Airtron

I was relocating from Boston; back home to San Antonio; when most of the construction of my home took place. After moving in & for a few years; I kept calling in to Airtron complaining about poor system cooling. They kept coming out & claimed that either they found nothing wrong or that it was a minor problem that needed to be fixed. It wasn't until I hosted a Fantasy Football Draft party, that included the owner of another HVAC firm that I began to learn just how much of a mess Airtron made with my install. (5 units in an 8000 SF home) After everyone at the party complained about the heat inside of the house; the owner of the other HVAC company offered to send someone out at my convenience to see why the system just wasn't cooling effectively. (Primarily two 2-stage 5-ton units) As it turns out; they discovered that Airtron had never connected the wiring for the second stage (full power) on my larger units. As a result; they never switched out of economy mode into high power mode to combat the high temperatures of summer in Texas. The other company wired the units correctly & I immediately noticed far better (but not perfect) performance from my heat pumps. (I called Airtron almost immediately & they insisted that it was impossible that they could have missed hooking up the second stage on these units & that any such error would have been caught in their previous service calls. (They hadn't) I immediately had all of my warranty service registrations transferred away from Airtron & to the other HVAC company. The new company was responsive and did their best to maintain these systems that Airtron had installed. They kept things running smooth; but I still felt that something was wrong with my extremely high utility bills considering the high efficiency units that I had purchased. A few years later; I began work on a small addition / remodel; as part of a larger project to install a swimming pool & outdoor entertainment space. The company that had taken over for Airtron did not install HVAC units in new construction; so I had to look elsewhere. Thanks to Angie's List, I found Mr. Erwin HVAC; whom I found to be very knowledgeable, competent and fair priced. While they were working to engineer system options for my addition; I asked them to take a look at the still sub-par performance of my original systems. They immediately identified the main culprit as being extremely poor design & installation of the air duct system. Aside from having utilized a rats nest of mostly flex-duct for extremely long runs; Mr. Erwin's team discovered air vents that terminated at uncut sheetrock (basically sending heated or cooled air into the attic; rather than the house; along with some runs of flex-duct to one vent - then branching off of that vent to another vent. (Something that I understand to be in violation of state code.) I paid quite a bit of money to have all of Airtron's duct work torn out and replaced by a properly engineered duct system. (On one of my primary zones; a section of 8-10 feed of solid duct that branched out to large flex duct with smaller branches off off that .... with many bends/ choke points; was replaced by a 50 - 60 foot line of hard-walled insulated duct with short branches of flex-duct running to each outlet vent. This made a HUGE difference in my ability to obtain properly balanced air flow & a reduction in utility bills; since my system no longer had to work extra hard in order to get conditioned air into my living spaces. Having seen the difference between the performance of a cheaply installed / lowball price system (Airtron) vs one properly installed by a professional company that takes pride in their work; I find that it is well worth the little extra $ up front to have a system that is properly engineered & installed. I would never let Airtron set foot into my house again. (In fact when the contractor for my addition had his initial meeting with all sub-contractors at my home; I saw that he had a representative from Airtron. I immediately pulled him off to the side and asked that he sent the Airtron rep away; explicitly stating that they were not to have any part in any future work on my home. In the end; it is up to the individual what HVAC company they choose to use. Personally, H*** would freeze over before I ever utilized Airtron again.

They were very good. They didn't charge me. they put it under warranty.

Airtron had the best bid. The install took about six hours. It was performed by a father/son team, who were quite courteous and professional in their work.

Very good communication from the on-set. Easy to contact & quick response/return calls. From initial contact, job was completed in approx. 36 hours (including initial visit for estimate & returned the next day for installment of our new system). Arrived on time (approx. 9:30 a.m.), took extra care to keep every thing clean & neat, removed all components of the old system, & work was completed before 5 p.m. (including one break for lunch, which was later in the afternoon...once majority of work was done). Took time to make sure house was completely cool, instructed us on how to operate new programable thermostat, & also assisted in the rebate process.

