HVAC reviews in San Carlos, California

A very caring and excellent installation. Super install crew who were polite, efficient and very capable. It was like having good old friends round. The office folks also did a great job getting me rebates by submitting all the necessary paperwork. Highly recommended

Was a very good experience

This Company is Outstanding!!
Professional, Efficient, personable, easy to work with 💖

Great service and customer service. Crew that came over for maintenance were professional, knowledgeable, courteous and customer friendly. Great experience!

Our 80 year old gravity gas furnace was not working, after calling several HVAC companies who no longer worked on these units, I was referred Alternative HVAC in Menlo Park. Nat, their service tec, diagnosed, replaced a part, checked everything and was done in an hour, leaving a happy and warm customer.

Mike and his team did a great replacing our HVAC unit for our office.
I would recommend Alternative HVAC Solutions any time!

Danny Cox
Bay Digital, Inc

Alternative HVAC should have a 5 out of 5 stars!!!

Seriously, Alternative HVAC saved me over $12K. After our air conditioning unit was not working and all thermostats in our home were toast, I had called Service Champions since they appeared to be the highest rating on yelp and Google. You can't always trust these ratings but please believe you can trust this one...

To make a long story short, a technician from Service Champions came out, spent about 5 hours and over $440 dollars later our system was still not fixed. I was told that we needed to have our entire system rewired and the reason the system wasn't working was due to the wires crossing. He said to fix this it would cost over $4K. The tech recommended that we consider purchasing a new unit given the cost. I agreed to speak with someone from their company about a new unit and have them double check our system. Today, they had another technician come out to check our unit and talk to me about purchasing a new unit. He looked at the system and reconfirmed our unit was toast and that I should purchase a new unit and have it reinstalled properly.

I told him that I was going to get a second opinion and he assured me that the first technician who I will leave nameless was their best technician and that I shouldn't delay in getting a new unit since he looked at it and gave his recommendation to move forward. He then started to talk about the temperature how hot its going to get this week and to get this done soon, he needed a contract signed today. He was sure I needed a new unit. He quoted me $12,500 for a new unit, installation and a "great 10 year warranty on parts and the unit".

At this point was disappointed since I thought my only option was to pay thousands of dollars and possible over $12K for a new unit. Not happy at this point.

I asked a round a bit and got a recommendation from a friend and he told me to call Mike at Alternative HVAC. I called and spoke to the receptionist here and she had one of their technicians, Nate out at our home within the hour. Apparently there was a cancellation, nonetheless I was pleased.

Within 30 minutes he had the unit working, air conditioning humming and at a fraction of the price. He said I did not need a new unit only needed to replace a failed transformer. The total cost was about $225. Much less than what I paid at Service Champions and they fixed our system with integrity.

Bottom line: Alternative HVAC save me thousands of dollars! They fixed my unit with very little fuss and clearly had integrity while doing it.

I would totally recommend Alternative HVAC! These are now my HVAC guys for life!

We got solar panels put in a few years back with the intention of getting electric heat for the house. Mike and his crew (includes the office folks too!) were the ONLY ones that KNEW how to install a heat pump (runs on electricity) that we could find here in the Bay Area. All the others were trying to sell us something else or talk us out of our system.

They put the system in. It needed a little time to work out the kinks, but the service guys were on the job with timely service.

If you are considering a heat pump option, Mike and the team at Alternative HVAC Solutions are by far the obvious choice. Others may be catching up, but these folks know what they are doing. If you are going with gas heat, they also know what they are doing here as well. We got a gas furnace to work in conjunction with our heat pump on those really cold days.

Pricing was also very competitive.

You can look elsewhere, but you'd just be wasting your time!

Big thank you to Annel, Jeff and the team.

Everyone was very professional, responsive and thorough.

Great proof of the team caring about their customers was that the final invoice was 50% less than the original estimate. The team that came to do the work noticed that it was not as bad as initially thought, let me know, and completed the work.

