Choosing the right AC brand - When you need a new AC, there are many likely questions that are going to arise. After all this is a big purchase, one of the biggest you will make for your home. One of the top questions I am asked is “What brand do you sell?”

Having heard this a zillion times, this is what I tell people: All AC companies ‘sell’ all brands. We can walk into any supply house AC brand and buy their equipment. The supply house doesn't care.

Having said that, companies tend to stick with the brands that work for them or net them the best bottom line in the long run.

There are companies that practice ‘love em and leave em’ whereby they sell you the cheapest thing they can get their hands on, install it for you and though it does come with a warranty and a manufactures warranty, when its time to get them out there they say “Yeah we will honor our warranty. Next appointment slot is 2 weeks from now”.

Well in a Texas summer this is just not feasible, you're hot now, you need cold air now. What ends up happening is you have to call a different company who will come out, get the part exchanged for free but charge you labor. Still less expensive then an actual full cost repair but what a nightmare.

Here is why I am saying all this. Before we get into brands lets talk about the installation first, then the price, then the AC brand.

INSTALLATION

The most important thing, relatively speaking, is who installs the system. You can have a Ferrari of a system but if your brothers friends mailman’s uncles dog walker installs it then it wont be worth a Ferrari.

A decent unit installed incredibly well is worth so much more. Copper line sets are cleaned and vacuumed properly. Air handlers and coil/furnaces are sealed with mastic correctly.

The unit is hung properly. These things matter so much. So first, get a good company. How? READ THE REVIEWS!!! If you cant find good things being said about them, move on to the next guy.

PRICE

It’s no secret that HVAC companies make money. We are in the business to make money, provide for our families and do something we love while also seeing people get their needs met. We are usually people persons (a good portion of us anyway).

Having said that, there are companies out there charging almost double for the exact same system, size and brand as other companies. I've seen it. It’s usually packaged with sometimes senseless add-ons and unnecessary duct changes.

When getting prices, weigh in your mind how much you are willing to pay for peace of mind. Some people don’t care. Others do. I tell my customers that Texas Discount Air has a stellar and proven reputation on spots like Google, NextDoor, Yelp, Home Advisor, Angies List. 

Gordon Ramsay has Michelin stars, the new restaurant down the street is unproven. And Gordon Ramsay will charge more for that steak because he’s promising it will be good. So get a fair price balanced with good reputation and service. Don’t forget service. 

People mistake the parts warranty for their service/labor warranty. I've seen quotes written by others to make it look that way.

Ask what the parts warranty is and what THEIR labor warranty is. You want to know how long they are on the hook to fix it with $0 out of pocket to you. Companies want that number to be small, like 1 year labor, or even 6 months labor. A good company will give you at least 2 years and a great one will give you more.

AC BRAND

Now we can talk about the original question. Brand. The best way to explain it for people not in this industry is to keep it analogous to cars. And remember, I may say a certain brand isn’t great in my opinion and somebody will go “I love that brand,. It’s never given me a days problem”. That just proves my point.

Some brands work great in some areas and in some techs experiences and horrible in others. I’m going off what I have experienced in servicing units. So here it is: Trane-Mercedes, American Standard-Lexus, Rheem-Honda, Lennox-Toyota Camry, Carrier-Chevy Malibu, York-Mazda, Goodman/Amana-Daewoo/Kia. Hope that helps somewhat.

They all offer 10 years parts (sometimes with a registration needed). In DFW, I do not like Carrier for several reasons but a big one is their warranty. A technician has to bring in the defective part, pay full price for the brand new one and then MAYBE get their money back in a few weeks. Sad. That’s not the way to do business. I know many companies here who refuse to work on Carriers that are under warranty for that reason alone. 

If  you would like to get a free estimate on a new system, and find out our recommendation for your home, you can book online or call 682-214-4822.