FAQ

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How do I know when to repair or replace?

“An air conditioner should last about 15 years. If a unit that’s more than a decade old begins to falter, consider total replacement of inside and outside units rather than a major repair. Usually only one of the system’s major components (coil or compressor) fails, but it’s usually more cost-effective to replace the whole system at once. Unmatched major components can compromise efficiency and lead to added repairs.”
~ 1999 Consumer Reports Buying Guide, Central Cooling Systems, page 143

When is it time to replace?

Certain telltale signs indicate it's time to consider replacing heating and cooling equipment, or improving the performance of your overall system. It may be time to call a professional contractor to help you make a change if:

Your heat pump or air conditioner is more than 10 years old.

Consider replacing it with a unit that has earned the ENERGY STAR label. Installed correctly, these high-efficiency units can save up to 20 percent on heating and cooling costs.

Your furnace or boiler is more than 15 years old.

Consider replacing with an ENERGY STAR qualified furnace, which is 15% more efficient than a conventional furnace. If you have a boiler, consider replacing with an ENERGY STAR qualified boiler that is 5% more efficient than a new, standard model.

Your equipment needs frequent repairs and your energy bills are going up.

Your cooling or heating equipment may have become less efficient.

Some rooms in your home are too hot or too cold.

Improper equipment operation, duct problems or inadequate insulation could be the cause.

No one is home for long periods of the day and you do not have a programmable thermostat.

Install an ENERGY STAR qualified programmable thermostat or have a good contractor install one and instruct you on its use — to start saving energy and money while they're away or sleeping.

Your home has humidity problems.

Poor equipment operation, inadequate equipment, and leaky ductwork can cause the air to be too dry in the winter or too humid in the summer.

Your home has excessive dust.

Leaky ducts can pull particles and air from attics, crawl spaces and basements and distribute them throughout your house. Sealing your ducts may be a solution.

Your heating or cooling system is noisy.

You could have an undersized duct system or a problem with the indoor coil of your cooling equipment.

Your score on the Home Energy Yardstick is below five.

That means your energy use at home is above average and you're probably paying more than you need to on energy bills.

~ Energystar.gov

Why would I want anything more than a basic furnace or air conditioner?

Consumers today look at almost every other product in their home and recognize differences in quality, design, and price. They see the difference between $40 faucets and $125 faucets. They think nothing of spending hundreds of dollars more for one appliance (stove, refrigerator, washer etc.) over another. Furnaces and Air Conditioners offer many valuable options like these other products do. The first thing to strongly consider is they work harder and run for longer periods of time than all the other products in your home combined. You will spend far more money on the operating costs of your furnace and air conditioner, than you will on all of the other appliances in your home - combined. Doesn’t it make sense to consider all of your options on a product that will cost so much to operate, a product that you will depend on almost every day of the year, and a product that may be able to make the difference between every day comfort and every day anguish? Manufacturers make different products for different market needs. The vast majority of new furnaces and air conditioners are designed to be installed in new homes (by new home construction builders). As such, most of these products are manufactured to a spec dedicated to the need of home builders. The builders aren’t concerned with warranties, noise levels, hot and cold rooms in the house, or how much it will cost you to run your heating or cooling. So do you really want a unit that was intended for a builder? Make sure you know what all of your options are and what benefits you should expect from each unit before making a strictly lowest priced based decision.
~ D. Randy Arnold – Arnold & Sons Plumbing, Heating, A/C Inc.

What makes one contractor any different from another?

