Now that Arizona is past its short cool season, it won’t be long before our long summer begins. This means that now is the perfect time to hire an HVAC contractor who can maintain your cooling equipment throughout the warm months ahead.
To provide you with something to shoot for, we’ve compiled nine factors to consider when hiring an HVAC contractor. Follow these guidelines and your job as a homeowner will be much easier:
- Referrals – When deciding on a contractor, ask people you trust what company they use, and what sort of success they’ve had.
- References – Ask a potential HVAC contractor for references. From there, ask about the contractor’s work ethic and performance, in addition to completion time.
- Energy Star – Your contractor should be well-versed in heating and cooling equipment that meets the energy-efficiency and performance standards of the federal Energy Star program.
- Home evaluation – Any contractor worth his name should want to check your HVAC system and evaluate your home’s specific needs, and whether or not those needs are in line with your current setup.
- Written, itemized estimates – Each estimate provided by a contractor should include a written breakdown of all costs for repair, replacement, installation, etc.
- Written proposal – Don’t let an HVAC contractor start work on your home without one of these, which will protect both of you.
- Check for licenses – Do a little research and find out the license and insurance requirements for our state, and make sure that the contractor is in line with them.
- Know your system – Before hiring a technician, be aware of the model and age of your equipment, in addition to its maintenance history. This will save a lot of time.
- Inspection of your ductwork – If upgrading your A/C or heat pump, a contractor should be prepared to check your ductwork, as this can greatly affect your new system’s efficiency and performance. The ductwork and equipment must be compatible.
At Hansberger Refrigeration and Electric Company, we’re confident that we will provide satisfactory answers to all of your questions when seeking an HVAC contractor. Contact us today. We have been serving the HVAC needs of Yuma and the surrounding area since 1952.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Yuma, Arizona about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about hiring an HVAC contractor and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.
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