Best HVAC company in Des Moines/Ames Area

[ISUAlum2002]

Just had our Carrier A/C unit checked a couple of weeks ago. Today, the condenser motor started to hum and wouldn’t kick on. This was a 4 pm. C&K had someone here in 30 minutes. Turns out the motor is bad. Problem is they don’t have a motor on hand.

Thankfully we still were covered on parts. They waived the service call since they were just here two weeks ago. Still labor is $300. Unit warranty runs out in December. Motor alone is $250. So I did save a little bit. Nice to be able to open the windows yet with no humidity yet. Fingers crossed they get it replaced tomorrow.

Are you talking about the condenser fan motor on the top of the unit? (usually at the top of the unit, anyway....the big fan)

That happened to our 12 year old A/C unit last June. Contacted an HVAC buddy of mine, he had me just manually start the fan by pushing the fan blades with a stick from the opening on top. It didn't take much to get it moving, and it spun right up.

A $20 capacitor from Grainger and 15 minutes of opening up the back of the unit to install it, and it works great again.

 

[AgronAlum]

Anybody have any experience with home warranties as far as HVAC systems go?

Part of our package when we purchased our house was a 1 year home warranty. We decided to keep it and have had really good luck so far, replaced our water heater and washer when both of them went out. Just curious how they handle HBAC.

We had someone come out under a home warranty. They determined it was leaking refrigerant. They also determined it was caused by damage by hitting the coil with a mower or something. Even though it wasn’t us, they denied the claim. We had to replace it out of our own pocket.

 

[cycloner29]

Are you talking about the condenser fan motor on the top of the unit? (usually at the top of the unit, anyway....the big fan)

That happened to our 12 year old A/C unit last June. Contacted an HVAC buddy of mine, he had me just manually start the fan by pushing the fan blades with a stick from the opening on top. It didn't take much to get it moving, and it spun right up.

A $20 capacitor from Grainger and 15 minutes of opening up the back of the unit to install it, and it works great again.

Yep the big fan. The capacitor checked out fine. You could tell bearing in the motor has oil residue on it over time. I took a stick out about an hour after tech left and the motor had cooled down so I turned it back on and it ran fine again. Still going to get it replaced.

 

[DMKid01]

Schall, Bell Brothers, Greens, Holt are all owned by out of state, larger private equity companies. If you want to support local, I have had really good luck with Dorrian Heating and Cooling and Heartland Heating and Cooling. Great pricing and very good customer service. I have a couple rentals so use both companies based on location. Would highly recommend both of them.

 

[NWICY]

Just had our Carrier A/C unit checked a couple of weeks ago. Today, the condenser motor started to hum and wouldn’t kick on. This was a 4 pm. C&K had someone here in 30 minutes. Turns out the motor is bad. Problem is they don’t have a motor on hand.

Thankfully we still were covered on parts. They waived the service call since they were just here two weeks ago. Still labor is $300. Unit warranty runs out in December. Motor alone is $250. So I did save a little bit. Nice to be able to open the windows yet with no humidity yet. Fingers crossed they get it replaced tomorrow.

Right now I'm in the open the windows at night, close the house up during the day mode. As long as the humidity stays away it's been working. Once the humidity comes "hello AC 24/7"

 

[CYdTracked]

Schall, Bell Brothers, Greens, Holt are all owned by out of state, larger private equity companies. If you want to support local, I have had really good luck with Dorrian Heating and Cooling and Heartland Heating and Cooling. Great pricing and very good customer service. I have a couple rentals so use both companies based on location. Would highly recommend both of them.

Not true about Schaal unless they have brought in outside investors that I am not aware of since they changed ownership in 2014.

The Des Moines Register

Two employees bought it in 2014, Randy grew up in Central Iowa as well. I've never used them personally, but they are a local company.

 

[AgronAlum]

Schall, Bell Brothers, Greens, Holt are all owned by out of state, larger private equity companies. If you want to support local, I have had really good luck with Dorrian Heating and Cooling and Heartland Heating and Cooling. Great pricing and very good customer service. I have a couple rentals so use both companies based on location. Would highly recommend both of them.

