America's Best Heating and Cooling

A/c was working fine as far as I could tell. I bought a discount inspection that was advertised. The technician arrived within the expected time frame. Immediately upon opening the a/c unit announced leaks at two valves using a visual inspection. He immediately said he could replace each for $95 each. Then quoted a price for cleaning the unit. He applied his gages and told me I was low on Freon. Only later in the conversation did he mention that replacing the valves will require removing the old Freon and replacing it with new which would be in addition to the $95 each for the valves. Freon for that system would cost much more than the repairs on the valves. He was polite and professional when I said I did not want to do the repairs. He told me I should not run the unit low on Freon and left. Using a company, my wife knew I had another inspection. The technician from Americas Best was correct that there was a slow leak. The new company applied pipe dope to the caps and stopped the leaks saving me hundreds of dollars. The new company also inspected additional electrical devices and my furnace. In fairness the unit is old enough that I will be replacing it with a higher efficiency unit in a few years. Hopefully the pipe dope will last until then.

I bought a Groupon for $39, promising $39 for a Preventative Furnace and Heat-Pump Tune-Up from America's Best Heating and Cooling (Up to $129 Value), and what I got was overcharged and under served. The technician was over an hour and a half late, and his assistant took time off in the middle of the service call to change into his uniform for his next job! The much vaunted "18 point checklist" of services on the company's web page was only partially accomplished. No electrical readings were taken, no covers were removed on the air handler, and the filter check consisted of asking me how often I changed them. I fully expected that the $39 was a low ball price to get in the door and charge me extra for things like freon - which I knew I needed, but I did not expect the full price of $370 (which I paid in cash). After consulting with the "office", I received a $39 "discount" for my Groupon - which is what I'd already paid! Paying the full price in installments isn't my understanding of how a coupon works, but after speaking with a company rep to express my displeasure, I was told that I waited "too long" to make the appointment, and that they'd charged me a fair price for services rendered. The Groupon expires on 26 Oct 2012, so "too long" shouldn't apply. I was promised a $90 partial refund after I called, but as of 14 July have not received it. I would not recommend this company to anyone with the exception of my ex-wife.