Garcia Mechanical & AC

TOTAL FRAUD! Doesn’t deserve even one star
I found Garcia Heating & Air on Craigslist — the owner claims to have 20 years of experience and states all repairs are at the lowest possible price. He is based in Patterson, CA. License #901 138 — this is not valid just check out the government website.
In Dec 2013 I called Garcia to look at one of my rentals because the heating/​AC unit located on the roof was not blowing any heat and I gave him all this information because I was out of town. The tenant let him in and he spent about 5 minutes inside the residence turning the thermostat on and off — not once looking at the unit on the roof (as I was informed by my tenant). Apparently, he didn’t even have a ladder with him.
He called me back and said that the compressor was gone and the whole unit needed to be replaced — the cost will be $ 3400 but he will do it for me for $ 3200… so I told him that I will get back to him. So it appears that Mr. Garcia can diagnose heating and A/​C problems without performing any testing. II had trusted him based on our initial conversation and had mailed him a check for $ 45 for the call out –which he promptly cashed!
I called another company and they told me that it was a thermostat wiring issue, fixed the problem for $ 60. I was shocked — I called Robert Garcia and confronted him with the facts and he told me that (a) the technician from the other company does not know what he is talking about… even though the problem was now fixed and (b) again he claimed that with his 20 years of experience he can just tell when the compressor is gone. So it would appear that my unit was now working because of divine intervention! I tried to put a hold on the check but it had already been cashed. Mr. Garcia refused to refund the fee even though another company had been able to fix the problem.
I know that there are upfront and honest Heating and Air Conditioning technicians but I am also sure that Robert Garcia and his outfit is certainly not one of them! I am sure he has screwed many other customers and they probably do not know about it. I would strongly recommend that you stay away from Garcia Heating & Air!