Before you order
Guides
The decisions that are hard to reverse — size, structure, cover and lead time — written down in one place.
How a replacement actually works
Buying a new system
Replacing a heating and cooling system is a decision most people make two or three times in their life, under time pressure, with limited information. This is what the process should look like and what to ask at each stage.
- · How the price gets worked out
- · What a good estimate contains
- · Questions worth asking
- · What happens on installation day
Plain-language mechanics
How your system works
Understanding roughly what your system is doing makes every conversation with a technician more useful, and makes it much easier to tell a reasonable recommendation from an unreasonable one.
- · Air conditioning moves heat, it does not make cold
- · Heat pumps run the cycle both ways
- · The ducts are half the system
- · Humidity is a separate axis from temperature
Straight answers
Frequently asked questions
The questions we are asked most often, answered without hedging. If yours is not here, call and ask.
- · Scheduling and service
- · Estimates and pricing
- · Maintenance
- · Repair or replacement
Planning tools
Small utilities that answer the questions these guides raise.
- Cost & Rebate EstimatorStarting prices and the utility rebates that come off them.
- System Sizing GuideWhy matching the old unit's tonnage is not a load calculation.
- Repair or Replace?How to weigh a repair bill against the age of the system.
- SEER2 ExplainedWhat the efficiency rating means, and when paying for more is worth it.
- Humidity & ComfortWhy a cold house can still feel wrong on the coast.
- Seasonal ChecklistWhat to check yourself before spring, and what to leave alone.
- How It WorksCall, diagnosis, estimate, work, follow-up — step by step.