Rohnert Park is a beautiful area, but it can also be a little intense when it comes to spring and summer temperatures. As I write, it’s a blistering 90 degrees outside—and we’re still only in the first few days of May. Many people in the Rohnert Park area are getting their air conditioners ready for the year’s hottest months by dusting off their air conditioners, but some of them will quickly realize that their units need service. Finding out that your air conditioner needs work can be an unpleasant surprise if you haven’t been saving up to hire a technician, putting you between a rock and a … hot place.
Maybe you’ve found yourself in a similar situation, or perhaps you just believe in finding the best possible deals on skilled labor in your area. In either case, you’re probably looking for a way to get quality air conditioning service without breaking your piggy bank. The key word in that sentence should be “quality.” It’s no good paying any money at all for ineffectual air conditioning service. You want to spend as little as possible while getting the best service you can. Simple, right? Maybe not so much.
Fortunately, finding affordable Rohnert Park air conditioning service isn’t impossible. It doesn’t even have to be difficult if you know where to look for what you need. The biggest problem most people have with hiring an HVAC technician is that they haven’t done any research. As a result, they end up paying way more than they need, and they don’t even always get good service as a result! Let’s make sure that doesn’t happen to you. Follow this advice, and you’ll find that you can hire a competent and well-qualified HVAC technician to provide service for your unit without spending a fortune. Cool!
Timing Isn’t Everything, But It’s Important
One of the easiest ways to make your HVAC service more affordable is to abide by the fundamental laws of supply and demand. Think of it this way: when more people want HVAC service, contractors have to work longer hours, which justifies them driving up their prices. If you’re calling to have your unit serviced in the middle of the summer, you shouldn’t expect it to be cheap.
On the other hand, having your HVAC service taken care of before or after the summer months can save you quite a bit of money. Many contractors offer off-season discounts for installations performed in the spring or autumn months, and it’s frequently the same for service.
A quick note about off-season service while we’re on this topic: you don’t necessarily want to have your HVAC serviced in the middle of winter. While you might be correct in assuming that this is the period of lowest demand for HVAC technicians during the year, you’d also be reducing the effectiveness of their work. That’s because a large portion of routine HVAC maintenance involves clearing out dust and grime that makes its way into your unit, and most of that accumulates during the winter months when it isn’t being used. As a result, calling for service too early might clean your system out just in time for it to get dirty again.
Comparison Shopping for Contractors
The other major factor you’ll want to consider when it comes to pricing out your HVAC service is the labor costs of the contractor you hire. Not all contractors perform the same quality of work, and their prices also vary considerably—though not always in proportion to their level of skill. Ineffective service can also raise your long-term HVAC ownership costs by creating or failing to prevent future problems that will require expensive solutions, so choose your contractor carefully.
To start, go through the list of contractors in your area and make a list of the licensed ones. The company you choose should have a Class C Specialty Contractor’s License and a C20 designation, which marks them as a Warm Air Heating, Ventilating and Air-Conditioning Contractor. Then you’ll want to visit the website for each one and see how long they’ve been in the industry. It’s not always that the oldest contractor is the best one, but an established track record does indicate that people have been satisfied enough with their services to keep them in business.
Finally, you’ll want to contact each contractor on your shortlist and ask them for a quote on their services. Every reputable HVAC service company should be able to tell you their basic hourly rate, as well as ballpark figures for certain specific jobs, like fixing refrigerant leaks or cleaning out ductwork.
In Summation
When it comes to finding affordable air conditioning service in Rohnert Park, the two most important factors are who you call and when you call them. Keep this in mind, and you should find that keeping your system up to snuff is highly cost-effective. Contact us for more information.