GAC Services

We called the company on Saturday at 2:30PM. The receptionist/dispatcher (Kerry) was sympathetic to our problem (no heat), quick to give us an estimated time of arrival for a diagnostician (4-6PM) and careful to manage our expectations (e.g. if the furnace needed a part that was not on the truck, we would have to wait until Monday morning for the warehouse to open. Also , the charge was for a diagnostic visit, not for all repairs. ). The technician (John B) arrived on time. He was professional and efficient. He diagnosed the problem within 10 minutes and fixed it within 15. He was out on the road in twenty. He made several recommendations regarding our furnace, thermostat, and CO2 alarm placements. He also prefaced every recommendation with a disclaimer that he was not trying to sell us anything as well as a clear and cogent support for his recommendations (citing codes, showing us the wear in our old furnace, and referring to preexisting conditions about which we were already aware. The immediate problem was weak batteries in our thermostat, which he replaced with fresh ones we provided. We paid $159 for the visit. His diagnostic expertise, professionalism, and efficiency was worth every penny. We will definitely be calling on this company again.

I called in late fall to schedule the suggested maintenance visit. Found the tech had been promoted. Since I had established trust in him, only wanted him to do the work. Person scheduling talked to tech who said he'd gladly come out and take care of the unit, even though his responsibilities had changed. Scheduler told me he'd get back to me. Over a week has passed and haven't heard from anyone. Dropped the ball? Need to turn on the humidifier now so I scheduled the job with another company.

Installed a new heat pump at my home. Very professional and extremely organized. They send a Quality Assurance guy out after the contract is signed. That person measures and takes photos to prepare the installation crew and any tools, sheet metal, parts needed BEFORE they arrive for installation. Makes for a smoother day on install day.

Great Service. The technician was very knowledgeable and quickly and methodically diagnosed a problem with our furnace. He was able to able to resolve the problem without any unnecessary part replacements or other services.

Our furnace quit working intermittently. It was the first really cold day of the year. The furnace is relatively new (2006). It would come on occasionally for about 5-8 minutes and then stop. We replaced the thermostat but the problem remained. All the places I called were busy for the next 2 days to 2 weeks. GAC (John) came out the same day, was on time, diagnosised the problem quickly (the water condensation trap was blocked) fixed it and made some suggestions for improving the effieceny of our furnance that the installer neglected to do. Some of the improvements are expensive ($900) but others are nearly free. John moved GAC to the top of our HVAC repair guy list!

GAC had previously installed the condenser in 2007 but it was out of warranty. During the installation, they had reattached a AC/Heat register connection (without cleaning it or replacing it) that had fallen off in the attic and laid dormant for an unknown number of years. As a result, the new air handler blew rock wool and fiberglass dust into my bedroom and the entire house. This precipitated a medical emergency for the occupant the day after the installation was completed and required $20,000 decontaminate the house. When I suggested that the company's insurance company should pay this cost, the owner of the company refused until legal action was taken. He has since refused to take responsibility, to provide any service following his installation, and to replace the condenser unit that was malfunctioning. Since the replacement cost his agent quoted was higher than another company, I didn't pursue this further. Although his staff was professional in providing the estimate, the owner surprisingly unwilling to take responsibility for his judgment error more than 5 years after his insurance company agreed that he was at fault. This was also a surprise to his own staff who provided me the cost estimate. The message is that if everything goes well with an installation, this appears to be a good company. However, if something doesn't go well or there is an accident with the installation, the customer will need to obtain redress with a recalcitrant owner and with legal counsel.

Our heat stopped working when Maryland suddenly had a flux of winter temperatures, and GAC saved the day. They came out, reinstalled our dated and stupid thermostat, and reinstalled a control panel in our system that some how imploded the past week. Both guys were fast, professional and finished the work for us. (They even offered to wear booties in our house :). However, the heat stopped working a week later. They dispatched another person, Jerry, out and he was punctual and professional all 3 times, who figured out the problem. He worked so hard to figure out what was going on, and it ended up being an old wire that needed fixing. They didn't re-charge me each visit over the same issue and I really appreciated that type of honest pricing. They fixed our heater and now it's warm in our household! THANK YOU GAC. You saved us, and we will only rely on your over our AC/heater issues.

It went extremely well and we were very pleased.

They did fine. It was a very quick, simple visit. They were here when they said they would be and they resolved the problem.

