Albemarle Heating & Air Inc

I am signed up for the scheduled maintenance plan at $34/month. The last 3 times they have come to service my ac/heat (the only 3 times since I signed up) they have failed to come during the scheduled time. Each of the past occasions I have let them reschedule and again cleared my day for them to come. Today was the last straw and we cancelled and had our money refunded for the past six months. My husband took the day off today to be here during the 12-4 time slot since I have a young child to care for. We called at 4:20 and were told the same thing we have been told the other times: (1) they are running late because of emergency calls (2) someone should have called us. They clearly do not have enough people on staff to handle the emergency calls and the scheduled maintenance calls (note: they scheduled this appointment over a month ago when they sent me a reminder postcard). They also have poor customer service, continually not updating customers on their schedule delays, and no respect for their customers' time.

The technician was good but the office, we have a little bit of a difficult time with them. They actually rescheduled our appointment and they did it on email. They said they tried to call us but if they did we did not get an answer and I had taken off work that day so I lost a day or work and did not get my HVAC system serviced. Then I called them and had to take off another day to get that done so they just need to make sure they get in touch with someone if they change their appointment. They actually put the unit in so we are kind of staying with them so we can check the warranty. If it was not for that I could probably find someone to do it cheaper.

Hunter arrived promptly on time, and was very receptive when I explained the situation and the research I had done. He went straight to work following a methodical troubleshooting process, starting with measurements of the indoor air flow and static pressure drop. Nobody had ever done this before! He adjusted the dampers and found the air was moving fine for the system size. Next he went to the outdoor unit, and hooked up the usual pressure gauges along with thermocouples and other instrumentation. Again, I had never seen other companies' technicians use all of these measuring devices when performing a tune-up or troubleshooting. To make a long story short, he bled off two pounds of refrigerant and found my expansion valve was not faulty. He spent between 1-2 hours looking at all of the system components and running it in all of the different modes. Obviously, AHA will be servicing my system from now on!! I signed up for a 1-year maintenance contract (2 visits) and this counted toward one of the visits. If you have a high SEER system and your usual HVAC company doesn't seem to know what they are doing, they probably don't have the right training or experience. These guys do -- give them a call, it saved me a bunch of money.

I had contacted Albemarle in October because the system in the house I bought in April didn't seem to be able to keep the house warm during the cooler weather. The technician came, checked out the system and had to add 2 lbs. of Freon. He said the system might be able to carry me through the spring. After consideration, I decided to go ahead and replace the system in early December to avoid having a major problem during the winter. The entire experience was excellent, from the people answering the phone to the salesman Justin, to the two technicians, Matt and AJ who did an excellent job of installation. I was concerned about some odd sounds from the system several days later and Carlos was sent out the following day. He explained some of the sounds which I was simply unfamiliar with as this is my first heat pump. He was also very creative in adjusting the fins on a return vent that had set up a harmonic vibration! I could not be more satisfied with this Company's service. I realize they are not the least expensive but the quality of their service warrants the price.

Comfort consultant and technicians came as scheduled. Finished ahead of schedule. Placed covering to protect my very light colored carpet, worked quietly and knew what they needed to do. Work proceeded without mishaps or unforeseen emergencies.

We called when we moved into our house at the end of June, but due to the summer heat we had to wait a few weeks for them to come out which was somewhat understandable. When they came out the service tech was very knowledgable, straight forward with us, and courteous. All of the work was performed efficiently and we have not had any issues since we had this service about a month ago. The only issue that we had was that the service tech swiped our bank card with the company provided tabled, but we had to watch our bank account for almost a month and the payment was never withdrawn. Eventually we called and they said that the card reader must not have properly read the card. No big deal. Would definitely use them again.

Quick response by AHA, pricing was reasonable. Installers were professional and efficient, work was performed over a 2 day span. Work was clean and tidy, and an installer went out of his way to incorporate my request to run the condensation tubing over to my existing downspout. Highly recommended.

Woman technician arrived. so pleasant, friendly and knowledgable!

Do educate yourself first and have questions to ask before considering a new HVAC system. The industry keeps upgrading their products and you probably want to make sure you have the newest/best rated in the class you are considering. Do consider the maintenance contracts - it keeps you from putting on important things that keep your system running efficiently.