I had a leak in my emergency drain pan. They said the evap coil was cracked. I told him the leak only happens when 1 zone is off and the other is on. It didn't make sense it would leak only half the time. He wanted to replace my entire unit for 1400 dollars. That is for labor! It gets better. I told him it seems to be a static pressure issue. He adjusts the weights on my bypass damper, but said he doesn't know anything about it. He screwed the balancing out of it!

The service tech. told me that he would have to find the part as our system was allitle dated. They found it the very next day and came out and installed it. Friendly and propmply.

He checked airflow from each vent and then worked on ductwork in attic. He continued to check the flow until it was evenly distributed.

Another HVAC contractor inspected the AC unit and discovered a leak in our AC unit that could not be repaired. Due to the high cost and the fact that the AC unit appeared to be working okay, I had Airtron provide a second opinion. I expected to pay the $89 inspection fee, but they said they provide second opinions for free in an attempt to gain business away from some disreputable competitors. They confirmed the leak existed and could not be repaired. I ended up going with the first HVAC contractors they had a slightly better price, but I really appreciated the free second opinion and would recommend Airtron in the future.

They came out on a Sunday, they were fast and efficient. Gave us information on all of the units that we could have gotten, they were very helpful in helping us pick a new A/C unit. They were curteous, hauled off all the parts when they were done, and kept the yard clean.

All went well. See above. I will use them from now on for any air or heating problems.

Airtron does a good job and the techs are always polite and friendly. Over the years they always responded in a timely manner and fixed the problems that arise (the system is a Goodman contractor unit). My only concerns are their prices seem high for repair parts and you get different opinions from the techs when you ask the same questions about the system's operations. I find this important since the warranty has expired and I pay the bills.

We were told that our maintance rep. would be at our home between 1:00 pm and 6:00 pm. He arrived just after 2:00. The service was completed quickly, but with care. We always feel that we are in good hands and that our system is ready to go for the season when Airtron leaves. We paid for a year of service which includes the spring and fall checks. We will sign up again for next year!

It took them about three weeks to attempt fix problems, and they always sent different technicians each time, and each time, the technicians told us the previous ones did something wrong or didn’t do what they were supposed to do. After we requested a manager to come out to supervise what the technicians were doing, but he showed up for about 20 minutes, then left. We are not a customer of Airtron anymore.

We were first on the list for the day so the serviceman was here promptly at 8am. He called 20 minutes ahead to let us know he was coming. He was very polite and professional. Also, very helpful with questions we had since we were unfamiliar with the system. We purchased the house while living in a different state and the previous owners had already moved away. The service tech found a problem with a run capacitor in the blower motor of the furnace. He told us the cost would be $197 and it was our choice whether to replace it or not. He couldn't say how long it would continue to function. We had Airtron do some work on the Cooling Unit back in April and it had cost us $492 to fix. The service tech at that time sold us the Service Plan for $308 for 2 units. When I mentioned we had just spent $800 in April and was not happy about another $200, the service tech for today asked if we had a Home Warranty that came with the house since we had not even lived here a year yet? I looked thru our papers and we certainly DID have one. The Home Warranty people said they thought the run capacitor was quoted way over what one should cost (about $25) and they wanted to send there own people out to fix it. (This I have no opinion on as I did not do any research on prices.) So as it turns out we will only pay a deductible of $75 instead of the $197 part charge. Even though we are not talking a lot of savings ($122), I really appreciate the way the service tech thought outside the box of (it's just a job) and was really concerned with customer service! I wished the first service tech that came out in April would have mentioned that! Especially since we made it very clear we had just bought the house a few months ago! That would have saved us a lot more! So I guess my thoughts are that the company is only as good as the service techs that represent them. My first experience was not that good. I wasn't sure that the $800 I spend was really necessary. But the experience I had today was very good and I definately feel better about Airtron. I think the service tech was professional in his duties and yet considerate of the customers concerns as well. I would continue doing business with Airtron.

