable equipment, LPG burning equipment, fire or flood damaged equipment, fireplaces, floor furnaces, resistance-only heating, hot water heating, mini-split systems, swamp coolers, or refrigerators.

I do not offer design services1, paid consultation services2, free estimates3, duct cleaning4, duct inspection, air balancing, air quality services, major correction of botched installations, certain kinds of diagnosis-only service, service to business, or service during a home sale.

I don’t repair water leaks or water drainage problems for new customers. I also don’t process warranties for parts that I did not install. Those may sound like strange policies, but they help me to stay sane. I can explain more over the phone.

I’m not particularly interested in working on HVAC equipment that’s less than 5 years old or over 35 years old. That may also sound strange, but it’s a common refrain amongst experienced repairmen. I may consider it, but no promises.

I don’t work at buildings where accessing the equipment is an inordinate challenge or where parking for a large vehicle is unavailable. That includes The Mercer, Montecito, Wayside Plaza, 1808 Cole Avenue, some buildings at Main Chance, etc.

1. You can learn a lot about design here.
2. I may give free advice over the phone.
3. I do give prices here and over the phone.
4. Duct cleaning is a mostly worthless service.†.

† Opens a new tab to my new site dedicated to education.