My Prices: The Summary

The majority of problems are diagnosed in the first half hour. Any diagnostic time beyond the first half hour costs $100 per half hour, prorated.

Intermittent problems, problems with unusually complex equipment, problems in tight spaces, refrigerant leaks, water leaks, etc. can sometimes take longer than a half hour to diagnose.

On rare occasion I may deny requests for the following services or I may impose a surcharge for them. Don’t worry! The second I get a hint that you need such service we’ll talk about it.

• troubleshooting highly proprietary equipment (that most customers don’t have anyway)
• troubleshooting and/or repairing water drainage problems for first-time customers
• deep cleaning (not needed as much as many contractors recommend)
• work performed in brutal conditions (130 degree attics, etc.)
• fixing and/or finishing another contractor’s work
• work on relatively new equipment
• troubleshooting-only work
• all day jobs

I Don’t Bait and Switch

Most local HVAC contractors are insanely expensive. Labor rates of over $400 per hour is common. They’ll never admit that of course. They just bait you with their low upfront fee and refuse to say anything about their repairs prices until after they show up. Here are a few examples of what they’ve quoted after they arrived:

• $480 for a capacitor replacement that takes 45 minutes and uses $25 in materials
• $1200 for a circuit board replacement that takes 1.25 hours and uses $150 in materials
• $3700 for a Carrier fan replacement that takes 1.5 hours and uses $1000 in materials

I was the second opinion on those jobs. I quoted a minimum of $200 to come out and ended up making those repairs for $350, $650, and $2000 respectively (including the $200). That’s in line with my “menu of prices” linked below. I’m certainly not cheap. However, compared to what most glossy-looking highly-rated contractors are charging, I’m practically a saint.

Why I Charge $200

On occasion I’ll diagnose something simple like a loose wire. In such cases I’ll secure the wire, take readings, and go. Believe it or not, $200 is not much in our part of the HVAC world. We’re they being honest, virtually all local HVAC contractors would say the same. But when the repair is super quick and needs no materials, $200 is enough to satisfy me.

The contractor who charges less has a problem. Does he secure the wire and leave with $59? Rarely. Does he try to convince you that a ten second repair is worth $141? Probably not. Does he condemn and then replace a $1000 part and secure the wire while he’s at it? Bingo! Most repairmen are on commission and baby needs a new pair of shoes.

$59 isn’t worth getting out of bed for. $99 isn’t much better. Nine times out of ten it’s just bait. Contractors are going to get their ticket average up one way or another. They can tempt you with a low upfront fee and then hammer you with an embellished diagnosis and an insane repair fee. Or they can start higher and end lower like I do. There’s rarely a third choice.