And the result is that our heating is a lot more efficient than before.

Thank you!

Update March 23, 2021 9am
The Service Tech came a little while ago. After calling in to the Tech Office, he learned that re-wiring the house was not necessary. Instead, it was a matter of reconfiguring settings. As he was about to leave I noticed the heat was still running off the furnace - emergency heat mode. So, another ten minutes and now the system is running off the heat pump. Why did I have to point this out?!!

Update March 23, 20218am
Still having problems with our thermostat and heat pump system. If I had it to do over again, I would not choose the San Carlos office. Disorganized. No one knows what is going on. Lost count of how many times we've had them out. Now, they tell me the wiring has to be re-done! Four hours of work and this after we've had the system a couple of years. One problem after another.

Our system, installed by Alternative HVAC Solutions, started putting out cold air instead of heat. The company sent out a technician who was obviously in way over his head. He was here two hours and had to be walked through everything remotely. It was painful. Turns out it was a failed valve which if you ask me, could have been determined fairly quickly. Next, it turns out the installer of the heat pump put it too close to the house inhibiting the technician from being able to reach the part and replace it. So now, someone has to come out and move the heat pump out away from the wall. This was supposed to happen this morning, but here it is late afternoon and there has been zero calls or word from the company about what's going on. I've called twice and they just tell me they will call me back when they know something. Not even a window of when they might be here. We were charged $320 for the first visit, which seems like a lot for diagnosing a problem over the phone with the guy in the office. It's winter with cold temps. Fortunately we didn't get rid of our furnace and have it as a back up. Frustrated.

I’ve used this company for years and they do a consistently great job. Adrian and Julio are thorough, prompt and go the extra mile.

We contacted Alternative HVAC in San Carlos based on positive reviews. On the appointment date, we received a text message from Ricardo, the tech, that he was on his way. He arrived on time, in a nice new van and was very professional and pleasant. All seemed great. Ricardo checked our thermostat setting and discussed the problem we were having with my husband - our furnace was blowing cold air. Ricardo went under the house and ran through his diagnostics. When he came out, he said that he could not find an electrical problem as he had no error codes on his diagnostic unit. He suggested that we remove the filter inside the house in the cold air return to minimize back flow pressure, so we followed his advice. We even bought a new thermostat, even though the old one was only 1 year old - we figured it must be something other than the furnace. But, nothing changed. So, we called another company and within a short period of time, their tech found the simple problem - some residue on the burner that prevented gas flow to the igniter. He cleaned the burner and the furnace works perfectly. It is apparent that Alternative does not adequately train their technicians to look at the furnace to find problems that are easy to spot. We spent $160 on their 'service' call and have requested a 50% refund as their tech did not find and repair this simple problem. I cannot recommend this company.

These folks were recommended by several of my neighbors, and it was a great experience from start to finish. Very clear, discussion of options, benefits, downsides; very timely. Installation crew was knowledgeable, great communication, and kept our place cleaned up at the end of each day. Can’t recommend them highly enough. Thank you.

From initial contact to post install visit, a thoroughly professional firm. They were not the highest or the lowest among four bids, but the experience working with them has me place them the highest in value.

Jeff Meyer, from his first visit to estimate the work, addressing all my questions during the proposal stage, helping slot us into their busy job calendar, then following up afterward, was the best project contact I had worked with.

Contracts folks were quick on their follow ups to make sure the project moved along.

The onsite crew gave me a time estimate and delivered on it, leaving the premises cleaner than when they arrived.

I would be more than happy to recommend this company to anyone who is looking to get HVAC work done. I plan to turn to them for my heat pump water heater in the near future.