When it’s time to replace your furnace and air conditioner, there is nothing more important than selecting the right dealer. Buying a furnace or an air conditioner is nothing like buying any other product in your home. Unlike a toaster or a refrigerator you’re not just pulling it out of the box and plugging it in. Furnaces and air conditioners have many pipes, hoses, electrical wires, sheet metal transitions, etc. that need to be customized to fit in manufacturer intended locations at manufacturers specifications. Each unit is completely custom installed to fit in your home by the contractor you choose. Neglecting to follow exact manufacturers specifications on installation can lead to endless problems for the homeowner. Problems can range from a system that runs louder than it should, to extreme cases where systems have lead to the death of entire families. If you choose poorly it makes no difference what brand furnace is installed, its efficiency rating, or what price you paid. When all is said and done it is not the furnace manufacturer who will come to your home to resolve any problems, it is the dealer you have chosen. A little extra time spent up front researching dealers, will save you years of anguish in the future. It is important to ask any contractor coming into your home the right questions, before you allow them to do any work in your home!
~ D. Randy Arnold – Arnold & Sons Plumbing, Heating, A/C Inc.

What questions should I ask contractors before they do work in my home?

How long has your company been in business?

This is a critical question. Heating dealers come and go on a regular basis. Disgruntled employees leave an employer, set up their own shop, and go out of business far more often than you could ever imagine. If your installing dealer is out of business and your furnace stops working, who are you going to call? While it is true that older companies can have problems and can go out of business, it is much less likely than a company that has been in business less than ten years.
Does your firm do its own work or does it use subcontractors?

Most reputable heating dealers do their own work. Exceptions to the rule would be for parts of the job that might require a special license like electrical work, plumbing work, asbestos abatement, or other trades necessary to deliver a finished job to you. A heating company that subcontracts its primary work out does so to save money but loses control of job quality very quickly. The workers employed by the subcontractor may be poorly trained or may not have been checked for drug use or criminal background problems. Worse yet, subcontractors are paid by the job for the work they do which encourages them to take short cuts to get the job done as quickly as possible.
Are your installation and service technicians NATE certified?

NATE (National Association for Technical Excellence) is an outside organization that conducts testing of technicians for job skills. Every major manufacturer and industry association recommends NATE certified workers be sought when a consumer contracts with a dealer. A NATE certified worker is more likely to have been to a technical college, has been working in the trade for several years, and is up to date technically. A NATE certified worker has to be retested every five years to remain certified. As the industry evolves, the tests for the workers have been changed to reflect those changes. About 40% of the technicians who take the NATE test don’t pass! That gives you an idea how many technicians out there don’t belong doing work in your home.
What happens if my furnace needs repairs at night or on the weekend?

The typical work week is just 23.8% of the whole week which means that it is about three times as likely to fail in the evening or over the weekend as it is to fail during normal business hours. That may not be a problem in October or March but it could be life threatening in January. Reputable dealers will have 24 hour service. We recommend testing a dealer at night or on the weekend to see if you get a response before offering your business to them. If you get an answering machine, we recommend moving on and finding a dealer with a live person taking calls.
Do you have references?

Good companies are proud of the work they do. They will be happy to share names, addresses, and phone numbers of other customers with you. Make the calls to the references. See how happy they are with the work done for them. Those testimonials are probably on of the better tools you have to evaluate a dealer. We post some of our customer testimonials on our website. Feel free to browse through them by clicking the testimonials button at the top of the page.
How many complaints do you have with the Better Business Bureau?

I feel that the Better Business Bureau is one of the best places to find out about a contractor. The contractor really can’t fake or fabricate a BBB report. It takes a very aggravated customer to make a BBB complaint. Most customers don’t take the time to file that complaint unless a company totally neglected them and were left with no other options. I feel that more than one or two complaints in three years are excessive. Look for contractors who have two or less complaints. Make sure the contractor has been listed with the bureau for at least three years. If the company is new in business or doesn’t do much business, the better business bureau won’t really be a helpful way to evaluate that company. Make sure you check out any company’s report before doing business with them. You can view our report by clicking on the link on our home page.

~ D. Randy Arnold – Arnold & Sons Plumbing, Heating, A/C Inc.

There are more questions you can ask a dealer to evaluate their integrity, but if you get good answers to the above questions you’ve probably found a reputable dealer who will take care of your needs.