Hauser installed a new Tempstar system including a new outdoor heat pump and indoor evaporator coil in June of 2010. Immediately that Fall they had to replace the outdoor defrost sensor twice. What was supposed to be a very efficient unit has my heating bills going thru the roof during the winter of 2011 and this winter 2012. Yes, even in this mild winter. I finally realized in January of this year that the heat being produced was only luke warm and the heat pump was continually running in 50 degree weather. Well had Hauser out (for $89) and they checked the system out and came to the conclusion the the inside evaporator coil was leaking. So guess what, the part is under warranty but the labor is not after a year and a few months. For all I know this was probably not working properly after 6 months and that was why my electric bill was so high in 2011. What they quoted to me was $1491 to replace the evaporate, which they than whittled down to $750 for the service when I balked at the first amount. So now for a system that I paid over $7700 just a year and a half ago, I am going to get soaked for another $800 or so. The service manager says this is typical of Tempstar or Carrier brand A-coils to leak early in life. I said if so, they (the manufacturer) should be paying the labor charges too. Why does Hauser continue to sell these so called flawed systems (evaporator coils) if they know they will go bad soon. Oh, for the bucks they get for fixing them! Does General Motors ask you to pay for labor when one of their radiators leaks at 25,000 miles? Don't think so. I guess they warrant their workmanship. Well as it stands, Hauser won't come down any further on the labor which works out to be approximately $200 an hour or more (approximate 4 hour job). Manager says it's the cost of the Freon that is expensive because they have to refill the entire system with new material. Why not use what they are going to reclaim from the system which is probably 12 lbs or so of the 15 lbs that it requires. Hell, I can buy a 25 lb tank of 410a for $155. Who is he kidding that the cost he quotes is the material. Let's face it, I got taken on the cost of the 5 ton system and now I am being taken again. IMO, Hauser is overpriced service contractor. If I wanted a lawyer to fix my HVAC, I would have called my Dad.
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