I called Adam from ABS because my AC unit was not blowing any air. He came over the next day (on a Saturday) a few hours after the agreed upon time. I figured since it was over 90deg outside and a weekend, he was plenty busy so I understood and was just happy to have the issue looked into.
He went to the unit outside (never stepped foot inside the house to check the blower/furnace/coils in the attic) and immediately told me that my capacitor was at 80% and needed to be replaced. Also that my Freon had some pressure, but needed more and that there was probably a leak. I refused the capacitor replacement ($155), because I knew I could buy it online for less than $20 and replace it myself. I was hesitant regarding the Freon, because I could feel the unit in the attic getting cold... it just wouldn't cool down the 2nd floor. I figured he was the expert, so I told him to top it off.
This is where the pain started.. I have a 4lb unit and he claimed it took 5.5lbs to fill, so coils and all he was telling me the entire system was empty of Freon!! At $125 a pound he charged me over $680 for just the Freon, plus $109 for the service call. And then told me he would charge me $264 for a sealant, which he would return on Monday and add, but that it wasn't guaranteed to work. He then left without even verifying that the systems was working and told me that it would slowly start cooling.
Many hours went by and the system was still not blowing any cold air. I purchased and rushed delivery of two capacitors (less than $30 for both), one for outside and one for the blower upstairs. I replaced both Monday morning but neither solved the issue.
I called him Monday, told him it wasn't working, and again came in about 5 hours late. First thing he said when he saw me was that I needed the capacitor replaced! I explained that I had replaced both capacitors, to which he replied without seeing them. "I don't trust those capacitors you buy online, unless you allow me to replace them (at $155 each), I can't help you". I told him that he was saying didn't make any sense and that I had measured their capacitance with a multimeter and they were good. He said they usually test ok, but are no good.
At that point I knew he was trying to take my money any way he could. So I told him to give me a refund for the sealant, which had not been applied, and told him to leave.
I called someone else who in less than 10 minutes told me I had a bad blower motor (from just listening to it) and that I could order it and replace it myself if I chose to for about $150. He charged me nothing and said that what Adam from ABS had done was ridiculous. I ordered the motor, replaced it and had the system cooling right away.
Please don't use, ABS! Adam is not an honest man. The only reason he gets 1 star (besides yelp not allowing less) is that he does give discounts to military, teachers and first responders. However with him, it's not worth it. read more