Central Air Cost

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gottawanna1

Member
Soooo,my central air unit went out,long story short,the unit,coil,copper lines cost me 1950.00, a guy I work with used to work as a tech, so I asked if he would do it on the side, alls well?, It took us three hours,with 15 minute break, to install,start to finish,he did deliver the unit another day, 2 hours round trip, asked how much I owed him,cash,reply,I usually get 1000.00,so how about 800.00. OUCH!! 160.00 an hour cash on the side?!,Self admit my fault for not setting the labor up front,but this seems like a little extreme. I firmly believe in quality job for fair pay but this one has got me a little upset,any thoughts?
 
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anonomoose

New member
Several lessons here.

First, obviously you didn't get all the "facts" before you gave the go ahead, and you ASSUMED that he would give you a deal, when in fact, he DID give you a deal, as far as HE is concerned. Next time get all the facts prior to giving the go ahead. Suppose you walked into a car show room and pointed at a car and said, "I want that one". Wouldn't you want to know what it was going to cost you first?

Secondly, you measure the "install" by hours, but what you really paid for was his expertise in doing the install correctly. If you didn't need him, you could have said, "I just need the parts...and I will install it myself." Of course you didn't do that because you needed what this guy had in his head. That cost him money and he is now rewarding himself for going to school and learning how to do this and even though YOU think the price is steep, this is exactly what he went to school for and or learned on the job training so that he could make money with his knowledge. Would you ask a surgeon to cut his wages when it took him years to get to the point where he can cut out your gizzard?? How about a lawyer who knows his skill well and he gets you off that charge of drunk and disorderly or DUIL??

You paid for his knowledge.

Finally, had you installed this yourself, what warranty is included? On the other hand, would this guy come back and help you out if the machine crapped out in a few months??

It is NOT always about the money, but the equipment he sold you and how well it will work and what-if's up the ying-yang!

If price is the ONLY important thing to you, then get all the facts prior to giving the go ahead and even then don't be surprised that something out of the ordinary happens and it costs you even more. That's just the way life is, unfortunately.
 
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snobuilder

Well-known member
HVAC guys are the worse because not many ppl know what the material costs are. Many would be shocked to find out how low the cost can be for the heat and AC units,....yes these guys are making a killing. Especially with the energy credit deal through the feds. It pays to get several estimates as my daughter found out recently.
first 2 guys quoted in the $6500 range for an 80% and a new AC install on a SMALL home. Granted the furnace is in a crawl so there is a premium on that labor.
She went and got a 3rd estimate through a friends recommenation and his quote was $4600 with a 95% efficiency unit.
She questioned his price as whether it was a complete job and a fair comparison to the first 2 and the guy said he was making plenty of money on her install and the other 2 were flat out obscene.
 
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Dave_B

Active member
Not too bad if you ask me. Like moose said, you paid for his expertise as well. I paid my neighbor who does commercial HVAC $3,500 a couple of years age to replace and install everything. Furnace, condensor, line set, etc. It took us about three hours and a 12 pack to do it.
 
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samc

New member
That seems pretty steep. Like anonomoose said, you needed to talk about pricing with this guy prior to giving him the go ahead. I just picked up a brand new Carrier 2 ton unit for $1,200 and had a buddy install it for $250 cash.
I found out after talking with my buddy that this stuff does have a huge mark up.
 
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whitedust

Well-known member
HVAC costs are all over the place & not cheap. You have to do a lot of homework on apples to apples hardware & service then you know your best deal. Don't let HVAC service do anything without a bid first or he will have a field day with you.
 
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arcticgeorge

New member
yeah we had a thermal coupler go bad,(little pipe upfront before the pilot light) took about 13 minutes to install from our neighbor who owns his own HVAC company ...cost $200! I dont know how much a coupler goes for but...We were renting at the time so it cost the landlord that...... That is high per hour, i would have got the price straight before any work was done...........Brick work is kinda like that..you charge about $1.25 per brick for labor and i can lay 1500 a day easy. As stated before your paying for the expertise too. If you want to avoid that pay them by the hour at a reasonable rate plus beer... keeps'em happy!
 
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chords

chords

Active member
Not only are you paying for his time and knowledge, but your time is valuable also. You knew the guy, you helped and was involved and the job got done pretty darn quick and didn't drag out for 5 days or more. Not having to dink around making phones calls and waiting and waiting for no shows and excuses and parts is worth something. The trade off is what ya gotta decide on for work like this and if you're comfortable with the result than its good.
 
