American Vintage Home Heating Cooling & Plumbing

Our first impression of AVH was good as the office staff was polite and prompt. Our technician was kind and took time to explain various parts of our system to us to help us understand how it all worked. The yearly maintenance from the service plan was fairly surface level but went well. We needed several valves replaced on a few radiators. This was a project that took the technician literally 3 minutes per radiator (it's as simple as unscrewing and screwing a part on) and the part is approximately $15 per radiator. We were invoiced $95 PER vent for the parts, and were charged $800 for the replacement of a main-system vent which was a similar job. Additionally, the technician advised us that we ultimately needed to replace our system with a water radiator system (which they would install, of course). Most of our concerns/questions about system performance (mostly noisy radiators) resulted in an answer about how these old systems are impossible to maintain and will just need replaced. It was our experience that: 1) AVH serves a North Shore clientele who may be less price-sensitive than our household, and as such their prices are extremely high. This is for both parts and labor in our experience. The "discount" for being a subscriber for the annual service plan still results in very high costs, especially when compared to other firms. 2) For steam heat in particular, we found that AVH does not have the expertise to accurately evaluate and recommend proper maintenance. They seem to be focused on water systems, which may explain their recommendation to switch, but we wanted a provider who specialized in steam. We ended up working with a competitor (see my other reviews) who provided a much higher level of expertise and about 60% of the cost of AVH without the 600% materials price markup that we experienced with the valves. A competitor was also able to provided detailed and actionable answers to specific concerns, where as AVH redirected us to the idea of scrapping the system. 3) At least for the steam boiler, the annual maintenance call that is provided as part of the service plan is of little value. AVH may be great for water heat systems or for households unconcerned about cost. We will not be renewing our service plan for the heat system next year.

Srdgan and his crew at American Vintage Home are a pleasure to work with. They are punctual, courteous, and knowledgable. They installed a natural gas garage heater that required running a gas line from the basement and electrical from a nearby junction box. Srdgan, as team lead, was collaborative and informative as the work progressed on this almost-one-day-job. I admire his expertise and would welcome him back for my next HVAC project.

We have used American Vintage Home Heating since we moved to the North Shore to serve our A/C and boiler. We have a home service plan with them for those appliances. Our boiler is a Weil McLain and is probably 20 -25 years old. This past Saturday, our boiler malfunctioned and the pressure skyrocketed to over 15 PSI and water starting spraying out of the pressure release valve. We immediately called AVH and the technician called us back within minutes. He was fantastic! He walked us through what we needed to do to control the situation without having him come out because as he explained, it would have cost us over $500/ hour for him to drain the system. He walked us through shutting the system down and draining it and told us that we may need a new sensor and that we should wait until Monday if we could because he would not be able to get the sensor until then anyway. He checked back in with us twice to make sure that all was well and set up the appointment for Monday for us. (Our only red flag was when he said, based on the age, you probably need a new boiler....) On Monday, the technician arrived and checked everything out. After careful review and pulling things apart, he called us down to give us his assessment: It would be too expensive to fix this old of a boiler. We certainly could however, we would need to: replace the pressure relief valve, the glass gauge, and the low pressure gauge. We would also need to do a deep clean to the heat exchanger. This would all come to approximately $3500. He said our boiler was in terrible shape and was caving in on itself and that the heat exchangers were corroding. His recommendation was to have the engineer to come out to replace it instead of throwing good money at this when it will probably fail again soon. We were terribly concerned after that meeting and had the engineer come out. I will say that AVH was very responsive! The engineer came out very promptly. She looked at the boiler and said that she too thought the boiler was in terrible condition considering its age and the issues and that we should look to have it replaced. She also suggested that we should consider changing from a steam boiler to a water boiler. (Our home is a 1921 home and has always had steam heat) She explained the cost would be less and the heating would be much more even. That the radiators we have would be adequate for conversion - the would just need to convert them. The following day (Tuesday) we received the quote. After doing our own research, we thought the boiler would be around $10,000..... so if in fact to fix it, it would cost $3,500, it made sense to upgrade.... however AVH came back with a quote for over $16,000 - $18,000 for steam and $14,000 - $16,000 for water! I immediately called the engineer and discussed the quote and told her we needed to get other quotes. I called two other professionals. BOTH Professionals said the following: Our boiler is older but is in remarkable shape. It is not caving in at all! In fact, there is nothing wrong with it, except for the dent on the top of the hood where some one probably leaned on it. The pressure value does not need to be replaced and the system does not need to be flushed as the water coming out was all clean. The low water sensor and the water feeder did need to be replaced and the lines to the PSI should be cleaned out when you change those. BOTH!!! technicians from different companies said the same things to us. They said, if you want to replace the boiler, do it on your own time, but this boiler DOES NOT need to be replaced. When asked about converting to water, they BOTH said, do not convert because as you cannot see the pipes in this old home, you could be subject to water damage if there are small leaks in the pipes where with steam you don't get this.... When given quotes to replace our steam boiler (like to like with AVH) their quote came in at $12,000. That is a huge difference! I am so disappointed in AVH! I understand that companies need to make money. And I understand that they expect we should all pay a premium, but I am so sad that we really liked and relied on them only to find out we were being sold many lies... and for how long? We will not be utilizing their services again.