PE is getting into HVAC like crazy. They're buying out the company including the family names so people still think they’re calling a family owned business.

They’re starting to install pricing software that tracks quotes between their own companies so when people get multiple quotes, they can see what the other companies quoted them. It’s all in an effort to upcharge and overcharge for services. It’s pretty ******* gross.

 

[KennyPratt42]

Not true about Schaal unless they have brought in outside investors that I am not aware of since they changed ownership in 2014.

The Des Moines Register

Two employees bought it in 2014, Randy grew up in Central Iowa as well. I've never used them personally, but they are a local company.

Schaal was acquired by Turnpoint Services which is owned by OMERS Private Equity. Turnpoint also has Bell Brothers and Greens. The acquisition for Schaal happened about 4 years ago.

Brands | Turnpoint Services

brands Turnpoint is a collection of local service businesses. Our company was built by partnering with and investing in the best-of-the-best in every market we serve. We enable our partner companies through a consultative management approach to remove barriers to growth and provide every team...

www.turnpointservices.com

 

[BigTurk]

January 2024, if you recall, we had a huge snow storm and the temp dropped. Two weeks of cold and snow. Well, my old furnace died during that initial snow storm. It wasn't a surprise and I was just waiting for that to happen. I called four or five companies to come out and take a look and Golden Rule was the only one that was able that day. They came out, said it was dead, and sent out a salesman. No one else was able to do that, and, keep in mind I knew the weather that was headed our way so I was desperate, and the next day they came out and replaced our entire system.

Since then all I heard about Golden Rule is how expensive they were. I still wonder if they took advantage of my situation, but the next day I had heat so perhaps I did pay more to not freeze to death.

What I found since is not all companies are what you want. What I mean is I knew I wanted an air-source heat pump. Golden Rule said not a problem they have them and can install the next day. A number of other companies flat out won't sell them nor service them. Golden Rule has been out a few times showing me the quirks of a heat pump and went through it all thoroughly well after installation. I do not have any complaints about that. My only regret was not pushing for a higher model. The one I have I consider more of an entry line of heat pumps. If I had one that was more efficient I would have qualified for tax credits and whatnot. Would those tax credits be more than the cost difference between what I have an a higher model? I don't know and I wish I would have explored that more. Again, though, I was desperate to be certain me and the family wouldn't die before of the cold.

 

[CYdTracked]

Schaal was acquired by Turnpoint Services which is owned by OMERS Private Equity. Turnpoint also has Bell Brothers and Greens. The acquisition for Schaal happened about 4 years ago.

Brands | Turnpoint Services

brands Turnpoint is a collection of local service businesses. Our company was built by partnering with and investing in the best-of-the-best in every market we serve. We enable our partner companies through a consultative management approach to remove barriers to growth and provide every team...

www.turnpointservices.com

I was not aware of this. Thanks for the information

 

[NoCreativity]

January 2024, if you recall, we had a huge snow storm and the temp dropped. Two weeks of cold and snow. Well, my old furnace died during that initial snow storm. It wasn't a surprise and I was just waiting for that to happen. I called four or five companies to come out and take a look and Golden Rule was the only one that was able that day. They came out, said it was dead, and sent out a salesman. No one else was able to do that, and, keep in mind I knew the weather that was headed our way so I was desperate, and the next day they came out and replaced our entire system.

Since then all I heard about Golden Rule is how expensive they were. I still wonder if they took advantage of my situation, but the next day I had heat so perhaps I did pay more to not freeze to death.

What I found since is not all companies are what you want. What I mean is I knew I wanted an air-source heat pump. Golden Rule said not a problem they have them and can install the next day. A number of other companies flat out won't sell them nor service them. Golden Rule has been out a few times showing me the quirks of a heat pump and went through it all thoroughly well after installation. I do not have any complaints about that. My only regret was not pushing for a higher model. The one I have I consider more of an entry line of heat pumps. If I had one that was more efficient I would have qualified for tax credits and whatnot. Would those tax credits be more than the cost difference between what I have an a higher model? I don't know and I wish I would have explored that more. Again, though, I was desperate to be certain me and the family wouldn't die before of the cold.