Salesman provided prices for three options. Install crew was on time, professional and clean.

The ratings above are based on ALL my experiences with GACH, not just the one described below. I have used GACH several times after they installed my unit. I thought they were a little expensive but they were prompt and professional. After having an awkward and difficult experience with them, they have earned an "A" through good customer service. I will recount the best I can: 2008 - installed the unit July 2012 - fixed a leaky drainage pipe and told me it was outside of the A/C unit and said that I should pay for it. 07/16/2013 Gary came to repair the outside unit by replacing a part Tenant told me of a leak, a week later: "The technician from GAC&H (who happens to be the same who worked on > the outside unit) came by but couldn't pinpoint the exact source of > the leak, though he agrees that it is definitely an air-conditioner > related problem. He thinks the leak is coming from a cracked pipe > under the closet (which is directly above the first floor bathroom). > He will report to his superiors, and have them send someone else whose > duties involve piping repair." 08/05 - Gary came to take a look at the reported leak but couldn't find the source of the problem 08/09 - John came and cut out a portion of the ceiling in first floor bathroom and detected the source of the leak 08/14 - Bryan came to look at the current set up to determine how to approach the repair My tenant updated me: "GAC&H sent out a technician (Bryan) this morning to take a look at the leak problem. He claims it will be an easy fix requiring no more than an hour, but as he had come without any materials, I had to arrange a repair date with their office. I got a call later today, and we settled for early morning next Tuesday. " As this was three visits I had, in the interim, requested to have a supervisor call me. They did not call me (I left a message with an employee a little after closing) the next day as I was assured they would and I did not call them the next day. After a day or two and a few discussions with my tenant I was alarmed. There was a hole in my ceiling and the A/C leak, that was "fixed" a year before, was back and an employee said something about the pipes going from 3/4 to 1/2 an inch and having a series of 90 degree turns and this would require some special fix. They had made three trips to my house and I had given my tenant $200 credit on August and September rent ($100 per month because he took off work and had no A/C for two weeks). I thought it was odd that their install was so problematic and I thought I would have to spend a lot of money fixing it and possibly take them to court if they could not resolve it fairly. In other words, why is this unit so problematic and how come they need to come over again and again and how come the supervisor never called me? I decided to escalate. I talked to someone (a female ops manager) there at length who gave me the rationale for the multiple visits (they needed a keener eye) and the leaks (I have to maintain the unit annually). I wasn't delighted at their rationale but she spoke clearly, apologized, and said they would do the fix for free and not charge me for the four visits (only one was a success of course). Bottom line is they fixed the problem for free and they made an imperfect scenario "right". My tenant was happy and, as I think customer service is the most important thing to me, they have earned an "A". I have been meaning to write them a letter to thank them. I never received a bill (it was $0 dollars of course) and maybe there is some problem waiting to resurface with my unit and they don't want to acknowledge or document what was done, but my tenant says they were very professional and the leak is gone. They get an "A" for effort and service and I will use them again.

They were high priced, they were difficult to get in touch with, our air went out on Friday night, and we couldn't get anyone to come out until Monday. They recommended some things that we didn't need. You just couldn't get a hold of them over the weekend. Their maintenance contract was fairly expensive, and when they came out, they would tell you that this is extra, and that is extra. They would come out regularly for the checks and then charge extra. They suggested an new furnace that we didn't need.

Courteous and professional technician. Great service. Would use them again.

Had our A/C system checked under a maintenance contract on 6/29/13, all was OK. A/C failed on 7/19 in the middle of a heat wave. After we reported the problem at 4:30 PM on 7/19 GAC sent a tech out Saturday morning 7/20. He determined that the blower motor bearings had gone bad and the motor needed to be replaced. GAC did not have the part in stock and could not check local suppliers until 7/22/13. No loaner portable A/C unit was offered. Temps were well over 90 degrees all weekend. GAC did not locate a local supplier for the part on 7/22, had to order the part. We were told normal delivery would be in 3-5 days. We asked about overnight delivery, which they said could be done for $150 extra. Given the extreme temps we bit the bullet and paid for the overnight shipping. Motor was installed and A/C system restored to normal operation on 7/23/13. Given the extreme heat the family spent one night (7/22) in a local hotel for $135. Complained to GAC customer service rep about the entire process, especially since we were maintenance contract holders. As maintenance contract customers, they had given us a 20% discount on parts and labor, but not on the overnight shipping charge. At first they said nothing else could be done, then they called back and said they were extending our maintenance contract for an extra six months (a $75 value). Overall we were left with a less than stellar impression, especially since we have a maintenance contract hoping to avoid just these types of "emergency" problems during extreme weather conditions. We will re-think getting a maintenance contract in the future (with any company) if this scenario would likely be repeated.

