El Paso’s Common Air Conditioning Repair Scams.
The searing heat of a Texas Summer can often last long into Fall. And when a family is sizzling inside their home, it doesn’t take long before a desperate search is underway for air conditioning repair services. Being desperate to beat the heat can, however, make a family vulnerable. Here’s how to beat the heat without getting ripped-off by 5 common air conditioning repair scams:
1. Parts, Parts & More Parts: Replacing a part is common. What is UN-common is a technician producing a lengthy list of parts that require replacement. This should send up a red flag. This might be a scam intended to drive up repair costs so that a homeowner decides it might be more cost-effective to replace the entire air conditioner unit.
To avoid the parts, parts, and more parts scam, get more than one estimate.
2. Too Good To Be True: The wisdom in the old saying, “If it’s too good to be true then it probably is” can be applied to air conditioning repair. If a home service company offers a low-ball bid to repair an HVAC system, with significant savings compared to other professionals, it probably is too good to be true. This is a scam that sacrifices quality, cutting corners and not delivering what is promised. If a free service or part is offered, or a company attaches a huge discount to lower their price, ask yourself, “What’s the catch?” Quite often, the catch is sub-standard work performed by technicians who are under-qualified and not factory trained on the product or brand they are working on.
Avoid this scam by only partnering with a home service company that has deep roots in the local community and a long-held reputation of satisfaction among its customers. And only use a company staffed with professional technicians who are specialists in their field and carry qualifications with particular brands, products and technologies.
3. The Re-Charge Scam: Many homeowners may not be aware that an A/C unit does not need to be re-charged with refrigerant. The re-charge scam is designed to sell you a product that you don’t need on an ongoing basis because it is avoiding repair of the cause for the refrigerant need, a system leak. This scam keeps a homeowner calling back for more when refrigerant runs low again.
Avoid this scam by saying good-bye forever to a company that advises a refrigerant re-charge. Instead, remain loyal to the professional who accurately identifies the problem, a unit leaking refrigerant, and fixes the problem once and for all.
4. Up-Front Payment: Why would a reputable company ask for payment up-front for any portion of parts and labor? Well, a reputable company wouldn’t. A con artist would. The up-front payment scam means a so-called repairman may just cut and run with your money.
Avoid this scam by using a company with an after-the-repair payment policy as well as a brick-and-mortar location. If a company only has a website, how does a homeowner find them if they get ripped-off? Well, they don’t.
5. Bait & Switch: A repair technician is just that, a repair technician. They are not sales staff tasked with the job of pushing more products and services. If a repairman arrives only to begin a long spiel of offers you simply can’t refuse that inflate the cost of an original estimate, you are probably experiencing the bait and switch scam.
This usually happens when a company offers a low-ball estimate aimed at getting their foot in the door. The estimate usually was misleading, not including all the repairs necessary. Then the technician begins promoting special offers or an array of other repairs deemed necessary to get the unit in tip-top condition.
Avoid this type of scam by getting multiple estimates and avoiding any companies that offer extraordinarily low estimates. However, if you find that you already got involved with the wrong company and their technician announces some unexpected complications that will likely be costly, put a stop to all shenanigans immediately and call another professional for an expert opinion on the matter.
Avoid Scams Altogether: One strategy to avoid scams altogether is to partner with a reputable home service provider long before a problem pops up. Air conditioning manufacturer’s recommend that a home’s HVAC system receive at least one annual inspection along with routine maintenance. Homeowners who follow these recommendations will build a strong relationship with a qualified, professional company that is only interested in providing them with excellent service. If you don’t want to worry about getting scammed, please contact us to partner with a home service team who has been satisfying El Paso customers for more than 30 years.
Home air conditioning repair Service in El Paso and The Smelly Swamp Coolers
Our home air conditioning repair service techs in El Paso know that Champion-Essick® manufacture fine, evaporative coolers. However, just like any evaporative cooler, they may develop odor problems over time. This is often the case when families attempt to turn their Champion-Essick® evaporative coolers on for the first time after a long period of disuse. Many people attribute the odor to stagnate water and although that is frequently one of the causes, it isn’t the only one. There could be problems with the evaporative cooler’s water distribution system or pads too.
If you are tired of the leaks and smells, it might be time to convert to refrigerated air conditioning in El Paso today. Give us a call for a free estimate of cool refrigerated air and help avoid that dreaded home AC repair.
Minerals and other impurities in an area’s water system can find their way into an evaporative cooler’s bleed-off valve, trough holes, pump, pads and drain pan. When that happens, clogs form and often cause a backup of water and microscopic organisms to occur inside of a swamp cooler unit’s inner recesses. Some of those organisms eventually begin to produce microbial volatile organic compounds. They are natural byproducts that occur during the organism’s life cycle.
Depending on the type of organism living inside of the evaporative cooler, the odors may be reminiscent of nail polish remover, camphor, rubbing alcohol, raw meat or rancid suet. At first, the odors may be barely noticeable as you stand near the evaporative cooler. However, they can eventually become overpowering and make their way into the home. Blessedly, one call to our home air conditioning repair service techs can rectify the situation.
Our El Paso home air conditioning repair service techs can open up the evaporative cooler and remove any blockages that may be present. They can also get rid of the stagnant water, replace the pads and clean everything from the unit’s pump to the drain pain. Once that’s taken care of, the microbal volatile organic compounds will automatically dissipate from inside of the unit. As for any lingering odors in the home, it may be necessary to temporarily run an air purifier or clean household fabrics that may have absorbed odors while the cooler was is disrepair. To learn more and get your home’s swamp cooler smelling great again, please contact us and our El Paso home AC repair team online today for El Paso refrigerated air conversion.
The guys in the yellow booties are here for all your air conditioner repair needs, along with expert swamp cooler conversions. Look to the pros if you have any questions about converting to refrigerated air conditioning with SoBellas Home Services of El Paso, Texas. Call us with questions like, how much does refrigerated air cost or anything about El Paso refrigerated air conversion.
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