CPS Heating & Cooling

Been using CPS for many years after I had an emergency and my regular guys couldn't come. A friend recommended CPS and I've stuck with them ever since. They've been great responding instantly in emergencies, at other times patiently helping me trouble shoot over the phone to avoid costly visits and their annual service has always been excellent, helping me extend the life of my equipment and not pressuring me into buying new when I don’t need to yet. But this review is a huge shout out to Keith Jackson. Keith embodies everything that I think is great about CPS or any other service provider, technically excellent, on time, respectful and helpful. But, Keith went way above and beyond when an unexpected problem arose with my dog and Keith along with another technician DJ, saved the day. I will be forever grateful.

CPS did a diagnosis of our ac system and replaced the filter. I can't speak for their diagnosis - will need to see if we have further problems, but they were what I would consider unscrupulous in their pricing. We were charged a diagnostic fee which I expected, and also "charged" (from my perspective ripped us off severely) for the filter. I usually replace the filters myself. But they were there and determined it was very dirty and needed to be replaced, so they put in a new one. It was a basic filter, MPR 300, 24" x 20" that they cut down to fit (20" x 20"), and they charged $78.42 for the filter line item. I buy these for less than $10 at Home Depot, and see them online for $4.75 each if you buy in 12 packs, and I'm sure they buy these in bulk. AND, last year they charged me $29.35, which at the time seemed high, but I let it go. They were already at the house, charging for the house call (diag fee), and if you've ever changed a filter you know it takes about 30 seconds. We've been customers for 6 years, and I asked if they made a billing mistake since this cost seemed outrageous, and was more than double what they charged us for the filter last year. They said no, that this is what they now charge, which includes "the convenience for having the filters with them", and that the prices have gone up. I said that had I known it would be that expensive I'd have told them not to do it. Eventually they agreed to split the cost and charged me $39.21 for the filter. But they told me that in the future, $78.42 is the price, and asked if I'd want them to replace the filter if it was needed in the future. NO! Their diagnosis was that 1. the filter was dirty and was blocking air flow, and 2. the system was old and we needed a new one that could push the air better. With the new filter the system has been working well, so we'll see if it holds up if we keep the filter clean. I don't think it's reasonable to charge this kind of markup (almost 20x) to long time (any?) customers, especially without first letting us know the cost more than doubled from last year, and we will not be using them again. If you're thinking of using CPS, you decide if you think this is reasonable. I don't.

CPS had to replace the circuit control board on our Carrier compressor. Missy found the part fast and pleasantly surprised us when she called after researching that the part was covered by our 10 year warranty on the system installed by CPS in 2009. I'm sure we saved serious money. Danny B arrived the same day and worked on the wiring to keep our system running while the board was shipped. He returned two days later, performed annual maintenance and installed the circuit board. Danny B is the service tech that we alway request because he is always the consummate professional, friendly, efficient and keeping us informed throughout the entire process. Tia always answers our calls in her ever-friendly upbeat manner and is the "field general" keeping the whole process moving smoothly. CPS does not let you down.

Service tech Danny B initially thought that the control board needed replacement. However, he took the extra time to diagnose the problem more closlly and found a frayed wire which was shorting the system. He quickly repaired the issue and had the system back up & running in short order, saving us a major expense. Danny B was a true professional. He takes a great deal of pride in his work, wore protective boots to protect our hardwood floors, and kept us informed throughout the whole process. It is top service techs like Danny B that keep us coming back to CPS!

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I have a service contract with them.

unknown

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First the positives - the actual technicians are pleasant, punctual, considerate and professional.  
The problem I have with CPS is two-fold.   We needed new air filters for our furnaces which they provided.  These are off-the-rack filters - Air Bear 20x25x8 Trion MERV 8 - available on-line (http://www.amazon.com/20x25x5-Trion-Replacement-Filter-2-Pack/dp/B003Q9J562/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1402925709&sr=8-2&keywords=airbear+filter+20+x+25+x+5+merv+8) for $15-20 EACH, which they charged me $90 for the first one and $82 for the subsequent ones.   Just the fact they mark these up that much I think can be considered gouging.
The second problem I have is with one of the owners with whom I spoke when I asked for some consideration on the bill.  I explained that we had previously and faithfully used a previous firm for our work, but when they went out of business their number rolled over to CPS.  I was happy to keep working with them but I thought this bill was outrageous.  Instead of offering me an olive branch - some sort of compromise - she copped an attitude with me.
What ever happened with "the customer is always right"??
I wasn't expecting her to offer me the Amazon price, but knock one off, for crying out loud - or maybe 25% - A GESTURE.  Instead I get a lecture on how their profit margin is only 2-3%, "...that means for every dollar I charge I only make 3 cents".  Duh - I know what profit margin is, you condescending ..... person.
So for the cost of 1 air filter - $83.56 - they have now forgone all of my future business, ~$1000/year.  That's at least $20-30 of profit margin (which we all know is BS because only a business with substantial revenue can function on that thin a margin).
I know what a profit margin is.  The question, Charlene, is do you know how to run a small business?

The installers were neat,  clean, polite and prompt.  I especially appreciated the foot booties to keep mud and dirt from outside down as much as possible. They arranged for the plumbing inspector to arrive early the next day to accomidate my travel schedule.  After an initial few days with less heat than we would have liked due to the energy saving settings on the new burner, a service man arrived and reset the furnace as well as installed a new thermostat free of charge.  
All is now perfect!

