Recommendation for healing / cooling replacement contractor
 

I'm interested in any recommendations for a local heating / cooling company to replace our system here in the Villages. Designer home in the Spanish Springs area of TV. System seems to be original to the construction of the house and seems to have run its course and needs to be replaced. Any help in finding a reliable local contractor is appreciated.

ThanX

Kalos

You are going to get everyone saying who they used with a question like that and that's not going to help you. You can easily do your own Google search for HVAC companies working here in the Villages. Just stay away from Frank Gay. Of the bigger companies get estimates from Sunshine and SunKool. They both do new installs for the Villages new builds so they will have the best buying power with Carrier and the cheapest prices. Call Ray from Sunshine on 352-445-7065 and get an estimate. The most important thing to remember is the installation is the most important part of the job. When comparing estimates, make sure you compare the same equipment to the same equipment and ask what they are changing for the install. Also, remember, some of the smaller firms although very reputable may try to sell you a system that seems a lot cheaper because that's the one they make the most money on. If you get a higher efficiency system, check on the Federal Tax Credit to see if it applys to the system you want because that goes away this year. Also don't be afraid of the more advanced systems since you can get a transferrable 100% labor contract for an affordable price which covers everything along with the 10 year parts that Carrier gives you. I'm sure you will get sales people telling you not to get a more efficient system because they are expensive to fix and there are no parts. That you will be burning up for months waiting for parts to fix. That's all scare tactics to try and get you to buy the most basic lowest efficiency system they sell because that's the one they make the most money on. With 10 years parts and labor you don't need to worry about any of that anymore and the newer heat pump technology is the same as what's in all the minisplits everyone is installing. I think you probably have a furnace in your area. You will save money each month with a higher efficiency system but it may not re-coup the extra money right now. Just keep in mind Seco is raising the cost of our electric this year again and who know's what happens a couple years down the road. As the cost for energy increases, your savings will increase as well and you might be patting yourself on the back when that happens if you decided to go with a more efficient system.

Chuck Farrell is great, not sure if they are taking new customers but it’s worth a call.

Chuck Farrell without question.

A new HVAC system usually comes with a 10-year parts and a 5 or 10 year labor warranty. To me, the most important factor is to hire a company who is prepared to service this warranty. Chuck Farrell is a good company who gets great reviews, but their website says that their operating hours are from Monday to Friday from 8 am to 5 pm. I would ask them what happens if the system fails on a Friday evening in the middle of summer? Other companies, like The Good Guys, claim to install new Carrier systems but they are not even listed on the Carrier website as authorized dealers. I would ask them how they service the Carrier warranty?

Larger companies, like Munn's and Sunshine, can provide service 24/7 and I would be willing to pay them more for a new system for these reasons. Something to consider.

Good point and the they are Carrier authorized dealers as well.

We have been happy with Sunshine (have used them in two houses in The Villages).

Buds in silver springs/Ocala, best I have found

Air FX Inverness FL
 

I used to use DeSantis. NEVER AGAIN.
I switched to Air FX. They were more professional. They were honest. The prices for service were better. They showed me what they found and why it needed to be replaced.
Both warm bodies that DeSantis sent out lied to me.

Some excellent advice here, especially about using a company that can provide service 24/7. You don’t want to be waiting until Monday-Friday if your A/C goes out in the summer. If it were me I would get quotes from SunKool, Munns and Sunshine and would also request an annual service agreement quote.

And to add, ask about a 10 year full labor warranty as well. Ours cost $100/year which is cheap insurance. You will probably find Munns the most expensive since they are not the cheapest anymore as they stopped doing installations in the new builds for the Villages. I believe they sold off that business. Make sure when comparing estimates you compare "apples to apples" and make sure you understand what is being replaced with the installation. Sunshine's quote includes full replacement of everything except the ductwork with new. Some companies will re-use the lineset, the copper piping from the inside to outside units for example which will make their estimate come in cheaper. In some cases it may make sense to re-use the lineset but here in the Villages it's easy to replace with new. If a company starts to scare you about more efficient units, that's a big red flag. You should be presented with a good, better and best solution for your home without any drama on any system. As I mentioned previously, if you plan to be living in the home for another 5 year or so, remember our electric rates are going to increase over time so although a more efficient system might not be saving a lot of money per month now, as energy rates rise, you will be saving more. And don't forget about the Federal Tax Credits on heatpumps and the more efficient equipment that are going away this year. These credits can help lessen the cost of the more efficient units.

We use Mark Anthony. Good service and decent pricing. We stopped using Sunshine and Munn. We were regulars with Munn and all of a sudden they didnt have the manpower to service us when we needed them. Very happy with Mark Anthony. They service at fair pricing and we just replaced our AC.

