My AC was on verge of breaking last year, so I was looking for a replacement this Spring. In the back of my mind I was also considering changing the furnace as well, as it was of the same age as the AC and becoming ever noisier. I had decided to use Trane units and I called two major companies, who sell Trane. They both sent sales guys (one of whom was very knowledgeable).
I had read that Trane was basically the same as American Standard. So I then turned to Home Stars to see who was nearby. Air Heating Plus had very good ratings, and the comments seemed genuine.
I emailed Renato and he called back very promptly. He gave me some rough prices but told me he would have to see the house to firm up a price. He actually came round twice. Once alone and once with Peter. He bombarded me with questions (and answered all of mine) when he came round. His advice was very clear, very logical and came from a user perspective not a salesman. He specified the A/C unit I would require which was smaller than one of the competition. He gave me the technical rationale for the recommendation. He advised against a furnace, as mine was still working, though he gave me costs and specs in any case. In the end I decided to replace both units. He gave me three or four references who I called.
On the day of the installation he arrived early. It was a team of three who clearly enjoyed working together. Renato was concerned about the previously used capacity of wiring and said he would replace it (which had not been in the original specification). The installation went quickly and efficiently. All three seemed happy to answer my questions throughout the process. When they had finished, the basement was cleaner than when they arrived!
The system was tested, all the paperwork on warranties had been pre-prepared and they left an hour ahead of schedule. So far everything is working just fine!
So why only 9 points? As it turns out they omitted a small stage in the installation. Nothing serious but an omission. I called Renato and he was annoyed. Not with me, but with himself for not spotting a small mistake. He and Peter were back within 30 minutes and the problem rectified in 5 minutes. If I could score 9.5 I would.
So in summary Renato and his colleagues genuinely seem to care about doing a good job; they genuinely seem to care about customer satisfaction. They are professional, knowledgeable, price competitively and all manage to have some fun along the way!
They are now on my short list of contractors I trust and I will continue to use their services.
