In April 2022, 4 years ago, Hilo Air installed 3 mini splits and a used central condenser with what we were told was a 10 year warranty in our home for just over $8,000. This April, almost exactly 4 years later, the system was leaking water and not working. Technician came out, said the coil was leaking. Was here for 2 hours. I asked him what we owed. He said Hilo Air would send us a bill, but it should be about $250 to $300. Hilo Air said the condenser was now 5 years old and past warranty because it was used and we needed a new one. For $7,000. The cost about doubled in 4 years! But that price included the service call. OK. When I asked for a separate bill, they said the service call would be about $378. Today, May 7th, I told them we could not afford a new system, we would go without A/C, and to please invoice us for the service call separately. The new invoice showed the service call now cost $403. For 2 hours of the Tech's time. Hilo Air is not the same company it used to be. I cannot recommend Hilo Air due to their ever changing price quotes. I believe they are using any excuse to gouge their customers. In my opinion they cannot be trusted. Do not use. read more

BEWARE!!! Hilo Air appears only to care about being paid. Not concerned with actually providing good service. SPOILER: Hilo Air and its technicians/workers along with its owner appear to only care about being paid and are not concerned with providing actual quality service to customers, despite my attempts to communicate the numerous issues to management and the owner. Series of events went as follows: 1. Scheduled a first visit to troubleshoot what the issue is with my AC unit. 2. FIRST visit - technician came out and did some tests and left me with the impression that everything was working and then left. Only to find out a week later that we needed to order a part. I was surprised. Spoke to Mitch about this and told him I had no issue with paying for a part I needed, but there was a communication breakdown with the tech. 3. SECOND visit - technician made a mistake in the quantity of refrigerant put into the AC unit. Checked for leaks. Did not communicate well what was expected to happen going forward. Did not specify needing a 3rd visit. 4. THIRD visit - Technician (Abner) showed up late. I called Hilo Air's office and talked to Mitch. He hadn't heard from Abner. Abner then told Mitch he was going to be late when he was 30 minutes away and 20 minutes late to my schedule appointment. Prior to this visit I made it clear that I was frustrated to Mitch and did not want to have a 4th, 5th, 6th visit to fix an issue that should have been communicated clearly what the problem was and needed in the first 2 visits. Note - Two rooms are attached to this AC unit. One had issues, the other worked. By the end of the visit the technician had left me with both rooms not working properly. Technician shows up 90 minutes late. He (Abner) finds out that during his second visit he had to redo the refrigerant portion of work from visit #2. I communicate to Mitch that I am not paying for the extra time and work for the technician to REDO his work from the 2nd visit. At the end of the work day around 3:45 I caught the technician looking to leave without properly informing me what the current temperatures were in both rooms. He put away all of his equipment and did not appear to have the intention of showing me the issues with the AC unit and the two rooms. He had caused a problem with the room that was working and wasn't going to show me the issue. I had to ask him to bring out his tools to measure the temperatures in both rooms. This interaction was recorded where the technician admits (Abner) that he doesn't know that is wrong with the AC and that he doesn't know why the temperature is outside of the normal operating range it is supposed to work at. His short term solution: Run the AC over the weekend. At the end of this visit I immediately called Mitch at Hilo Air and told him what transpired and told him I was not going to pay for this 3rd visit and the portion of the 2nd visit that the technician (Abner) did incorrectly as well. Mitch informs me he will find a solution to get me up and running with my AC (Friday). Monday comes, Tuesday comes no call from Hilo Air or Mitch. I call them and ask Mitch what do we do as I'm not happy with having to be forced to schedule a 4th visit. Note - This 4th visit that was scheduled was essentially an extension of the 3rd visit described above. 5. FOURTH visit - Technician comes out and tests temperatures and a few things and tells me we need to install another part. At this point I tell him I don't want to schedule a 5th (yes a FIFTH visit) to fix my AC unit. And to have Mitch call me because at this point I'm not happy. 6. I email Mitch my series of notes, issues, and inform him that I want to know what I am being billed currently as we are now on the FIFTH visit. 7. I respond with my notes above to which I am forwarded to the owner of Hilo Air. 8. A week goes by and no one responds to my email. I reply again/forwarding the email to the owner again. 9. I get a bill in which I do not agree with. 10. I reply to the owner and ask him to call me directly on my cell phone. 11. He doesn't call me, doesn't want to know the context of how things played out, but resorts to glossing over my issues that are accurate documented on my end with audio and video recordings of his technician and instead does the following: The owner of Hilo Air tells me if I have a problem with their company that I should call another AC company. The owner also tells me he is doing me a favor by not charging me for the 5-6 hour visit (3rd visit). Condescending email. I intend on paying for the portion of the bill in which I believe I should pay based on the service that was provided. My AC still has not been fixed after 2-3 months of back and forth with their technician, owner, office manager etc. My conclusion: Hilo Air AC is primarily concerned with billing hours and not too concerned with hearing their customers out before passing judgement. BEWARE! read more