Try DJ Cooling in Ocala. This is a young couple (30's is young to me). Danny does the work and the wife runs the office. We were happy with both the work and the price for both servicing our full-house unit and for the installation of a mini-split in our garage.

Hvac
 

Chuck Ferrell

Personally, I would never hire a one-person company to install a whole house HVAC system with a 10-year warranty. When your AC fails in the heat of summer, you want a company who has access to technicians 24/7 and the spare parts needed to make the repair immediately.

Great response! Thank you

Absolutely, the best period

A/C Service
 

But I have gotten GREAT installation/service from DeSantis and remain a satisfied customer.

Our vote is for M&S. We appreciate their team, efficiency and successful installation of A/C in garage, new HVAC unit (Mitsubishi) and periodic service visits. Seems as if you have quite a list of contractors. Good Luck.

The local "Seniors vs. Crime" organization can provide you with information on who is reputable (and who is not)

But why is his company the best?

Heating Cooling Contractor
 

We found M&S to be of good work ethics and priced fairly. Whoever you end up with Google federal tax credits for new systems. Our new system installed 2024 with $2000 tax credit. I believe the program has been extended into 2025. Also we are Leesburg electric service and they were giving a $500 rebate. Be sure to check your electric service to see if that credit program still running. Good luck and hope you have a good experience!

We use SunKool, but many don’t like them.

I have been using Duncan's out of Ocala for the last couple of years and have been very satisfied with the service. They do have personnel available on weekends.

Had good experience with Munns, bad experience with Sunkool!

FWIW, the company was sold in the last year or two (original owner/founder died).
So, different owners now.

We had M&S, Sunkool, Munn's, Sunshine, and Good Guys come to our house and give us estimates. M&S was to high all the others were in the same ballpark. Just make sure you are comparing the same systems. Will the company replace the line set? Will the line set be run underground or through the attic? Will there be a surge protector added to your outside unit? Will the filter be a 4 inch or a 1 inch? What size unit will I be getting? Will you replace circuit breaker if needed? Some companies are offering a 10 year parts and labor warranty. Will I save if I get a variable speed unit? Will you finance with no interest? I am sure you will have more questions? We did not choose the least expensive company. We stuck with the company that we have been dealing with for 16 years. They were $300 more but we were happy with the service response on prior occasions. Good Luck!

Do you have a furnace or heat pump? We have a heat pump and for the Carrier Infinity system Sunshine was $2,000 cheaper than Munns everything equal.

We had a Carrier Infinity heat pump installed. I had some other work done as well.

A fair point; however, DJ is not a one-person company. I don't know how many employees it has, but I do know that the service was performed by an employee. Danny and a second employee installed the mini-split.

I expect that there are many like me that prefer to do business with smaller, family owned operations. That said, I have used Superior and was quite happy, including a response on a weekend and the "loan" of a blower motor when ours had failed.

As you mentioned, some people like the personal touch of a smaller company but what I've learned is the larger companies buy significantly more equipment so they get better pricing from the manufacturer than a small company. With a reputable company like Sunshine for example, they will have significantly cheaper equipment costs than the competition for the same exact equipment and installation and you will probably get a cheaper price to do a new installation than the rest.

All this said, there are different "markups" for different systems. So, for the basic "builder grade", "the Good" system that most use to replace their systems because it's the cheapest, the "markup" is small so the difference between companies will be small. For the more efficient systems like the "Better" and "Best" systems which only some may buy because the sales person tells them the energy savings is not worth the extra money for the system and there are no parts and everything is way more expensive when you have repairs, the markup is greater plus some manufacturers will have more rebates on these systems so there is more room to offer a lower price if you pay less for the equipment becasue of the volume you buy annually. Also, a larger company that is an "authorized" dealer will have access quicker to replacement systems, parts and support.

HVAC is probably one of the most mis-understood topics becasue on the surface, the techonlogy seems very basic and it is, but it's also can be very complex. It's a topic complex enough where the average homeowner has to rely on the honesty and integrity of the HVAC company they choose. On the flip side, reputable companies also understand if one of their employees does something unethical and it gets reported their reputation will be harmed. This balance usually works.

I can tell you although Sunshine, who I use, is a very large company, when they answer the phone when I call and know who I am (from their database), they try their best to be personable and do whatever they can to support me as if they were a small company. They have sales/tech support people who once assigned to you, will even come to your home to answer any questions such as how to do something on your thermostat or anything else that needs to be addressed for free without a tech coming out. When I recently upgraded my system I now have one of these support people who I can even text if I have any questions on my new Carrier Infinity system and he usually responds quickly or calls. I don't know how more presonal you can get.