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AC Repair Recommendations

Discussion in 'Homeowners Corner' started by MikeK, Jul 23, 2011.

  1. MikeK

    MikeK Member

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    I noticed today that there is water coming from my furnace. Not sure if this is something serious or a quick fix but I'd like a pro to come take a look.

    I saw in another thread that someone recommended

    Anthony @AD Plumbing and Heating 703-421-9550.

    Is there anyone else that folks here have worked with that was fair and did a decent job?

    Thanks

    Mike
     
  2. vawahoo

    vawahoo New Member

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    I had this problem last year. When I described the problem to my HVAC guy, he walked me through what to do and saved a service call. Basically the issue was the drain from the air handler unit was clogged or obstructed. Because the condensation could not drain as intended, it was seeping out from other areas on the unit. Suctioning out the drainage pipe from the end that leads to the drain on the basement floor (you may have to remove parts of the tubing to get good access to the opening depending on how it is configured) with a shop vac cleared out a bunch of junk and leaking stopped. Might be worth a shot before having someone come out. I use Cascades Comfort Services, 540-338-2446. Ask for Robert. Very good, reliable and honest service.
     
  3. hokie'81

    hokie'81 Member

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    Climatic 540-687-4676 or John Nugent and Sons 703-584-7212
     
  4. bryty2000

    bryty2000 New Member

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    I just had this problem, it was a clog in the tubing that attaches to the furnace (not at the drain end but the furnice end). My problem was that I did not have a T pipe opening to clear the clog, the builder sealed all the tubing & it needed to replaced & a T pipe was put in & they recomended that I flush it once a month with bleach or vinegar to avoid the problem.
     
  5. MikeK

    MikeK Member

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    Thanks everyone for the great suggestions. I tried to unclog it and it worked for a while this weekend but started again today. I called Cascades Comfort but they were backed up until Thursday.

    Climatic is coming out this afternoon and I'll send an update when they are done.

    Thanks

    Mike
     
  6. lilpea

    lilpea Member

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    Climatic...RULES. Highly recommend them.
     
  7. Capricorn1964

    Capricorn1964 Well-Known Member

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    I second the motion....I've had them and they were DARN good!!! We are keeping them as our resident ac contractor.
     
  8. MikeK

    MikeK Member

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    Thanks for all the suggestions/recommendations for Climatic. It was indeed an obstructed pipe. The Climatic technician came and replaced the pipe with something called an E-ZTrap. Now if the pipe gets clogged again I can use the brush they supplied to go in and clear it.

    The technician was great and explained it all and did an excellent job and the price was very fair. He also went the extra mile and helped with my dampers. The house feels really great now.

    I'm now also a huge Climatic fan!

    Tanks

    Mike
     
  9. Villager

    Villager Ashburn Village Resident

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  10. cuiw197

    cuiw197 New Member

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    Hi, tried Climatic, and they are so full of SH#T! had a leaky coil and he told my wife I needed to replace the entire AC UNIT both inside and out! After questioning the guy for 10 min, he admitted i can just replace the coil and refill the freon.
     
  11. flynnibus

    flynnibus Well-Known Member Forum Staff

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    That is necessary if your outside system is too low of an efficiency (SEER) then you can replace with today. It's a byproduct of the higher energy efficiency standards that you can't put in the older less efficient stuff anymore.

    So yes, you can put in a mismatched coil... but you're going to risk burning up the compressor, voiding all your warranties, and not get any type of expected efficiency out of the system. Is this what the guy was trying to tell you as you argued with him?

    If your system is older like a 10 or 11 SEER system.. that's just part of the fun.

    You can blame Climatic - but all contractors are going to tell you that. But you get to live with your choices...

    Oh and don't forget the change that freon is being phased out.. so you can chose to put money into the system you won't be able to service in the future and at the same time insure you will need to by putting in mismatched components that will cause a failure and void all warranties so you will need to replace the system sooner.. or you could put money into a system that will run longer, more efficient, and won't be unserviceable in the future.

    But hey, you won the argument right?
     
  12. Villager

    Villager Ashburn Village Resident

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    We had a freon leak in our system and I did a lot of research online to determine the best solution. There's a thread in an HVAC forum that provides some good information. We went for a couple of years with simply adding more freon twice a year but with the type of freon (the old kind) that the system used, the price kept going up as it was being fazed out and supplies were dwindling. Last year we replaced the unit since it was getting more and more expensive to ignore the leak and just treat the symptom of low freon.

    So you can address the symptom but it sound like at some point you may need to replace the unit. The benefit of that is a more energy efficient system and possibly lower cooling bills.
     
  13. cuiw197

    cuiw197 New Member

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    A couple of reason I'm concerned about this:
    1. The guy didn't offer any options, or basically tried to sell the most expensive option to my wife. He only gave me the options when I pressed him about why I needed to replace the entire outside unit since it is working just fine and its ~ 8 years old
    2. he gave me no explanation as to why I should replace the outside unit as it is not very old and his report actually said its working properly. When I asked him why should I do that, and he told me its just something we normally do when we replace the coil unit.
    3. for a 200 - 300$ part + labor, he wanted to charge a total ~ $1200 that's 1/3 more than most other contractors I spoke to today

    Anyway, I just want to share my experience with everyone, and remind folks to shop around for value. Maybe I'm just cheap :)
     
  14. Mr. Linux

    Mr. Linux Senior Member & Moderator Forum Staff

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    So who did you end up going with? How much do they charge per hour for labor on your coil replacement?
     
  15. Villager

    Villager Ashburn Village Resident

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  16. Mongo

    Mongo New Member

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    My Goodman AC condensor fan stopped working last Friday (unit had a quiet buzz and the area over the fan motor itself was hot to the touch). I called Climatic this morning and they had someone here by 1:30. Ended up just being the run capacitor, as I had expected. The charge was $280 for parts and labor, which is pretty standard from what I have seen online. Yes, I could have replaced it myself for a fraction of the cost, but my wife disagreed, hence the call.

    As for Climatic's service I am very pleased. Paul was very friendly and informative. I will definitely call on them again in the future when this POS breaks again.
     

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