Bertie Heating and Air Conditioning

We have used Bertie for years. We bought a new a/​c unit and handler in the past 2 years. Up to now they have been good until yesterday. They came out to our rental to check on our old Trane unit, as the tenants stated the unit would not maintain «72 degrees» and it was blowing coldest air in the living room not so much in the bedrooms. I had Bertie check the unit in October and it was working great. The repairman sent out on the call went to the backyard and opened the unit. He removed 3 compositors of various sizes. He told me they were all bad, and he could replace each one from $ 125.00 to $ 150.00. I wrote down the model # of each unit and told him I would look to replace them on the internet. He then said each one online would cost $ 30 to $ 40. (Later my husband told me the unit would not run if all the compositors were bad). He told me my a/​c unit was shot and that I needed a new one for around $ 5,500.00 and up. All this being told to me in front of my tenants. My tenants called me when they arrived home from work and said the a/​c unit would not turn on. This morning I called Bertie A/​C and explained the problem. The woman was rude and told me their serviceman did nothing wrong and I had to replace the unit. All that for a $ 95.00 service call. Well, when I buy a new unit, I will NOT BE BUYING FROM THEM.

So far (knocking on convenient wood furiously) I’ve had no problems with Bertie; indeed, I’ve had really good service from them for years since they first stopped by to replace our ailing 30+ year old Borg-​Warner system with a Trane, as well as replace our traditional water heater with a tankless gas one.
This latest appointment today was for an annual servicing of the AC. Bertie called us the day prior (we’d been signed up for the last several years for yearly maintenance; apparently though they plan to discontinue this practice and have people call in; a bit of a bummer) and we scheduled a time slot of from 10 – 12 in the morning, and today we got a call a little after 9:30am and the tech (Brandon) arrived just a little after 10.
Brandon got to work, replacing our old April Aire filter with a new one, flushing the AC drainage, and checking the system for any issues. None found, he recommended we install surge protectors for the relatively delicate circuit boards and motor. Obviously this was a sales pitch, but after some research online it sounded like a solid idea; the only question in my mind was why these weren’t suggested when the system was first installed, but given their track record I was fine with giving Bertie the benefit of the doubt. Installing a new system is a big undertaking, stuff slips through the cracks. They’ve fostered enough goodwill that I’m okay with this decision.
After everything was done, Brandon walked me over to the system to describe what was done and show me the location of the two new surge protectors and lights on them indicating whether they’re alive or had sacrificed themselves to subdue a surge. I signed off on a check for the bill and our system was back up and running.
I’m not sure that the few reviews I’ve seen here for Bertie thus far provide a complete picture of their services, but this customer has nothing but good customer and technical service to report about them.

Dispatch friendly and efficient. Serviceman was clean, on-​time, polite and effective. Job done same day, no muss, no fuss.

A representative from Bertie Heating & Air Conditioning came to my home on ⁴⁄₁₆ to diagnose an air conditioner that was blowing warm air. The young man was polite, and cordial. He was respectful, as well. While looking at our unit, he must have told us, at least 4 times, that he was «still in school». This became apparent, when he started with one diagnosis that simply involved a new compressor and a re-​charge of the system, to a multi-​part replacement that would cost thousands, to a brand new unit, and air handler.
To say my husband and I were concerned about his ability to diagnose the problem, is an understatement. The service call lasted about 45 minutes. By the end, he was standing firm on us simply needing a new unit, and arranged for a «Comfort Consultant» to come out the next day, and give us an estimate on a new unit. So, we paid the $ 95.00 visit, which yielded nothing but uncertainty, and waited to speak to the other representative about the situation.
This young man (older than the tech, at least), spent about 15 minutes looking at the old unit, walking around the house, and then went out to his vehicle to print a quote. The estimate was for $ 4,300.00 for a new unit, air handler, touch screen programmable thermostat (which we didn’t need), concrete pad (which we didn’t need), and testing/​sealing all duct work.
After I looked at the estimate, I expressed my concerns to this representative about the diagnosis given by the young, «still in school» tech. I told him that his company was asking us to put a substantial dent in our savings, and if the roles were reversed, I am sure you would want a second opinion before dropping that amount of money on something you weren’t convinced you needed. He told me that the young man in question had been doing this for about 5 years, and he knew this because he has been with the company for 7. I told him that he needs to work on his sales pitch then, because he had us convinced he shouldn’t even be on calls solo, yet. We felt it was in all fairness, to ask for a second tech to come out, and offer a second opinion.
The «Comfort Consultant» assured me Mr. Bertie takes all concerns seriously, and that someone from the office would contact us that afternoon. Someone did contact my husband, and left a voicemail. My husband returned his call the same day, and left a message with the office receptionist. Since then, we have heard NOTHING from Bertie Heating & Air Conditioning.
The bottom line, is all we asked for was a little reassurance that our money was being spent wisely, and they couldn’t be bothered to follow up. You don’t just ask someone to spend $ 4,300.00 with your company on blind faith. Based on this experience, we contacted another company, who installed the SAME unit Bertie had quoted us on, minus the thermostat and other things we *didn’t* need replaced, to the tune of $ 3,000.00 We didn’t mind spending the money. If you need a new unit, you do what you have to do. Just don’t ask someone to do it with no assurances or confidence. Of which I have neither, in Bertie Heating & Air Conditioning.