Very Well. We had water pooling in our basement under the HVAC unit and called after 6pm on Thursday and were able to get a tech out by 4pm the next day. In the interim, we deduced the water was not coming from our house, but our neighbors. Once the service guy arrived (he was early and the company told us when he was 10min out), he checked out everything, agreed with what we had done and checked on it, threw in some slime tabs and answered all our questions. He was also able to go to our neighbors and check their system and the actual leak without requiring a second service call by my neighbor. I would definitely consider GAC for future HVAC work.

John A. arrived on time and checked out my heat pump. He saw that it was the dual capacitor and replaced the part with a temporary part until he could get the factory part so that I could have the air conditioner running. He will replace the part when it comes in and I won't have to be home. I had the same part replaced 6 months ago by another service provider and he explained that it was the fan motor that caused the capacitor to fail because it was using more amps than it should. Since that would cost another $600 and included a new capacitor, I'll replace it next time when the capacitor fails again. My heat pump is 10 years old. John A was very helpful in explaining about how the heat pump works and gave me alternatives which matched my budget. He checked the refrigerant levels and tightened the heat pump cage to keep it from rattling loudly. I also purchased a maintenance agreement with them. I was very happy with the service that was provided.

I have used them for a little while now and even signed a Service Contract with them. The come twice a year for routine maintenance and anytime that I have other issues or concerns. They are great, very professional, and I have been more than pleased with their services.

It wen very well - on-time, very professional and job done in shotest amount of time possible.Project coordinator and presiden of the company (same guy) even stopped in to check. on installation. I would definitley use this company again!. Most of our neighbors have used this company.

The service delivery was impeccable. The technicians were very friendly and knowledgeable. I signed an on-going maintenance contract with GAC.

Very professional, can't remember the exact price

Their pricing was fair and they had different repairmen, so one guy that came out was really good and the other guy was fair. If I did a comparison one was better than the other, but they did a decent job. I didn't have any issues, but when I did they were prompt in their responsiveness. They came within the allowed time limit and called us right before they came.

They were timely, professional, and clean, did a good job. Would recommend.

The installation men came at 8AM as promised since we were the first call of the day. The two men inside starting to disassemble the unit inside while the other man removed the condenser outside and the platform and replaced it with a new platform and condenser. They were able to do the entire job in under 4 hours including testing the cooling and heating units. The sheet metal work was very professionally done with very little seams and looked more cohesive than what we had before. They wrapped the pipes with installation like we had before and there was a new shut off box outside. We are delighted with their workmanship. It has been a little too cool to turn on the A/C but we know that it works since they have turned it on to test both the A/C and the furnace before they left. It is suppose to be warmer this weekend so maybe we will have a chance to try it out. We are very happy with GAC, Christine, the service person (Jermaine), the estimator, QA and the installers. We are looking for a good relationship with GAC now that they are our A/C company.

Jermaine arrived earlier than expected which was fine with me. He conducted the test and found that there were 3 leaks. One was in the condenser coil outside and 2 were in the evaporator coil inside. I had the condenser coil replaced over 2 years ago under warranty and the evaporator coil over a year ago also under warranty and they are leaking again! Jermaine said that it would be at least $1,500-$2,000 for them to repair it, but I would have to go to my original company that installed the unit otherwise, it could void the warranty that is left on the unit. So I have had it and ask for a quote for a new air conditioning unit. If I had know I would have replaced the entire HVAC 2 months ago when I replaced the furnace. Jermaine said that he could not give me a quote for a new unit because he wanted to make sure that the current duct coming out of the unit to the 2nd level needed to be changed. I had complained that the bedrooms upstairs does not get as cold as the rest of the house and I would either have to turn on the ceiling fan or my portable room air conditioner to stay cool at night. Overall, I am extremely happy with Gaithersburg Air Conditioning & Heating. I am surprised by the honesty and candor and not trying to make a fast buck. I find there costs more reasonable than my current HVAC company. So we set up an appointment for an estimator to come out to look at the unit, the ducts and to give me a quote on a new unit.

It went great. No problems. System works great.