Made the mistake of calling Ferro because my A/C compressor was sporadically tripping the breaker.
Tech, Joe, arrived an hour after the 3 hour service window. He diagnosed the problem as the condenser needing cleaning and could benefit from some additional coolant. ("Borderline low," I think he said.) The cleaning consisted of spraying some - presumably antifungal - stuff on, then hosing it off. That was $180. I opted to do my other condenser, too, since he was here and recommended it. After adding the coolant, he let me know that it was $100/pound, so another $200. I knew that this was a pretty lucrative little visit, since the cleaner was probably a couple of bucks and the total service call probably took 30 minutes, but I rationalized that I was supporting local small business, he seemed knowledgeable, and there was a 30 day guarantee.
I had my A/C off for most of the next few weeks since it was cooler. I had had the service completed on 8/16 and I tuned the A/C back on after a couple of weeks on 9/13, discovered that it had tripped the breaker again, and called Ferro on 9/14. The answering person said that, yes, the return visit was covered by the 30 day guarantee and arranged for another service visit the following day.
Joe came again, tested the capacitor, and said it was bad. Before replacing it, I asked how much the new capacitor was and reminded him that the the visit was free. Joe said that this was a new call, since he had done repairs last time. I pointed out that the repairs he had completed didn't solve the problem. He replaced the capacitor, which took about 3 minutes, then called his boss, Mike, for the price. Mike and Joe apparently agreed that this issue was best resolved by telling me that the installed part was $275. When I said that the visit was supposed to be free and asked how much the part was (and I was assuming a hefty markup would still be in there on a part that retails for $48), he repeated that the service and parts were $275... and that I could pay it or he would replace the old capacitor. I agreed that this was the best way to go, he did so - which took about another 3 minutes - and left.
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