He is very, very good. We would use them again in the future.

Worst experience ever! I am surprised at the good reviews on Angie's List, as reviews on other sites have been considerably less positive. I wrote a letter in April 2011 last year to Chuck Artale, Vice President, and Mike Glowka, Service Manager of Airtron Heating and Air Conditioning, in San Antonio, advising them of my experience with their company. For purposes of this post, I have put an "X" and a "Y" in place of actual names. I would have hoped that Airtron would have been happy to rid itself of a dishonest employee, but apparently not. What I didn't tell them (hesitated to have the employee lose his job) was that in making the estimate, the employee offered to do the work "on the side," thereby pocketing the money himself and cutting out Airtron altogether. The substance of the letter was as follows (please note: I live in San Antonio, so although the weather can get cold in February, it is nothing like the north): "My home has three Goodwin AC/heating units, one of which provides heat to several rooms, including my bedroom. In February, the thermostat associated with that unit did not work, so when I wanted heat, I had to plug in the unit, and when the room became warm, I unplugged it. Two weeks ago, when I tried to use the air conditioner for the first time, it did not work at all, so I called Airtron and on Wednesday, April 20th, Airtron sent "X" to provide service the unit. X looked at it and told me that it had a leak in the coil. He also told me that the unit was manufactured in 2004, when the coolant, Freon R-22, was still being manufactured. He said that as of 2010, R-22 was no longer being manufactured, and thus, it could be expensive and difficult to obtain. I have since learned that this was not true, and that 2010 marked only the beginning of the phasing out of R-22; it will continue to be manufactured on a more limited basis, and recycled, in order to service units that currently use it, until the year 2020. It is easily available. X told me that he thought that it might be difficult to find a replacement coil. I asked, if he was able to find a replacement coil, how much it would cost and he replied, "Approximately $2,500 to $2,800." He also told me that if he could not find a coil, I would have to replace the whole unit, at a cost of approximately $8,000. I did not commit to anything, but asked him to see if he could find a replacement coil. X also told me that the thermostat, which was installed in 2004, would have to be replaced at a cost of $350. A few days later, X told me that he had located a coil. I asked him if it was a Goodwin coil and he told me that it was a Ruud, which he claimed was a superior product. I can find nothing to substantiate that claim. X offered to charge me $1,100 for parts and to do the job for a total of $1,800. (Ed. note: this was if he did the work "on the side"). Although I specifically asked him what he was charging me for the Freon, he refused to answer, repeating that parts would cost $1,100. I have his offer in an e-mail to my husband and also on a recording. In the interim, given the expense, I decided to have another AC/heating contractor examine the unit, and contacted "Y". Y looked at the unit and immediately told me that it was under warranty until 2014, and that all I would need to pay for was labor. I contacted Goodwin's headquarters in Houston and confirmed that the parts were indeed still under warranty. I also contacted three local Goodwin distributors who were able to confirm that a replacement coil was in stock, and not difficult to find, as X had told me. Although distributors apparently are not permitted to discuss prices with homeowners, one distributor told me that depending on the contractor's account, a new replacement coil would cost between $300 and $450 (Ed. note: Remember, X had told me that it would cost between $2,500 and $2,800 to replace it). Y asked to visit the house a second time a few days later, telling me that before he ordered a coil, he wanted to confirm that there indeed was a leak. He spent twice the time on the unit as X had, and told me that although the Freon was down some, he could not find a leak. He also told me that in order to have looked at the coil, X would have had to remove the front panel cover. The tape placed on it in 2004 when the unit was installed had not been removed, meaning that X had not even taken off the cover to access the coil. Finally, after Y added some Freon, the air conditioner resumed working, as did the thermostat, for which X had intended to charge me $350 to replace. Mr. Y's total bill was under $140. It goes without saying that I will not do business with Airtron again." I asked Airtron for a refund of the $89 home inspection fee and, after I contacted the local Better Business Bureau, it agreed. Although it was made aware of X's dishonesty, Airtron's management continued to defend him. I should add that more than 16 months later, the AC/heating unit works perfectly.