I had my system installed by these people approximately five years ago. They were platinum rated in the Mitsubishi system, and their estimate was a few thousand less then a competitor. The crew that came out and installed the system were Quick and professional. They did a good job and left the site clean. Now it is five years later, and I had a problem with some plastic sheathing that covered the cables from the heat pump to my Room unit. The squirrels had eaten all of the covering, and I had a service man out last spring. He was unable to solve the problem and said they would get back to me. I received no follow up calls, But six months later, I called them back and said I needed to get this problem solved. Ultimately they sent someone out who fix the problem. They covered the exposed cables with a metal sheathing. It is probably something they should’ve done five years ago But glad it’s done. They will not service my unit anymore because of a phone call I had with their service scheduler. She admitted that she lost my My paperwork and that was the reason it taken many months to get the problem solved. Further the way she presented the fact they were coming sounded as if they were doing me a favor. After that, I responded negatively because of their dropping the ball. There was no apology coming. I spoke to the owner of the company yesterday, and he chastised me for the way I responded to Their scheduler. Fortunately, there are other companies. What I would recommend is, I would deal with other companies.

Alternative HVAC did excellent work installing our veterinary clinic's complicated ventilation system. They have a professional, smart and respectful crew. The electric heat pumps are keeping our team and patients comfortable. Thank you especially to Mike, Rick and Julio!
Coastside Veterinary Clinic, Inc.

We've had a great experience working with the Alternative HVAC Solutions team to first install a heat pump water heater and then a heat pump HVAC system a few months later. Their team stands out from the competition because of their in-depth knowledge, years of experience, and high quality of work. The heat pump water heater installation was straightforward. For the heat pump HVAC system, we chose to have 2 separate systems set up: one for downstairs and one for upstairs. We appreciated how well Rick communicated with us (and how the onsite team communicated amongst themselves) as they figured out how to install the air intake system in the attic because there is no "one size fits all" solution since it's highly dependent on the layout of the house and duct work. Julio came up with a creative solution for how to install the drainage pipe for the upstairs heat pump that addressed our concerns with the initial solution. I feel like Rick and Julio consistently went above and beyond. Lastly, we love the fan that they installed in our attic which automatically turns on at pre-set temperatures: low speed at 80 degrees; med speed at 100 and high at 120 (the temps can be adjusted). In just the past few weeks, we've noticed that our upstairs area is noticeably cooler just from the fan cooling down the attic which will reduce our need to use the A/C.

Alternative HVAC did an excellent job. The crew was outstanding. They were professional, very neat and knowledgeable. We highly recommend them. They removed our old gas HVAC, put new ceiling vents in, installed the new electric heater and outdoor pump, did all the electrical work, and even removed old duct work from our crawl space. They helped us get a no interest loan for 18 months, a rebate and all the necessary permit work. They are top notch!

The installation of our heat pump was a great experience. From the quote through the installation, everyone was professional and efficient. All of our questions were answered and information provided that we didn’t even know we needed. The installation process was quick. The guys were respectful and courteous. The level of service was exceptional. We are very pleased.

One year ago, Mike, Jeff, Ramon and their team installed a new heat pump and a heat pump water heater to replace my gas furnace and water heater. I am quite happy with the high quality units they installed and their quality installation and post sales service. Also, they were great about handling the BayREN rebate process - we just kept getting check after check and they handled all the paperwork. I appreciate that they carry what seems to be "high end" equipment, which is more energy efficient and capable. Their installation work was efficient and tidy and I appreciate the workmanship. We recently experienced a component fault in the heat pump water heater and they serviced the unit quickly and effectively. I've recommended them to a friend and will continue to do so.

Alternative HVAC did a great job with the replacement of our old gas furnace and installation of a heat pump from beginning to end. Mike came and spent time with us to understand the situation and explain the different options which was very helpful. Adrian and Jeremy worked very hard on the installation, which was complicated and difficult because of the reconfiguration of the air ducts in the crawl space. They paid attention to all the details, kept everything very clean, and communicated all along on what was going on. The company also takes care of the rebates and loans, which helps a lot in terms of value.