That's their M.O. though. If you cancel with them they'll have someone call you and try to keep you as a customer.

Guy admitted to me their business model is fancy trucks, lots of advertising, and same day service while overcharging 300-400%. It's a free market so I guess whatever makes you money. Personally I'll jsut wait 12 hours longer and not have someone ripping me off or trying to replace something that just needs a simple part.

 

[CYdTracked]

January 2024, if you recall, we had a huge snow storm and the temp dropped. Two weeks of cold and snow. Well, my old furnace died during that initial snow storm. It wasn't a surprise and I was just waiting for that to happen. I called four or five companies to come out and take a look and Golden Rule was the only one that was able that day. They came out, said it was dead, and sent out a salesman. No one else was able to do that, and, keep in mind I knew the weather that was headed our way so I was desperate, and the next day they came out and replaced our entire system.

Since then all I heard about Golden Rule is how expensive they were. I still wonder if they took advantage of my situation, but the next day I had heat so perhaps I did pay more to not freeze to death.

What I found since is not all companies are what you want. What I mean is I knew I wanted an air-source heat pump. Golden Rule said not a problem they have them and can install the next day. A number of other companies flat out won't sell them nor service them. Golden Rule has been out a few times showing me the quirks of a heat pump and went through it all thoroughly well after installation. I do not have any complaints about that. My only regret was not pushing for a higher model. The one I have I consider more of an entry line of heat pumps. If I had one that was more efficient I would have qualified for tax credits and whatnot. Would those tax credits be more than the cost difference between what I have an a higher model? I don't know and I wish I would have explored that more. Again, though, I was desperate to be certain me and the family wouldn't die before of the cold.

Golden Rule seems to have a lot of employees which is why they can usually do same day service calls I think. That doesn't necessarily mean that they are a good company though, the more you hire the more you have to train and keep on top of quality so service is consistent which is the downfall of a lot of companies that grow too big too fast in an industry.

I was in the same boat the first time I used them as I was in a pinch and needed someone out sooner than later. I had a drain issue I couldn't fix myself with the only bathroom in the house during the holidays and guests staying at my house so not having a shower they could use was a problem. Problem fixed in good time but found out shortly after the work was done that I overpaid for it dearly when I talked to another plumber I knew that was not in the area.

If you ever find good plumber, electrician, and HVAC company/person don't lose their number and be sure to refer their business! I fortunately have a great plumber and electrician now - both guys I personally know that own their own local business and do a great job for a fair price and have always been straight forward with me whenever I needed them for a repair or new install. I'm OK with the HVAC company I used, service is great but next time I need to replace a system I am definitely going to bid it out and see if they are competitive or not with price.

 

[JP4CY]

I didn't know about all these local companies selling out.

 

[CYdTracked]

That's their M.O. though. If you cancel with them they'll have someone call you and try to keep you as a customer.

Guy admitted to me their business model is fancy trucks, lots of advertising, and same day service while overcharging 300-400%. It's a free market so I guess whatever makes you money. Personally I'll jsut wait 12 hours longer and not have someone ripping me off or trying to replace something that just needs a simple part.

My plumber that now owns his own business used to work for them a long time ago and this is in line with stories he has told me. He basically quit because he couldn't stand knowingly ripping people off. One story he shared was he was called out to an elderly woman's home that was having an issue with not getting any water to the washing machine. He unhooked the connection from the supply line and found the filter screen was plugged so cleaned it out and hooked back up and problem was solved in a matter of minutes. He didn't charge her anything and his boss got mad at him over it. He told him he wasn't going to charge an old lady well over $100 for something that many people may have fixed themselves without a service call, that is just not good business. She was more likely to call them again for a real issue because of that instead of being mad about an overpriced bill for a few minutes of work.

