Specialty Heating & Cooling LLC

I was scheduled for an afternoon appt. I received a call late morning saying they could come earlier if I'd prefer. After I agreed, they were on my doorstep in 20 minutes. They were checked my setting and when it was noticed that I had overrode the program, they reprogrammed it to my new preferences. They throughly cleaned furnace throughly and ran the system through it paces to make sure that all was operating correctly in differing modes. They had additional filters sent to my house arriving the next day.

Went well. Note above

I called with a last minute request and Specialty was able to meet my deadline. In addition they were much less than the other companies that I contacted.

I did a thorough evaluation of several top rated (Angie?s List) HVAC companies and I selected Specialty Heating. Nic gave me all the information I requested and answered all my questions in a timely manner unlike a few of the other ?top rated? competitors. Adam did an outstanding job on the installation. I am a little picky about these kind of things, but in this case I was impressed. Something I don?t often say about some of the work/service that is provided these days. Although Specialty Heating was not the cheapest bidder, I think I got the greatest value. In the end there was a glitch in the manufacturer rebate, but Nic took care of the issue for me immediately. For anyone who has ever had a ?glitch? with a rebate or had an issue after all the contracts were signed and the money paid, you know that?s not typical. Once again, I have to say I was impressed.

With the fall weather cooling down, I reset the thermostat to operate in a winter mode, and set the temperature so the furnace would come on. The blower was blowing cold air for only a few minutes and then the system shut off. I tried again, and went to the garage and checked the furnace and noticed that the gas would ignite and then quickly shut off after ignition. I called Specialty Heating and Cooling after reviewing Angie's List and was pleased that they would be able to squeeze me into their busy schedule that morning. Brian called me at work and gave me an arrival time so I could meet him with minimal disruption to my schedule. He diagnosed the problem as being a failed gas control valve, and was able to locate a replacement at a nearby supplier. He returned and replaced the valve and then carefully tested the system and left. Since it was cool, the system came on but then seemed to only fire up intermittently. I called the receptionist at Specialty, and Brian came back later that day and spent quite a bit of time trying to locate isolate the problem. He conferred on the phone with his experienced mentor and then cleaned all of the electrical connectors that may have developed some corrosion over the years (the furnace is about 20 years old). This seemed to resolve the problem. Intermittent problems are tough, but Brian was very systematic and professional in his approach to analyzing, identifying and resolving multiple issues. There was no additional charge for the subsequent visit.

Our furnace has given us some problems over the last few years. Every year, we seem to need one or two service calls to get the furnace running again. I called Specialty yesterday and they were able to schedule Greg to come to my house first thing this morning. Greg was on time, personable and professional. He diagnosed some problems, ranging from adjusting the blower speed and the gas pressure (things that other technicians had never mentioned were even possibilities) to taping up a leaky vent. Greg also checked the furnace and gave me some tips on how to make it last longer. I am very satisfied and will definitely call Specialty again when we need help with the furnace.

After they installed my new furnace and heat pump, I found that half the upstairs had little to no airflow. They returned and adjusted the duct work to correct the problem. They did it at no charge because it is their policy to "make things right". Amazing! I'd give them an A+ if I could.

We had our a/c serviced as part of a HVAC service package that includes annual service for the furnace and a/c. We had the furnace serviced in 09/11 and the a/c this week. The tech was punctual, answered my questions, showed me a few things I could do myself to help keep my a/c unit clean and working better between services. This is the third service I have had with them and I have been happy every time! I would recommend them.

On time, very professional. We weren't told the company doing the cleaning wasn't Specialty (J&M Services). Specialty tech didn't show up until 12:00. We weren't told he would come seperately later. Communicatin problems...

It went beautifully. Two men put in the heat pump, new pad, and the furnace. We met with Nic on a Friday and had the new heating/cooling put in on Monday. They laid gravel and added a new concrete pad. Next they put in the furnace. We chose a cheaper model furnace because it will be a back up for the heat pump when it goes below 30 degrees. Ten days later we had our ducts cleaned. Everyone was polite and cleaned up after themselves. We had 2 new thermostats installed. One is for the upstairs level. We are so pleased that their is even temperatures throughout the house. The heat pump is quiet and more efficient. Everyone was prompt, including Nic, and finished on time. Nic and the city inspector came a few days later. The inspector told my husband that the company does everything well and hardly needs to inspect their work. However, he always does inspect.

They were excellent and I will use them again in the future if needed.

Went a little over schedule since one part was trickier than anticipated, but they called early on to let us know it wasn't going to be done as scheduled. they took care of absolutely everything and there were no surprises at all, which was fantastic.

Working with Nic was great. He spent a lot of time going over all the options and broke everything down into separate costs so I could better compare them. The installers were prompt, professional, and finished the entire job in one day.

The service experience was excellent.

It was great! This company deserves a AAA+++ rating. The sales person and the installation crew were on time and very professional. The job was completed in one day and they took great care to protect our house and furnishings while bringing in and installing the equipment. We are very satisfied with the whole process.