I had called CPS because a tenant of a single family house
that I own was having trouble with the heating system.
I paid a $116 Diagnostic fee.
CPS recommended that I ?replace a bad fill valve and
backflow preventer?
I very clearly told them that I was willing to have this
done if it would solve the problem of my tenant not having proper heat in the
house. CPS assured me that this would solve the problem.
I then paid $441.25 to replace bad fill valve and backflow
preventer.
2 Weeks later my tenant calls me with the same exact
problem. I call CPS to have them check it out. They call me later that
afternoon saying that ?everything is working fine? and I have to pay them
another $116 diagnostic fee.
I am confused at this point because why would my tenant tell
me there is a problem if everything is working fine?
I speak with the CPS technician who tells me that the
baseboards are too small.
Since the baseboards are exactly the same size as when CPS
did their 1st $116 diagnosis, and the diagnosis was solely to figure
out exactly why my tenant was having heating issues, I feel that it is more
than fair to expect that the small baseboard issue should have been included in
the initial diagnosis.
Had CPS accurately diagnosed the problem, there would have
been no need for a 2nd diagnosis.
I work with many tradespeople, and I am highly dissatisfied with
my transaction with CPS. I do not recommend.

The folks at CPS very nice.  The worker who performed the service check up was very informative and told me what he was doing and what a healthy air conditioning unit should look like.  I appreciate their professionalism and will use them in the future.

I have very mixed feelings about CPS. I originally selected them as they had a great price on an annual Maintenance Agreement for my AC system. They were always very friendly on the phone and the service people were punctual and polite. They often rearranged their schedules to prioritize us if we had a heating emergency.
However, after a while it seemed like every time they came out, they "discovered" things that needed additional work. Some we fixed, some we didn't (none of which hasn't created any problems yet). The final straw came when they diagnosed a problem with our boiler and charged almost $800 to repair it. Literally three weeks after "fixing" the problem, similar symptons returned and we found that we had a different problem with the boiler and that the entire boiler had to be replaced. So, from our perspective, CPS  mis-diagnosed the problem and we spent $800 to fix the wrong thing. CPS only offered to refund the $800 if we went with them on the boiler replacement, which we did not feel comfortable doing.
Now that we are working with a different company on our Maintenance Agreement, they are showing us examples of things CPS did not do if they were maintaining the system properly.
So high marks for price, friendliness and punctuality, but low marks for the quality of their work.

Everything was done in a professional way

They were punctual and call if they will be late or early.  They gave me a good deal to replace the condenser.  I like their services and will use the same in future.

They were responsive and came quickly.

The removal and installation went very smoothly! I am so glad I called them....and though they were not the lowest price quote, they were the most professional and courtesy.......and knowledgeable! They arrived before the quoted time with the project manager arriving first and two installers right behind him. The project manager made sure to get the removal and install started, but once the guys knew what to do he left. And the PM left it in capable hands. I am very pleased with the service I received from CPS Corp and would certainly use them again in the future!

They did an excellent job. It was a strange situation because there was no room between floors to do what they needed to do. So they were able to be creative and get it done. They would call back promptly and they really knew their stuff! The installation was done perfectly the first time. They were very tidy and cleaned up every little thing after themselves.

Everything went really well. They were easy to schedule, very prompt, and got everything done really quickly. They talked to us about longer term upgrades but didn't push us into anything. All in all I'm very satisfied.

They've always been very courteous and pleasant to have around.

We were very satisfied with the work this company completed for us. The new ducts are working perfectly and the furnace is working a great deal better since the filter change. The old one seemed wobbly and the technician felt that it was the wrong size. When he replaced it, we all noticed the difference in output of the furnace and were very happy with this. They were courteous and cleaned up really well.

The technician walked through the house, looked at the ducts and told me there wasn't anything he could do, but refer me to their zoning system rep. The only one thing he did was turn up the fan speed on the furnace. For this walk-through I was charged $100 and I never heard from their zoning systems rep.

CPS scheduled me for the day after I called from between 11-1. They showed up exactly at 11 and went straight to work. The technician was knowledgeable and friendly. I also signed up for two service contracts (two-family home with two heating systems). CPS was less expensive than N-Star (Who, by the way, were horribly unhelpful when I called them first.) CPS allowed me to use the service contract to pay for the repair I just had as well as gave me the discount on the thermostats. I also used the Angie's list coupon. CPS came back yesterday to perform the annual maintenance that comes with the service contract. (N-star would have made me wait until summer for this.) The technician was friendly and thorough. He even taught me how I could help prolong the life of my system. I am now a full-on CPS customer and will keep my units under contract with CPS in the years to come. They did a GREAT job and are a company that is seriously dedicated to making the customer happy! Thanks CPS.

I'm completely satisfied with the work CPS did. They made sure to keep at least one AC system operational during the entire installation, and went out of their way to accomodate our future plans for finishing the basement.

Everyone associated with CPS was professional, courteous, knowledgeable, and very helpful. Sales and service personnel arrived promptly and the installers worked very hard and efficiently. And, everything was cleaned up when they left. Best installation experience we have had. Can't say enough good things about this company.