Since going into business for himself he's had to hire another plumber and he's so busy I even have a hard time getting him to come out for my repairs now. Tried to use him to replace a tankless hot water heater earlier this year and he said he was booked out nearly a month because of a new contract he took on to build out a bunch of new bathrooms in a new development. Great that he's got jobs booked out like that but he's also told me he feels bad that he sometimes has to turn down repair jobs for past clients because of it. Gotta be hard thing to balance to take on work that is guaranteed up front vs inconsistent repair work that you never know when and how much is going to come in on a given week.

 

[KennyPratt42]

In my experience a lot of the good independent people get booked up as subcontracts for larger new construction or renovation companies. I have an plumber/HVAC guy that is great to work with, but I always plan for him to take awhile to get to me.

 

[clone4life82]

My plumber that now owns his own business used to work for them a long time ago and this is in line with stories he has told me. He basically quit because he couldn't stand knowingly ripping people off. One story he shared was he was called out to an elderly woman's home that was having an issue with not getting any water to the washing machine. He unhooked the connection from the supply line and found the filter screen was plugged so cleaned it out and hooked back up and problem was solved in a matter of minutes. He didn't charge her anything and his boss got mad at him over it. He told him he wasn't going to charge an old lady well over $100 for something that many people may have fixed themselves without a service call, that is just not good business. She was more likely to call them again for a real issue because of that instead of being mad about an overpriced bill for a few minutes of work.

Since going into business for himself he's had to hire another plumber and he's so busy I even have a hard time getting him to come out for my repairs now. Tried to use him to replace a tankless hot water heater earlier this year and he said he was booked out nearly a month because of a new contract he took on to build out a bunch of new bathrooms in a new development. Great that he's got jobs booked out like that but he's also told me he feels bad that he sometimes has to turn down repair jobs for past clients because of it. Gotta be hard thing to balance to take on work that is guaranteed up front vs inconsistent repair work that you never know when and how much is going to come in on a given week.

Yeah I think there is a balancing act there with how much time they donate to specific causes. Can’t say I disagree with the premise/thought process that your plumber had with that customer with the old firm but also get their vantage point that they’re paying him an hourly rate to go out and at the very least look at the issue of that elderly women’s issue. That’s time and money that they’re paying have to account for in their bottom line.

 

[CYdTracked]

Yeah I think there is a balancing act there with how much time they donate to specific causes. Can’t say I disagree with the premise/thought process that your plumber had with that customer with the old firm but also get their vantage point that they’re paying him an hourly rate to go out and at the very least look at the issue of that elderly women’s issue. That’s time and money that they’re paying have to account for in their bottom line.

Agreed, and this was a long time ago too not recent. At the very least for something like that I could see paying the service trip fee but my guess is they probably wanted him to charge whatever their "book" said to charge for the "repair" he did which was nothing but a couple minutes of cleaning out a mesh filter for water intake line. Something many of us probably would have checked ourselves first if our washing machine was not filling with water. If you've ever used Golden Rule you'll know exactly what "book" I am talking about because the service tech will thumb through it and find the scenario or job they want to do and then show you what their upfront pricing is which for a job like that is probably something ridiculously overpriced for what he did.

I respect businesses that don't take advantage of elderly people too. A few years back while waiting for my car I watched an older guy come in that they obviously knew by name because he probably had done business with them in the past. Can't remember exactly what his issue was but it was something simple that they fixed in just a few minutes because something was loose on his vehicle. They took his keys and pulled it into the shop quick despite probably having other cars in line next and came back in 10 minutes told him they fixed whatever it was free of charge and sent him on his way. Those are the kind of businesses I like to use because they value customer loyalty and doing the right thing over trying to make a few extra bucks that didn't really cost them anything but a few minutes of time to do. You only have to screw me over once for me to never do business there again but I'm more likely to keep using a place if I respect and trust how they do business. Golden Rule is not one I would ever recommend to anyone and I know of several others that have bad stories from their experiences from them too.