I found Airmax through American Home Shield home warranty company. I will say that they were courteous, efficient with setting up appointments and the technician arrived on time. That will be the last positive critique in this review.
When the technician, Kyle, came through my door, I asked if he had shoe covers before coming in my home and he said that he did not. So I asked him if he would mind slipping off his shoes while he is in my home. After a hesitation, he told me that he might have one in his truck and that he'd check. Lo and behold, he managed to come back with two, one for each foot. So, my assumption is that he just didn't want to be bothered. Strike one.
After tramping in & out and throughout my house for approximately 45 minutes, including outside and in the attic, he came in and sat down on my upholstered couch in my family room to discuss the prognosis. Uninvited. I know I am picky about strangers in my family's areas, but I don't even allow my kids to just lounge their sweaty bodies in there. Plus, I am old school - I don't sit down in a stranger's house unless I am invited to do so. Different generation. But for Kyle, Strike two.
Another misstep he made was not understanding his audience. While I am no HVAC repair expert, I do understand basic concepts regarding heating and cooling. It may be because of my years working in the power industry as plant engineer. Perhaps. In any case, he managed to dump quite a bit of horse's crap on me for the next few minutes, peppered with comments such as, "I'm sure you don't understand this, most homeowners don't". Really, Kyle??? Strike three.
However, it was his specific instances of misinformation that troubled me.
He told me that I needed a new coil. And that if I replaced the coil, I would be better off also replacing the compressor and then upgrading to the new refrigerant, because I wouldn't have to retrofit the new coil to the old compressor. And that although the new coil could handle the old refrigerant, it would contaminate the new coil so I couldn't be able to use the new refrigerant in the future when I replaced the compressor.
True, perhaps, and quite possibly.
The diagnostic indicator, according to Kyle, that led to this recommendation was that the head (pressure differential) on the compressor was extremely high, leading him to believe that there was blockage in the coil. And the capacitor on the pump, trying to overcome this blockage, caused the electrical breakers to trip. After all he could do, he couldn't get the unit to run and provide any cooling. I asked if the compressor units were clean (twice, in fact) and he assured me that dirty compressor surrounds were not an issue.
Bullmalarky!!!
We've just recently had a lot of construction work in the yard. I knew that the compressors needed cleaning and hadn't gotten around to it. We have three systems for the house and all of them were dirty. Kyle's first big dirty stinking lie.
Secondly, I already knew we had a weak capacitor on this unit. I guess AHS doesn't share repair history because another AHS-provided company did the quick fix for it. Not a replacement, but a patch up. I didn't share because Kyle put me off when he lied about the shoe covers. No mention of the weak capacitor or any quick fix that could be done to ensure the air conditioning came back on for my kids. But a lengthy sales pitch about why I needed both a new coil and compressor. I really liked the part where he told me that if I just replaced the coil, I'd again have to pay for the recovery of the existing refrigerant, $153, and recharging the unit with new, $520, ostensibly not covered by AHS. However, and this I know for sure, all the refrigerant can be pumped down and secured in the compressor, any work then performed, and afterwards all refrigerant can be released back. And the big grinning part? An extra fee for disposal of the old coil $165. The last time we had a coil replaced, my husband hauled it to the dump, using some sweat energy and about one gallon of gas. We might have to pay some small fee now, after all it even costs money to dispose of televisions and refrigerators now. But I dare say not anywhere close to $165.
I've also had two other HVAC companies give quotes since.
Airmax quote to replace my coil, after all the non-allowed costs I'd have to pay?$1639 for some no-brand coil.
Contractor #1 quote to replace with a brand name Carrier coil? Not going through Airmax but less the AHS contribution? $1510.
Contractor #2 quote, brand name American Standard new coil? Not going through Airmax but less the AHS contribution? $1475.
In a nutshell, and to use the vernacular, Airmax sucks!! The big one!!! If I had to issue advice, it would be:
1. Come prepared to fix the problem to get the unit up and running. Contractor #1 was able to do this.
2. Don't lie!
3. Don't condescend to the customer.
4. Respect the customer's home. read more