Overall, the entire process (from the initial meeting and planning stage, obtaining different options and quotes, finalizing the project, establishing the installation timeline, and the installation itself) was excellent and very impressive. I am in a customer service field, and I recognize excellent customer service when I see it. The installation was just completed today, and I am writing this while things are still fresh. Here are highlights:- After contacting SHC, and the owner responded to me quickly. He arranged to have one of his account managers meet with me, but ALSO sent me a follow up email with the account manager's information and picture so I knew who would be coming. - The account manager, Cory, was also a former installer, so we was a great person to work with. He was extremely knowledgeable and professional throughout the entire process. - Two main options were investigated: a high efficiency Heat pump with 80% efficient furnace or high SEER AC unit with 95% high efficiency furnace. (FYI, the 80% efficient furnace was suggested with the heat pump because the heat pump should cover the majority of the temperature range, the furnace should come on very infrequently. Due to this, the expected ROI for a 95% efficient furnace would be long and end up not being cost effective. - I probably asked for about 6+ versions of quotes before settling on the on the final system. I exchanged probably dozen's of emails with Cory....he was very patient - After the final system was determined and the installation timeline arranged, the installers came in and removed the old furnace, installed the system, new ductwork, duct re-routing, and moved an existing return duct to a new location - all in two days. It was a major job and that was impressive. As a personal touch, I noticed that they also signed the info sticker on the furnace. The installation team were all professional, friendly, and very knowledgeable. - The installation went very smoothly, on time, and efficiently. There were a couple of items that blindsided both the team and I, but they were overcome. Key Customer Service Notes:- At the start of the installation, Cory came in and did a walkthrough with the team to hand off the installation. That is good project management. They then knew the key aspects and details, but I also found out that they were in themselves extremely knowledgeable and experienced as well. - During the time I was deciding on which system to choose, Cory actually invited me to take a look at the heat pump system (same model I was looking at) he had just installed at his own house. I took him up on his offer, and that actually solidified my decision to go with the heat pump system. - After the installation had been completed, one of the engineers (Abe) stayed behind and waited about 30 minutes longer for me to come home from work so he could give me an inservice on the unit, filter, and thermostat. - They pulled all the permits, have arranged for an inspector to certify the installation in about two weeks, and are also filling out the required rebate forms for me. (This is what they now do, a very nice bonus.)

From start to finish, it was really great. That's the short story. My first phonecall was with Bob McGuire, who is part of the sales team. He was very professional, informative, and was never pushy in any way. He helped schedule an in-home appointment so they could look at everything and give me an accurate quote. A day-before-reminder call as well, plus they worked around my work schedule, which was a big plus. Nic was the sales specialist who came to my home. He was very organized, took his time with counting vents, looking at all ducting work, where the new gas lines would go, where the units were getting installed, etc. Very thorough measuring everything, so he could give me an exact quote of what the installation would cost. He also took his time going over all of their units, offered his personal opinions, but never pushed at all towards one or another model. I felt very comfortable having him in my home and spending time going over all the details, felt completely informed when he left, and signed up to do the installation. The installation went flawlessly, Ryan was the lead installer coordinating all the other subcontractors (electricians and plumbers). Ryan was an absolute delight. I have animals (two cats and a dog), and he was always very nice to them when they came downstairs to visit him. I was 100% comfortable with him in my home, never felt I needed to "watch" him, completely trustworthy and well-mannered. He also knew his units very well, and helped explain aspects to me about the sizing of the A/C unit, what certain terms meant, etc. I was very happy to see he was the lead installer when I put the A/C in May. All work passed inspection without any problems, the comments from the Portland inspectors (there were 3 total) were things like "nice, these guys knew what they were doing" and "that's really clean work." That made me feel like I definitely got my money's worth with not just the product, but the pride in installation. I will mention that these guys are not the cheapest you'll find if you get similar quotes. I had four different quotes overall, each of the contractors were people I probably would have been fine with. But the professionalism, the obvious pride in their work, and passion with how they approach their work is why I chose Specialty. I was much more comfortable spending this money with these guys since they really took their work seriously, and were very up-front that they stand behind everything they do 100%. I feel like I got an excellent deal.

These guys were fantastic. Corey was the estimator. We got an appointment three business days after we called. He went down in our mini-basement crawl space, inspected our furnace, told us we didn't need a new one, and actually connected a fan wire there that never had been hooked up by the original installer some years ago. He walked the property, sketched out where the installation would go on his paperwork, and took the trouble to locate the outside compressor to minimize noise to the house and patio. He checked the thermostat and also told us we did not need a new one. At our request, he also recommended and quoted pricing on a thorough duct cleaning contractor. Corey had a laptop computer and printer with him, and gave us an immediate price quote on Carrier equipment, which is top-quality. After he left, we compared bids and decided to use Speciality. We called Corey, and he turned around and drove back to our house and finalized the paperwork. We were ready to start ASAP, and when he got back to the office that afternoon, Corey called us and scheduled an installation opening just two days later. The two installers were terrific. They arrived promptly, and were extremely professional and polite. They finished the job by late afternoon, and worked quietly and efficiently. They were very careful about our wood floors, and about cleaning up afterward. They also discovered that the vent on our gas water heater was improperly connected and leaking CO2 into our house, and connected it without asking or charging, fixing a potentially lethal safety hazard. When they finished, they checked everything and made sure things were functioning properly. They made a point of noting on the paperwork that they would return to install the moulding over the conduit after our new siding was installed, cleaned up everything and left. We have been working on our house steadily for more than 12 months since we moved to Portland, and both my husband and I were extremely impressed with the entire Specialty team. We were called by the office while the installers were here, making sure all was well, and I had a follow-up email from Corey the day after to check on how things went. They also left a mail-in evaluation form. They will get our future service calls every time.

