HVAC questions, honest answers.

We serve 56 Bay Area cities across four regions. Tri-Valley: Danville, San Ramon, Alamo, Blackhawk, Dublin, Pleasanton, Lafayette, Walnut Creek, Livermore, Moraga, Orinda. Diablo Valley: Concord, Martinez, Pleasant Hill. Inner East Bay: Berkeley, Oakland, Richmond, San Leandro, Hayward, Castro Valley, Fremont, Union City, Newark, Alameda, Piedmont. South Bay & Peninsula: San Jose, Santa Clara, Cupertino, Los Gatos, Saratoga, Sunnyvale, Mountain View, Palo Alto, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Menlo Park, Atherton, Hillsborough, Milpitas. Our shop is in San Ramon.

Same-day or next-day for most calls. We prioritize cooling failures in summer and heating failures in winter. Call (925) 999-4095 and we'll give you a realistic ETA in 30 seconds based on current schedule. We do not promise blanket same-day service; we tell you what's actually achievable.

The on-site diagnosis is $99 and is credited toward the repair. It includes inspection and pressure or combustion readings. After the diagnosis, you receive a written estimate before any repair work begins. No work is mandatory; you can take the estimate elsewhere if you choose.

Yes. California Contractor State License Board (CSLB) license #1136642 for Warm Air Heating, Ventilating and Air Conditioning. EPA 608 certification #1279674151528 for refrigerant handling. BBB A+ accredited. Fully insured and bonded. Andrew Kuznetsov passed the CSLB exam personally; no license transfer.

No. Our hours are 7AM to 7PM, 7 days a week, with no overtime charges. After-hours emergency calls are billed at our standard rate.

The right choice depends on the confirmed fault, refrigerant, and condition of the rest of the system. We diagnose it on site and provide the written repair estimate so you can compare it with replacement.

Almost always one of five causes: restricted airflow (dirty filter, closed registers, dirty coil), low refrigerant from a leak, low outdoor temperature with no thermostat lockout, or a failing blower motor. First step: turn cooling off, fan on, let the coil thaw fully (1 to 4 hours). Then call for diagnostic. Running a frozen system damages the compressor.

Common causes include an overheating limit switch, a failing flame sensor, or thermostat miscalibration. We diagnose the sequence on site and provide a written repair estimate before work starts.

R-22 was the standard AC refrigerant until production was phased out under the Montreal Protocol. It is no longer manufactured in the U.S. If your system runs R-22 and has a leak, the only refill option is reclaimed refrigerant at $100+ per pound on a system that will leak again. Modern systems use R-410A or R-454B.

Tonnage, ductwork condition, equipment, and electrical scope determine the project price. The on-site installation assessment is free, and we provide the written project estimate after the visit.

Standard like-for-like replacement: 1 to 2 days on site. Whole-home heat pump conversion: 2 to 4 days. New construction or major remodel: 3 to 5 days. Permits add 1 to 3 weeks of lead time depending on city and inspector backlog.

Some older Bay Area homes need electrical work to support a heat-pump conversion. We include an electrical capacity check in the free on-site installation assessment and put any coordinated electrical scope in the written estimate.

Often yes. We test ductwork leakage on every install estimate. If existing ducts pass (under 15 percent leakage, no major damage), we keep them. Heavy damage or 25+ year old ducts may need replacement or sealing. Aeroseal sealing can recover 15 to 25 percent of conditioned air.

Manual J load calculation, equipment selection across major brands, outdoor condenser and indoor air handler, refrigerant line set, removal and disposal of old equipment, permit pull and inspection coordination, electrical work within scope, commissioning and system balancing, a 10-year manufacturer parts warranty plus a labor warranty (2 years standard, extended to 10 years with our maintenance plan), and rebate paperwork submission.

We work with BayREN, MCE Heat Pump HVAC (for MCE customers), PG&E (thermostat and ENERGY STAR), EBCE/Ava (Alameda County), and manufacturer instant rebates. Eligibility, dollar amounts, and program funding vary by territory and program cycle. We confirm what's currently paying when we write your estimate.

No. Section 25C of the Energy Efficient Home Improvement Credit expired December 31, 2025 under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Air-source heat pumps installed in 2026 receive no federal tax credit. Section 25D for geothermal was ended by the same law for installs completed after December 31, 2025, so there is no federal residential credit for either.

Tech Clean California hit its funding cap and stopped accepting new applications on November 14, 2025. The program may reopen if the legislature reauthorizes it, but as of July 2026 it remains closed. We don't quote Tech Clean as available on 2026 installs.

MCE's current rebate pays up to $400 per 500 square feet of home for a heat pump HVAC system, plus a $2,000 bonus (MCE's example: up to $3,200 on a typical 1,500 sq ft home). To qualify, your home must be on MCE service (Marin County, Napa County, parts of Contra Costa including San Ramon, parts of Solano County), you need to have owned and lived in it for at least 12 months, and the installing contractor must be on MCE's participating list. We are. We submit the application with permits during install. Rebate arrives directly from MCE several weeks after install closes.

1-inch fiberglass filters: 30 to 60 days. 1-inch pleated: 60 to 90 days. 4-inch media filters: 6 to 12 months. Pets, construction dust, wildfire smoke season, and rural homes shorten the interval. Visual test: hold the filter to a bright light. If less than 50 percent lets light through, replace it.

Most heat-pump and high-efficiency AC manufacturer warranties require documented annual professional maintenance to remain valid. Without records, a later compressor claim may be denied. Our maintenance plan creates that service record.

$290 per visit, two visits a year: a spring AC check and a fall heating check. Each visit includes a new filter, a full diagnostic, and a system cleaning. Staying on the plan is also what extends the labor warranty on our installs from 2 years to the full 10.

If your system is under 4 years old and we installed it; the install commissioning gives a strong baseline and manufacturer warranty is in its early years. We tell you that at the estimate. We don't push the plan on customers who don't yet need it.