We have been using the services of Albemarle Heating and Air since 1998. They are the most knowledgeable and professional group in town.

They came out when part was in and fixed the problem. Clear communication and prompt. Problem was covered because heat pump under warranty.

They’re always on time. They do a good job. When I used to call them on emergencies; they responded well. They were really good.

The two new heat pumps are great and installation went smoothly. Our only problem was with a thermostat in the master bedroom that gave an audible double click ever time the unit went on and off; very annoying! It took quite a while before we were put in touch with the company's customer service specialist. Once we started talking to her things improved. She analyzed the problem, was able to explain it to us, came up with two solutions, the first of which improved the problem but didn't completely fixed it so we went to the second suggestion which solve the problem completely. All that was done at no additional charge.

They came on time, got a really old air-conditioning unit running again and didn't try to sell us any other services we did not need!

Apparently I did not have a contract with them thus it cost more then if I had used my regular heating specialist. I wish they had told me that up front. Otherwise, the service was fine.

The Good: Albemarle H&A is a skilled operation. Its techs are skilled and knowlegdable and have a competency across the HVAC field. They are prompt. Installation went quickly and the repairs worked properly. If money is no object there is likely not a better HVAC outfit in the C'ville area. The Less Than Good: Unfortunately, AHA have demonstrated a tendency to arrogance - calls/emails are simply not returned. Price-wise, they have adopted what they refer to as "flat rate pricing" which essentially means an opaque extreme markup - their service technicians are unable to explain the basis for these costs - whether this is because they themselves do not understand them or because the head office has ordered them not to, is unknown - examples: $85 for a $14 valve (uninstalled), $340 for a $45 expansion tank (a standard item that required over a week to provide and so I was without heat in December). Value for money is on the lower end.

Totally satisfied. I have used Albemarle Heating & Air for my home HVAC as well.

The provider called 45 minutes in advance to let me know when he would arrive. He arrived within the window that was designated. He asked several questions, then went to work on diagnosing and fixing the problem. Mike was friendly and professional and did not talk down or treat me like I was an idiot (previous experience from different organizations). The price was explained to me over the phone, prior to a service technician being assigned to my home. It was $94 to diagnose the problem and then anything above that would be what it cost to fix the problem. I originally called on Sunday. The receptionist was impatient, but the service technician explained the additional $100 I would spend to have the problem fixed on Sunday instead of waiting until Monday. Though it was cold, I waited until Monday to call. The receptionist on Monday was professional and friendly and I was given a time frame as to when to wait for the technician and notification that he would call when he was on his way. I would use this organization again and plan on using them for all my future HVAC needs.

Alex came out to advise on options when my previous system finally died after 28 years. He helped me decide on equipment that will provide me much improved heating & cooling without spending more than I need to, given my home and lifestyle. Turnaround time from initial visit to installation was one week--in the meantime, Alex got me a loaner space heater (so I could minimize the use of emergency heat). As expected, based on earlier service calls and regular maintenance (I've had a service contract with AHA since 2009), the technicians showed up on time, were professional in appearance, manner, and work performed, took measures to ensure my home was left clean, and completed the work in the manner and time expected. Despite it being a ridiculously cold day (single digits), even the tech who spent most of the day installing the exterior components had a positive, friendly, and professional attitude throughout. When installation was almost complete and a problem with the unit was discovered, another (presumably more experienced) tech was on site immediately to help problem solve and fix the problem (which was related to a factory-sourced grounding issue, I think). I couldn't be happier with the services I have consistently received from Albemarle Heating & Air.

The technician spent about an hour. Was courteous and professional.

Semi-annual service. Went well.

service man was helpful and pleasant

Excellent job. Explained everything to me.

The workers arrived on time and were very professional. They laid down padding from the front door to the upstairs where they would be working when in the house.They removed the old unit and took it to dispose of properly. They did a wonderful job with cleanup. This company also recommended a Government program called LEAP that lowered the interest rate. We would not have known about that without them telling us. I cannot say enough about this Company and the employees that we dealt with. I highly recommend them.

Missed bad motor. Had motor replaced by another company.