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gottawanna1

Member
I do totally agree that I did not get all the facts in regards to price, and I do understand the knowledge factor, I was a Bricklayer for ten years before becoming a Lineman,been through two apprentice programs,served on two apprentice boards, when I did a fireplace for another guy at work I charged him 25/hr cash ,knowledge and training included,paid me an extra 25 and a case of beer,win-win, no prior agreement. Just feel like 160.00/hr cash is a little crazy for someone in a trade,on the side,no ones life on the line,and for someone that works side by side with you,and stated he made around 30.00 an hour working for a contractor before becoming an apprentice lineman,dunno,just different mentality towards other people,any heating guys that are looking for work for say 75.00 an hour,I have been through training and use my knowledge to work on high voltage for half that, poor decision on my part I quess.
 
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snobuilder

Well-known member
gottawanna1 said:
I do totally agree that I did not get all the facts in regards to price, and I do understand the knowledge factor, I was a Bricklayer for ten years before becoming a Lineman,been through two apprentice programs,served on two apprentice boards, when I did a fireplace for another guy at work I charged him 25/hr cash ,knowledge and training included,paid me an extra 25 and a case of beer,win-win, no prior agreement. Just feel like 160.00/hr cash is a little crazy for someone in a trade,on the side,no ones life on the line,and for someone that works side by side with you,and stated he made around 30.00 an hour working for a contractor before becoming an apprentice lineman,dunno,just different mentality towards other people,any heating guys that are looking for work for say 75.00 an hour,I have been through training and use my knowledge to work on high voltage for half that, poor decision on my part I quess.
Click to expand...


next time he comes over have his cheatinazz peel off a couple twentys for a fridge beer because he did YOU MUCH worse than THAT....expertise.....LMAO....where can I find you guys when I am bidding work....?
 
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snowsdog1

New member
Replaced mine two days ago

My unit died Monday, bad leak in the A coil. One of my good friends owns his own Heating and Cooling company, and we also do a lot of business together.

He install a brand new 13 seer 2.5 ton unit, with line set and new coil in the furnace for $790. That was his cost for materials, and labor for him and one of his crew to put it in.

He billed me off his invoices for the products I made him show me them as I wanted to be sure he was charging me enough. ( he is the kind of friend that would loose a little money out of his own pocket doing something for a buddy to try to help out)

There is mark up in most everything, and that will vary greatly depending on the size of the company as the larger they are the more overhead expenses they have to cover.
 
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G

Guest
Not enough details.

O.K. The guy used to be a tech? Is he currently licensed to do HVAC work? Not just anybody can purchase certain kinds of refrigerant. In Mn you get to take tests and pay yearly fees just to be in the biz. You also have to pay disposal fees and have paperwork supporting every application involving refrigerant. You purchased exactly what parts prior to installation? The outside coil/fan unit and line set or did you also have to get an A-Coil? Did you do new copper all the way back to the A-Coil? Who provided the refrigerant? Whose vacuum pump did you use to evacuate the system? Who did the electrical? In MN HVAC people cannot also do certain electrical hook-ups. Legally, anyway. If the guy charged you just a couple of cases of beer for this job he might get real popular in a hurry doing unlicensed and illegal installs. He maybe knows this and does not want to be that popular. You may have gotten more of a deal than you realize.
 
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snobuilder

Well-known member
And now with your feds taking yet another step to protect ourselve from the evils of the world, lead based paint abatement will allow us carpenters etc, to elaborate long hand about each and every extra step we must take to capture and dispose of the lead paint on your pre 1974 homes,....whoooohoooo cha-ching!....
 
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peter

Member
Price is all about what brand of unit and quality of work you get. Lots of hacks out there.

There is so many different brands and models to choose from. Prices have a huge range. Don't forget you get what you pay for.
 
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ezra

Well-known member
every one bitches about price for service guys.we have huge workers comp bills truck payments health ins gas warehouse payments liability insurance state required classes every Yr licence fees.ok start adding it up if some one is charging you 100bucks a hr he is prob bringing home 35bucks before he files the paper work and respites in to the tax file that he will have to deal with at the end of the quarter.the grass always looks greener .many times I have thought about just going to work for some one else and prob make close to the same money
 
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