It went very well! Walter was the name of the man from American Vintage Home who helped me. He did an incredible job! He was kind, professional, and he knew what he was doing. He even went above and beyond what he needed to do. Above 5 stars!

Very thorough. Investigated potential cause of condensation signs in the furnace and alerted me to other signs of aging in an older Weil-McLain boiler furnace. I appreciated his kind and respectful manner.

Professional and helpful installers. Good work done exactly as described, in a timely and efficient manner. Recommended.

On the first cold day of the year the my heat broke down. I called AVH and someone was here when promised. The tech quickly figured out the problem, and provided me a list of items that needed my attention, and give me some tips on prolonging my system. I agreed to some of his recommendations and the heat was up and running just in time for bedtime. Thank you AVH and your amazing staff, I truly appreciate your efforts.

So far Ninos, the tech was really kind and it seems he did a good work because the heating system is working. Thank you

The work went well--only very minor issues and they were quickly adjusted by the contractor. Workers were pleasant and efficient and cleaned up well. AC was fine through the summer and furnace has run well through the first weeks of heating season. Hoping for another 30 years.

Kind of fixed but at a very high price. Other types of work done were done well but not this time.

Ok. Scheduled for 8-10, I called at 11:30 to find out hey had emergency repair and weren't coming, rescheduled for next morning at 8AM. Woke me up at 7, took about 15 minutes. Can't complain too much about being early, but they should have contacted me to reschedule.

While the team member who quoted the job (Jack) and the sales representative (Kevin) assigned to our case were professional and courteous, our overall experience with the service technician and services performed was one of disappointment. The plumbing intake valve was replaced as expected, but the concrete patchwork was poorly executed and resulted in a month of coordination on our end and multiple visits from multiple team members to address the issue. On one visit, the technician didn’t even announce that they were finished for the day and drove away from our house without communication, leaving our house unlocked. We had to call the main company line to find out the technician was finished for the day, something we shouldn’t have had to do. Additionally, our utility sink was used to clean tools from the job which we did not give permission for; this resulted in a clogged sink owing to the materials washed down the drain and a weeks-long wait to have that issue addressed as well. We reached out to American Vintage Homes explaining our disappointment with (1) their lack of communication throughout the process resulting in continual coordination efforts on our end, and (2) the overall length of time to address some urgent issues like clogged plumbing prior to writing this review, and their response to our lack of customer satisfaction was predictably disappointing as well. We signed up for a maintenance package in addition to the intake valve work (based on the professional/courteous interactions with Jack and Kevin prior to any work performed), so we were planning on establishing a relationship with AVH as our go-to for plumbing issues. Unfortunately, this will now be re-evaluated.

American Vintage Home responded within 24 hours of a water leak that occurred in my home after a pipe cracked. Unfortunately, I had to go without water for more than 48 hours, but when their plumber did the work, he did an excellent job. He completed the job quickly in less than four hours, replacing multiple pipes with attractive copper pipes. He left my basement cleaner than when he arrived. That being said, American Vintage Home is very expensive. However, I am willing to pay for quality and the peace of mind that comes from quality work.

They did an excellent job and are very good at what they do. I have them come out and check my air conditioner every year as well. They go above and beyond and I would highly recommend them.

They are outrageously expensive!!! To disconnect and reconnect an existing AC unit is neither a difficult task nor time consuming. They quoted $2,169.00, but "generously" reduced the price to an Off Season $1,945.00. Two other reputable companies quoted $1,300.00. I was able to find a licensed HVAC installer that was willing to do the job for $400.00. In the end, I had the existing 17 year old unit disconnected and replaced it with a new one. It took 30 minutes to disconnect the unit and to collect the Freon. Unfortunately, there are quite a few companies out there who shamelessly try to take advantage of homeowners who do not do their homework.

Extremely well. Dominick is outstanding, he should be a manager.

Just fine. Everything was top notch. It was expensive. I guess you get what you pay for. They also replaced some old galvanized pipes and a utility sink faucet.

Was polite and informative. Took the time to explain everyrhing he was doing and why

David came earlier than originally scheduled, which was great. He did a thorough check of the unit, indoor and out. He showed me the vitals on his phone/app and that my unit is functioning within normal levels. It's an older AC that could use newer parts, but, as David explained, it wouldn't perform much better, if better at all. Ultimately, i would benefit from a new AC, but it's really not necessary, right now. Only charged a small service fee.

The new furnace works pretty well. We have a 1900s vintage farmhouse that still needs more insulation - we've been adding some here and there when we do related projects. We also got an Ecobee4 smart thermostat which has helped to monitor and adjust our usage. For what it's worth our community ratings in the Ecobee data have been pretty good, most months. The AC compressor (outside) needs to be replaced next. I actually joined AVH's membership program, something I'm usually very reluctant to do. But the regular maintenance visits give real peace of mind. The plan has included some discounts on the AC work we've had done, too. AVH has helped me to get a few more years out of my AC unit. They give advice (I should buy a new unit), but I've never felt pressured into any unnecessary work/purchase.

Excellent. This is a high quality company. Andrew was the engineer and he was outstanding.

I had an inspection done which revealed a couple of issues needing attention. I got a full explanation and a written estimate was sent for my review and action.

Thought I had a leaking toilet. Brian actually recognized my Toto system, checked it out, no leak! Checked out rest of my plumbing, no issues.

Very well. Professional and thorough.

We were very pleased with how fast they showed up & the price was reasonable.