DO NOT choose this company! WORST SERVICEMAN and BUSINESS ETHICS I have ever encountered!
Read why:
On Friday 8÷7÷2009 at 11 am, I phoned Bertie Heating and Air Conditioning and spoke with the dispatcher, Kevin, who assured me a serviceman would arrive to my home around 3 PM (this was when my roommate was available to be home). I asked whether it was ok to have my roommate pay with a check from me since I was leaving out of town to visit my family. Kevin confirmed this was fine.
At 6 PM, no one had yet arrived at my home! After calling, and getting the after hours receptionist, a serviceman, Nate, called me back. Immediately, he was rude and aggressive. «Why didn’t you answer the phone when I called?», he grunted. «Did you give this number to the dispatcher?» I wasn’t sure what he meant but shortly learned he had phoned my home (which I was not at because I was going out of town) rather than my cell before he decided to come to my 3 PM appointment. This is even though I did NOT request a call before arriving! When I told Nate I didn’t ask for a call before the appointment and that I told Kevin I was going out of town and he assured a serviceman would arrive around 3 PM, he was even more rude! I said it was probably due to a miscommunication between his colleagues (which is totally normal and understandable) but he didn’t stop his attitude.
Once arriving at my home at 6:30 PM Nate treated both my roommate and home with total disrespect! My roommate tried to make conversation and discuss some of the troubles we had been having with the air system but he was standoffish and cold. He examined the outdoor system and threw the cover on my flowering plants and didn’t say a word. At this point my roommate noticed alcohol on his breathe!
Nate phoned me to discuss the problem with the air system and was completely short and aggressive. I told him, I understood his frustration and that he would rather be else where on a Friday night but his attitude problem did not change! To try to ease the issue I asked my father to talk to Nate so they could discuss the system in a «technical manner». Nate was very defensive and also treated my father very poorly. Nate raised his voice toward myself, my roommate, and my father. During this period Nate even hung up the phone on me!
Given this poor encounter, my roommate ask Nate to wait outside while he wrote out the check for $ 268. As he closed the front door Nate barged inside and said «I can undo this work if you’re not going to pay.» After Nate received the check and left my home he continued to phone my cell phone repeatedly. There was no reason for him to call yet he continued to harass me.
On Monday 8÷10÷2009 at 8 AM I phoned Bertie Heating and Air Conditioning to express my disappointment. Although the office staff was professional and understanding, the office manager said she had to verify phone records and other details. I told her I didn’t believe I received any «service» and requested that the service fee or a portion of it was waived.
On Friday 8÷14÷2009 I received a letter from Bertie Heating and Air Conditioning. In the letter, the company admitted Nate acted unprofessionally and that they had higher standards than this behavior. They did not, however, offer any compensation or waiver of the «service fee».
I am now in need of an updated air system. Had Bertie Heating and Air Conditioning «treated me like family» (like their website states their company does) and offered some form of a reimbursement as a token for me and my roommate and father’s stress and troubles, I might have considered choosing them again. I will, however, NOT use Bertie Heating and Air Conditioning! I recommend you consider this scenario when deciding which company to hire. Choose another company!