Airtron Heating & Air Conditioning initially installed our HVAC unit and we have used them every since. They are very competent, they do what they say they are going to do, and so far I have been very happy with their services.

These folks dba Airtron Heating and AC. Their repairman said the thermostat needed replacing. Charged 89.00. Since it is a CPS thermostat I called them. The guy CPS sent found that there had been a fire/short in the compressor. This had placed high voltage into a small normally low voltage wire that goes through the attic melting the covering its entire length. There also were obvious burned wires on the furnace/blower and the wire to the thermostat wire was shorted and burned up. The CPS guy said the bare wires were still hot and could have caused a fire. He also said he didn't see how the Airtron guy could have missed all of this because it was all very obvious. Airtron refused to refund my money for their worthless "service". I requested to talk to the owner but was refused. I was transferred to a supervisor where I got voice mail. My call was not returned.

They are very courteous and professional. They informed me of everything that was going on. I couldn't be more pleased with their services. I have no complaints whatsoever but I know if I ever had any complaints or questions that I could always call them for assistance.

I was told I would get a tech between 1-6 PM. I took the afternoon off of work to be there. At 2 PM, I called to see where I was on the waiting list and they informed me that they hadn't even finished the Am appointments yet. At 5:15, I called again to see where I was on the list and they told my their technician was just finishing up another job in the area and they would call me when he was on his way. At 5:30, they called and said he would be there within the next 15 to 30 minutes ( guess he really wasn't in my area as I can get across town in 30 minutes!). At 6:10, he arrived. Thankfully, Michael and Adrian were very nice and knowledgeable. They explained everything comletely and thoroughly and I was appreciative of that. These techs made a huge difference on my feeling towards the company. It seems as if the company is over-scheduling or perhaps giving priority to paying customers rather than those under warranty. I would think, as a company, I would want to earn the business after the warranty expires of my new homes and be a bit embarrassed that their workmanship was the cause of being called out....a lack of freon with no leak is simply improper workmanship.

The tech was very professional and arrived promptly and thankfully, early in the time window given when I placed the service call. I originally thought the problem was in the capacitor but he said it was the blower motor. When he quoted me $925 I balked and told him I know for a fact you can get one online for less than $400. He said they were already cutting me a break by charging $700-something for the part and throwing in a fall service check as part of annual service agreement. Since the rest of my family had already stayed in a hotel room the night before because it was too hot to sleep, I acquiesced. However, I know the price they gave me was a complete rip-off, and thus except for the fall service call, I don't think I'll be using them again.

Our latest repair was a capacitor replacement. They A/C quit working while the unit was cycling on/off under the CPS energy saver program. I called CPS and they explained it was probably the capacitor. Sure enough when the Airtron technician arrived he knew what the problem was and had it repaired in no time. He pointed out that the hot whether is h****** capacitors. We have had excellent experience with Airtron and have no hesitation in recommending them highly.

I didn't have any problems. They put the air conditioning and heating in our new house about 12 years ago. We've had them come out for maintenance checks.

I have used them for 7 years. They always call before they come. They are very polite. If anything is wrong, they explain it to me. They order the parts immediately. I have felt really good with their customer service. I actually have bought an extended warranty, so I don’t pay anything for the tune-up. The quality is really good.

Airtran technicians came right on time. They worked quietly and efficiently. When the Alamo Heights inspector came out to check the installation, he commented on how excellent the work was. When I told him it was Airtran, he said that they always do a good job. I did not get other estimates for the job - we had used Airtran for many years, and they had a good Angie's List rating. So i don't know how their price would compare to other companies - certainly the work was not cheap. But good service is worth more to me to a lower price.