Alternative HVAC Solutions

Dale Weideman

3 months ago

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.

Cecilia Willer

3 months ago

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!

Ole Hoefelmann

5 months ago

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!

Tedgalper Alper

7 months ago

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.

Kirk G

a year ago

An excellent business. Have always been impressed by the depth of knowledge and expertise. A series of recommendations for anyone looking to install a similar system: – Mitsubishi is the gold standard. – 14-20 SEER is the energy efficiency band you want to shoot for as that is the most reliable. Anything in the high 20s or 30s I have read is more experimental and prone to failure. – They are hard to come by now but spend the extra money for mini split “head” Wi-Fi adapters. Being able to control everything on your phone is excellent. – It is very cheap to spend a little extra and have a mini split both heat and cool. At the time we installed the main compressor, it was $2,000 more to get the unit that could do both. – If you are retrofitting an existing house, or are considering an ADU (or 2), consider first the maximum number of heads and BTUs you would need 5 years from now. We installed the 60,000 BTU compressor with a branch box, pictured in photo 3 of the review, with only two mini split heads attached at the time. Let me tell you, it was very convenient just tacking on to the branch box rather than wiring in yet another unit.

Ronnie Eaton

2 years ago

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.

Otto Celis

3 years ago

Was a very good experience

Joan Marshall

3 years ago

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.

Danny Cox

3 years ago

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

Mike Zung

4 years ago

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!