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| - I decided to give Discount Air a try because the online reviews didn't seem too bad. I manage rental properties, and so I have had experience with about 8 different HVAC companies. My experience has been that every single large company tries to overcharge, and some by ridiculous amounts. Now, when I have an A/C problem, I will only bother trying one-man shops who don't have to take direction from upper management because I suspect that's where the problem lies. I'm just an ordinary person with no in-depth knowledge of how this business works.
When I called Discount Air, Earl came out the next morning to look at my unit. Out of all the A/C technicians I've ever met, Earl was by far the friendliest. He was good at explaining things and giving money-saving tips. Surely, he had only my best interest in mind. He then quoted me nearly $1200 to fix my problem. I refused, so I had to pay $75 for the service call (if you are going to call a large company, I suggest choosing from among the 5 or 6 that charge $25 or less for the service call).
I called Moore's Air Conditioning and they quoted me under $300 to braze and recharge my system with r410a. They arrived at my home with two men, friendly guys. Then they called their management and said they had to charge me $550. They did waive the service call fee, however.
I finally got the problem fixed in under 45 minutes for $260.
Now I understand that many people cannot wait that long and they need the A/C fixed quickly. But from a game theory perspective, this makes it wise for A/C to ask for ridiculous sums because they know they the next guy will also overcharge, so they might as well overcharge. My best recommendation is to do as much as possible yourself. For example, if you have to replace the fan motor, don't call an A/C company for a quote. Buy the part yourself, watch some youtube videos, and do it yourself. The more knowledgeable consumers become, the more likely we are to restore some honesty to a country that is becoming corrupted to the core.
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