Every heating, ventilation, and air conditioning system requires maintenance, or the occasional repair, or a complete overhaul at some point. Choosing a trusted HVAC company in your area requires a little homework, but there are a few important steps you can take to help you sift through the noise to find the best match for your needs.
Follow these simple steps, and you’ll be well on your way to locating the best company that will complete the work with professionalism and efficiency.
- Ask for referrals
- Perform research
- Examine reviews
- Look for red and green flags
Let’s explore these steps in further detail so that you’ll know exactly what to do when your HVAC system needs a little TLC.
Ask for referrals
Word of mouth is one of the most effective kinds of advertising that ever existed. Every person you know has gone through their own homeownership battles and will often be more than happy to share their experiences with you.
Asking a friend, a family member, or even a neighbor can give you so much insight into how a company they’ve used conducted business, how the job turned out, and whether they’d use the company again in the future.
These golden nuggets from your social circle can help steer you in the right direction. Asking for advice from trustworthy people in your life will give you peace of mind as you contemplate all your options and help you avoid companies that lack specific standards.
You can learn a lot about a company from someone else’s experience: how they felt with the overall interaction, the time it took to complete a particular project, and even the price range for a similar service you need. Ask around! If you have a certain contractor in mind, see if anyone you know has used them in the past, and you can get a good read on them.
Perform research
With internet access at your fingertips, you can find information on any home project—including finding the best HVAC company near you. Consider the following websites to start your research and narrow down your choices.
Google Reviews gives you a lot of insight about a company through real customer reviews posted to a company’s Google page. The easiest way to find a company’s Google Reviews is to search for them on Google Maps on your phone or desktop, then click on the business, then select “Reviews” from the top tab to browse. You can filter by most relevant, newest, highest rating, and lowest rating to get a good overview of past customer experiences.
Yelp is another website and app that allows users to view pictures, reviews, and ratings about businesses in the community. If you have a positive or negative experience with an HVAC company in your area, you can log on and share your experience with others who use the site or app. These helpful reviews are a great way to learn more about a company conducting business in your area and provide helpful insight into how others in your town feel about their experience.
Nextdoor is a website and app where you can connect with your neighbors and the surrounding community. It’s free to join, and members can discuss anything related to current events and sales and even ask about reputable companies in the area. You can create a profile and log in anytime you want to learn more about a potential contractor by selecting the ‘Discover’ tab and then selecting the ‘Businesses’ option. You can look up various businesses and see what your neighbors have to say about them to come up with your own conclusions.
Better Business Bureau is a website you can visit to see if a company has registered with the BBB to get accredited and rated by consumers. The BBB grades a company from F to A+ to give the general public an honest view of the company’s operations. Complaints are filed and on record for any discerning citizen who wants to verify that a company is on the up and up.
Air Conditioning Contractors of America is a national trade association representing HVAC contractors. You can locate any registered HVAC contractor to see if they service your area and can provide you with an HVAC installation, service, or repair.
HVAC company websites offer valuable information about which services they offer in a particular area. You can review their available services, schedule a consultation, and learn more about them by visiting their site.
Examine reviews
As you ask around and conduct your research to find the best HVAC company around you, there are a few things to keep in mind to ensure you get the full picture. While reading through comments or listening to a friend’s experience, pay attention to the following:
- Was the HVAC company transparent with pricing and time frames?
- Did the HVAC professional perform the work within the promised time frame?
- Was the contractor professional and respectful while addressing the homeowner’s issues?
- Did the customer hire a licensed professional to conduct the work?
- Did the HVAC company address and correct customer complaints?
- Did the company offer any guarantees?
Combing through reviews will give you a clear picture of how an HVAC company responds to customer inquiries and how important customer satisfaction is to them. It is a window that reveals how they treat their customers and whether they value professionalism.
Look out for red and green flags
While researching the best HVAC company around you, it’s a good idea to seek out licensed HVAC companies with the necessary certifications to service your system properly. There are many moving parts within HVAC systems, and without your technician having the proper training and certification, you can run into some issues if something goes sideways during the service.
Red flag: It can be a red flag if the HVAC company you’re considering doesn’t hold the required license to perform HVAC work in your state. You can run into legal or safety issues when a contractor performs work without a license, and they may not have the necessary experience to complete the job and, therefore, may not deliver complete satisfaction.
When a company has gone through the required steps to acquire a license and keep up to date on the latest certifications, you know you’ve found a qualified professional to perform services in your home.
Green flag: Strong communication before, during, and after your appointment is a great green flag to look for. If the HVAC company you’re looking into is open about its process, communicates throughout the project, and has a reputation for following up with its customers, that makes working with them all the more pleasurable.
Being on time for a service appointment is another green flag. If an HVAC company has a track record of not showing up within an agreed-upon time window, it shows a lack of respect for your time and is unprofessional.
Red flag: If your HVAC technician arrives unkempt or is not wearing a uniform or company shirt, that can be a red flag. Professional HVAC technicians tend to have attire representing their company or at least a visible ID that lets you know who they are.
Green flag: At the end of the service, having an HVAC company that provides proper documentation is a green flag. The technician should be prepared with the proper paperwork that outlines the work completed or the estimates in writing so that you know what to expect.
Recap
When looking for a qualified HVAC expert in your area, follow these tips to ensure you find a company you can trust to work on your system responsibly.
- Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family, and neighbors to see if they have had any luck with HVAC companies they’ve used in the past.
- Conduct a little research. Browse the internet for online reviews and see if the company you’re considering shows signs of valuing customer satisfaction.
- Keep an eye out for red and green flags. After doing some research and looking into a few companies, see if they show signs of professionalism, are licensed, communicate well, are punctual, and are transparent with their process.
Finding the best HVAC company requires a little work, but with these steps and tips, you can find a company you can trust to get the job done right. Be sure that the HVAC company you end up with offers maintenance plans, warranties, and guarantees to cover all your bases and ensure you are a satisfied customer.
Ongaro & Sons — Your HVAC Experts
Ongaro & Sons is a family-owned business in its fourth generation of operation. For over 90 years and counting, we have provided affordable HVAC solutions for the North Bay area, ensuring stability for our valued customers. You can always count on exceptional service when working with the HVAC specialists at Ongaro & Sons.
Our NATE-certified technicians are experienced industry veterans capable of maintaining and repairing your furnace, heat pump, or boiler system. We are a licensed state contractor with fully insured, qualified, and professional technicians dedicated to industry-leading HVAC solutions.
With decades of institutional knowledge and experience, our service technicians are among the most capable in the industry.
We’re committed to providing ongoing training and education opportunities, helping our technicians develop and learn new skills. As HVAC technologies continue advancing, we always work to bring our customers the best services and solutions.
If you have HVAC issues, contact Ongaro & Sons here or call us at 707-419-3135 today. Before beginning our work, we’ll investigate the cause of your issue and provide detailed quotes and recommendations. No matter the project, you’ll always know exactly what to expect and what you’ll pay.