I would give them high marks. They are very professional and personable. They have the best equipment. I give them great reviews all around.

Wonderful response time...professional, knowledgeable, polite employees all the way around.

My husband put me in charge of this HVAC project due to our high energy/heating bills. My experience with Specialty H & C made me feel like I was a "valued customer". They laid out my options, answered my questions and put things in written format for me that I could understand and evaluate....right on the spot!Their presentation and interaction was considerate, personable and professional.....all the way through. The employees have been trained in their product, with the latest technology and an emphasis on customer service that would compare to Nordstroms! Specialty was several thousand dollars lower in their bid from a different "well known" company that offered the same product. I had interviewed and accepted bids from five different contractors - so I had a lot of information to sort through. I know my product choice and workmanship of this install (very important - the install) was confirmed by the positive comments relayed by the building/electrical inspectors, to my husband upon completion. I referred Specialty to my brother - he too will be enjoying a new HVAC system and purifier!

The whole Specialty Heating and Cooling team did a great job, from start to finish. Bill Polzen diagnosed that our old furnace was not worth repairing. Nic Sterrazza gave me a comprehensive review of alternative solutions. Eric Barlow did a great job of installing the new furnace, even suggesting some modifications which made sense. The office coordinated the City of Beavertion inspection. I was impressed how well he office/field communication communicated to me and each other to get our home warm quickly. Thank you.

Our central gas furnace failed during cold weather, but we were fortunate to have two other sources of heat, and could take the time to get estimates and talk to several contractors. We called Specialty because their headquarters office is only a few miles from our home, and because they are highly rated on Angie's List. Their first visit was to confirm that the old furnace was unrepairable. Two other contractors gave us estimates: one lied to us (Oregon Heating) saying that a competing brand had a plastic heat exchanger. Physics demands that all heat exchangers be made of metal in order to work. The second-place contractor proposed new wiring, in order to make up for our limited power for central A/C. That contractor is honest, but didn't have a solution that we liked, and the cost and appearance factors for that wiring bothered us. Specialty came back with the water heater conversion, which freed up power for central A/C. The old furnace had a chimney, which was converted to a vent for the gas water heater. They installed a "T" from the furnace gas supply for the water heat. All this was accomplished in one busy installation day that ran until almost 6 pm. The installers were friendly and competent, and the work was finished, and reasonably well cleaned up when they left. Because the Carrier A/C unit is relatively low profile, they could install it under our upper-floor deck. The only "trauma" to the house was wiring and piping through the walls, and most of it is relatively short. The intake and vent for the 95% efficiency furnace was run beyond the deck because of code requirements, but these pipes were located to be as unobtrusive as possible. We are VERY pleased with the overall installation. There's a bonus: after 3 months of utility bills, we are saving $1 to $1.20 per day for combined electricity and gas.

We had used Specialty before and had such a good experience with them that we contacted them to perform work at our new home. We wanted an Infinity Air Cleaner installed within the confines of a small utility area. Despite the fact that this was a very tough install (so tough in fact that several other companies declined to even bid the job) the folks at Specialty did the job in their normal excellent fashion. That would have been good enough but the story's actually better. Some time after install we noticed that the air cleaner did not appear to be working to the high level of efficiency that we'd experienced in our previous home. After contacting Specialty with my concerns they PROMPTLY AND WITHOUT COMPLAINT came back to our site, noted an issue with the original install and IMMEDIATELY - and at their expense - essentially did a full re-install. In today's market, when too many tradesmen are happy with "just good enough" it's refreshing to work with such professionals. People who take pride in their work, back up their product and sincerely take care of their customers. I would, WITHOUT RESERVATION, recommend Specialty Heating & Cooling for any of your HVAC needs. They are simply the best.

Specialty Heating & Cooling Inc sent Nic to our home for the initial walkthrough and to explain the different options we had in choosing our next furnace and A/C unit. It was very professional and very low key. One thing that really impressed me was how Nic was able to narrow down our needs and what we were willing to spend. Within about 10 minutes I was informed enough to choose my new system without hesitation. The installation techs were outstanding! Clean, organized and prompt the day of install. I watched them work and was really impressed with how well they knew their job! The new system works fantastic! The follow-up was detailed and impressive as well. My wife and I strongly suggest adding this company to your short list of furnace & A/C companies that you interview when choosing repair or replacement of equipment. Specialty Heating & Cooling Inc is truly a A+ company!