Keeping your HVAC system running smoothly and efficiently is an important part of being a homeowner. The overall health and performance of your heating and cooling units will have a huge impact on the comfort and functionality of your Sandy, UT home. However, with so many local HVAC contractors to choose from, many people struggle to select the right professionals. As a result, they often end up dealing with overly expensive repairs, ineffective system maintenance, and even serious safety hazards. Here, we’ll go over a few tips for choosing the right HVAC contractors to ensure that you and your family can be comfortable and maintain your peace of mind all year long.
1. Ask Your Friends and Family for Recommendations
Your friends and family members are probably the people you trust the most, and they can potentially help you select the right HVAC contractors. If any of your loved ones are homeowners in the greater Sandy area, there’s a good chance that they’ve previously worked with some of the local HVAC companies. Before you choose a contractor, ask around to find out which professionals your friends, family members, or even neighbors have had good experiences with in the past. By the same token, some of them may have also had negative experiences with certain HVAC contractors in the area. This will help you determine which businesses you’ll want to stay away from when making your decision.
2. Always Verify Licensing and Certification
Whenever you’re considering hiring local HVAC contractors, you should make it a point to ask for proof of their licensing and certification. It’s extremely important that they have their licenses; otherwise, they are not legally allowed to provide HVAC services in the area. Many homeowners mistakenly assume that all local HVAC companies have the proper licenses, but it’s always wise to verify this for yourself before committing to a service.
3. Read Customer Testimonials
Just like when you’re patronizing a restaurant, airline, or any other business, it’s wise to read the reviews and testimonials of past customers before selecting an HVAC company. In some cases, you may feel good about certain contractors, only to discover that a high percentage of their clients have had negative things to say about their work, reliability, or overall customer service. However, if you take the time to read client testimonials and find that the vast majority of them are glowing reviews, it will give you much more confidence in working with those HVAC professionals.
These days, nearly every local HVAC company will have some form of customer reviews available to read online. In addition to checking the company website, be sure to search online for testimonials as well. That way, you won’t only be looking at the reviews that the contractors have specifically chosen to display on their site.
4. Ask for References
If you truly want the best for your household, reading a few customer testimonials online may not be quite enough to give you confidence. In that case, another step you can take is to ask the HVAC company you’re considering to provide you with specific references. If they’re reliable contractors, they should have nothing to hide, which means that they should have no problem giving you the contact information of several references.
Once you’ve got the references, you can call them yourself to ask about their experiences with the HVAC professionals in question. This allows you to obtain more details than you’d be able to find from simply reading online reviews. Plus, if you have specific questions about the service, you can get the answers you’re seeking from unbiased sources. However, if HVAC contractors are unwilling to give you references, that’s a red flag, and it likely means that they aren’t confident in their past clients having positive things to say. In that case, you should probably move on to a different HVAC company.
5. Ask About Guarantees and Warranties
Generally, any reputable HVAC contractors will offer warranties and/or guarantees with their services. If they offer a warranty, that typically means that they will cover the cost of parts and labor if the service you received causes significant problems within a year or two of the job. For example, if you have your heating system repaired but the same problem reoccurs a few months later, you won’t have to worry about paying for the cost of the repair again. If HVAC professionals offer a satisfaction guarantee, it usually means that they’ll either refund you or offer additional service if you aren’t completely happy with the original service you receive.
Before choosing a local HVAC company, you should always find out what kinds of warranties or guarantees they offer. This will ensure that you’re protected if they don’t do the job correctly or if something goes wrong in the near future.
6. Verify Support for Your Equipment
Before you choose to work with a particular company, verify that it provides maintenance and repair support for your existing equipment. If you are planning an upgrade replacement and already know which brand you prefer, ensure that your chosen company can install it. Not all companies service every brand in the marketplace. Write down all the relevant manufacturing information you can find on the outside of the appliance before you call the company for verification. If the company supports your current systems, but not your tentative upgrade, ask a technician why and what else they would recommend. If you like their answer, hire them. If not, keep looking.
7. Get a Thorough Estimate
When you’re looking for HVAC contractors to work on your home, it’s important to receive a thorough, itemized estimate before committing to anything. Trusted local HVAC companies will generally be willing to send technicians out to your home for a complete inspection and cost estimate. Once they’ve fully examined your home and your HVAC system, experienced contractors should be able to provide a breakdown of what you’ll need to pay for the job. They should also be able to give you an accurate estimate of how long the project will take to complete.
Ideally, you should get estimates from at least two or three reputable HVAC contractors before making your final decision. This will allow you to compare prices and ensure that you’re getting the best deal. Plus, during the estimate process, you’ll have the chance to talk to the technicians, ask any questions you may have, and get a feel for their overall approach. Oftentimes, this will make it much easier to decide which HVAC company is the best fit for your needs.
Your Trusted Local Sandy HVAC Contractors
At Main Street Heating & Cooling, we take pride in providing residents of the Sandy area with exceptional HVAC services. Our skilled technicians offer a wide variety of services, including air conditioning, heating, humidifiers, ductless mini-splits, seasonal safety inspections, thermostat installation, and indoor air quality services. We also offer a complete satisfaction guarantee and timely, professional service on every job we do. Throughout the entire process, our team will treat you with complete respect. Contact us at Main Street Heating & Cooling today to learn more or schedule an appointment!
