GET A SECOND OPINION BEFORE SPENDING THOUSANDS WITH ECONOAIR…read more
Our experience with EconoAir was extremely disappointing, and I strongly recommend getting a second opinion before authorizing any major repair.
My wife works for Costco, and when we needed a second opinion on an HVAC repair in March 2025, we chose EconoAir because they are part of the Costco HVAC program in Yorba Linda. We trusted that association and believed we were dealing with a reputable company.
In March 2025, EconoAir replaced the control board on our HVAC system. We also signed up for their maintenance program, paying $19.99 every month, with scheduled summer and winter maintenance visits.
Then came August 24, 2026.
Our A/C stopped cooling and was blowing room-temperature air. We called EconoAir, and a technician came out the next day.
Here's where our experience took a very disappointing turn.
The technician told us that we needed:
* New A/C coils
* A new PVC gravity drain, because we were told our system supposedly did not have one
* Total cost: $5,995
And because we were in the middle of a heatwave, we were particularly concerned to learn that the work couldn't be done until September 1 -- about a week later.
I decided to get an independent second opinion from a friend who is an experienced HVAC technician.
Thankfully, I did.
His assessment was completely different.
He inspected the system and told us that there was nothing wrong with our A/C coils. Instead, he identified the problem as being related to the control board that EconoAir had installed approximately a year and a half earlier.
He also confirmed something else that was very concerning: our system does have a drain pan, contrary to what we had been told by the EconoAir technician.
So we were looking at a $5,995 repair based on a diagnosis that our independent HVAC technician disputed.
Needless to say, we cancelled the $5,995 project, submitted the Notice of Cancellation, and cancelled our $19.99/month maintenance agreement with EconoAir.
And yes, we will still have to pay the $99 diagnostic fee for the service call.
The Costco connection is what makes this especially disappointing.
We specifically chose EconoAir because of its association with Costco. We believed that being part of the Costco HVAC program gave us an additional level of confidence.
Unfortunately, our experience did not live up to those expectations.
What is particularly troubling to me is that EconoAir had installed the control board in our system approximately a year and a half earlier. When the system subsequently stopped cooling, we were told that the coils needed to be replaced at a cost of nearly $6,000.
Had I simply accepted the diagnosis and authorized the work, we could have spent $5,995 on repairs that our independent HVAC technician said were unnecessary.
My advice to other homeowners:
GET A SECOND OPINION.
Especially when you're being told that you need thousands of dollars in repairs.
Our second opinion potentially saved us nearly $6,000.
I'm not claiming that every EconoAir technician or every EconoAir job is the same. I'm sharing exactly what happened to us so that other homeowners can make an informed decision.
For us, the experience resulted in a complete loss of confidence in EconoAir. After this experience, we cancelled both the proposed repair and our maintenance agreement.
One star because Yelp doesn't allow zero.