This company cares more about money and being "right" than actually helping their customers. The absolute lack of communication from the technician to me and my husband was highly frustrating. There were multiple unnecessary times the technician had to come to our home to fix the SAME EXACT problem...with little to no communication on what was actually going on with our AC unit and why it wasn't working the way it should. And when, at the end of it all, when we reached out to the owner of this company to get some type of solution or clarity before we pay our bill and even having questions about our bill, he basically told us he's sorry we're not happy with their services, Merry Christmas go somewhere else to get your AC unit fixed and oh yeah...here's your bill. I was pissed. All we wanted was to have their tech communicate effectively to us what exactly was going on with our AC unit instead of getting our information from someone miles away in an office and not at our home...seriously the tech was right there and he didn't tell us we needed to replace a part for our AC unit, we had to hear it from their dispatcher who wasn't even there. And the audacity of the owner implying that my husband and I were sooo difficult, that we should look elsewhere for our AC problems (which we had already planned on doing after this entire debacle) and Merry Christmas pay this bill. Instead of actually helping us understand what was the problem and helping us find a better solution for everyone involved. Very unprofessional. I wouldn't recommend this company to anyone. They will waste your time and bill you for every time they have to come out to your place to fix a problem they either created or didn't fix. read more

The installation of my Carrier mini split system was very professional. The indoor air quality in my house is so much nicer than it was with room units. My electric bill also dropped well over $100 per month. I'm extremely satisfied especially knowing that this unit will pay for itself in just a few years. I would recommend Them to anyone needing this type of service. read more

Hilo Air Conditioning & Refrigeration - Heating & Air Conditioning/HVAC Near Me - Hilo, Hawaii

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These guys were awesome. Let me first set the stage for anyone not familiar with getting *any* sort of work done in East Hawaii: to call it "challenging" is being too generous. However, with Hilo A/C & Refrigeration, I made an initial request for a quote, had a senior level technician at my home the following day to make the assessment, had a detailed quote in email within a couple days, and once the parts arrived, the work was done quickly, without leaving a mess in my house, and the workmanship was easily as good as or better than I've ever seen. I had them service and repair 4 A/C units, install 2 bathroom exhaust fans, and install a central fresh air fan for my house, and all of this was done in 2 days of work. The technicians were friendly, respectful, conscientious, professional, and expedient. Also, when communicating with the main office for quotes, questions, and scheduling, my emails and phone calls were answered very quickly, and with precisely the information I requested. By any standards, these guys hit a home run, but by East Hawaii standards, these guys launched it into orbit. read more

These guys are pro's and Nick is running a tight business with no worries no hassle no compromise! I've built 4 custom homes on the Big Island over the years and Nick and his crew just simply do their job over & above, making it hassle-stress free. A five star anything is hard to find on the Big Island, these guys earn your business~ read more

These guys are bad no customer service skills what so ever. I made an appointment they gave me a date a week later, my appointment came they call me up telling me they had an emergency fix somewhere else..hell my situation is an emergency I got no AC for like a month..they tell me someone will come the next day at 9 am..9 am came around no call no show..save your money people find one other company.. read more

Hilo Air was professional, prompt and very helpful. Kyle came out and troubleshot our issue and returned with Jarred to get the job done. The owner, Nick did a great job communicating with us every step of the way. I was very pleased every step of the way! read more

We appreciated everyone at Hilo Air for their professional service with a personal touch. They went out of their way to fit us in their busy schedule to meet with us on site to plan and fit our needs with ac unit that is working great. Clean installation. Very pleased with the outcome. Would recommend. read more

I contacted Hilo Air on a Friday and they came out to give me a bid the following Monday for an A/C system for my home. The bid was competitive & I accepted it. The installers were Jarred & Klayson and they arrived on time and ready to work. Jarred took the necessary time to inform me of the process and I was satisfied with his answers. The work proceeded quickly and my only delay was related to coordinating of the electrical contractor.....no ones fault, just dealing with different schedules. Jarred & Klayson were always polite and professional at all times. They cleaned up all of their work areas each day and I was extremely well pleased with all of the work accomplished and we are now enjoying a very cool & comfortable home. We would recommend Hilo Air as a quality contractor and will not hesitate to call them again when needed. Ken G. read more

Hilo Air A/C & Refrigeration was great to work with. We purchased a 24 sear, Carrier High Efficiency system with a 30K multi zone outdoor unit for our great room and master bedroom. From the start of our initial inquiry through the installation process, Nick was responsive and knowledgeable; the installers, reliable and efficient. Hilo Air partners with electrical companies should customers need referrals which was the case with us. Walter's Electric, Hilo was responsive and professional as well. 5 stars all the way. Kathryn & Jim K , 6/7/17 read more

I was very pleased with their service, prices and the fact that they had the engineering know-how to make common-sense enhancements to the products that they sell to make them perform better and last longer here on the Big Island. In addition, they are knowledgable regarding energy efficiency, and are willing to navigate through the maze of government programs in order to get the best rebates possible. We moved to the Hilo area full-time in 2015, which was a very hot year. It didn't take us long to figure out that we were going to need A/C. Hilo Air was very accommodating regarding scheduling, and were able to get a nominal installation up quickly (our house is oddly shaped, and installation was complex, but it was so hot that just getting a unit or two installed rapidly REALLY took the pressure off of us). This sort of "juggling" is just one example of how I was made to feel that I was a partner in this process and not just along for the ride... We are first-time homeowners and I had zero practical knowledge regarding the issues involved, but the managers and staff took the time to explain the options, and the upsides/downsides of our choices, and were not afraid at all at just making the call if I couldn't fully follow the issues. In short, I got the level of service that I wanted, and they provided the time, materials and consultation needed for me to fully grasp the issues involved. We've had our systems for almost 2 years now, and I couldn't be happier with them. read more

I never write reviews, but Hilo Air is worth writing a review. They have saved us at least $5000 over the last two years. Both times other contractors told us that we needed to cut open our ceilings and buy new equipment. Hilo Air saved us time and money both times. Their honesty and innovative solutions bailed us out both times. I don't think I would ever call anyone else. read more