Aircon Quote After the Pre-Check: What You Owe If You Want Time to Think

The technician has been in the flat for about a quarter of an hour. The panel is open, there has been a gauge on the outdoor unit, a torch pointed at the coil and a few questions about when it last cooled properly. Then comes the sentence you were half expecting: "It needs more than a normal service." And a number.

Nobody likes deciding at that moment. The unit is warm, the technician is standing there, and a second quote means another visit. So a lot of people either say yes to be done with it, or say no and are not sure what they now owe. This post is about that moment: what a pre-check is supposed to hand you, what you pay if you decide to think it over, and how to compare a second quote so that it really is a comparison.

What the first visit is, and what it is not

At aircons.sg every service booking starts with a 9-point pre-check, and it is not sold separately. There is no "check only" visit. The minimum is $55 for 1 unit, and that one price covers the technician's visit, the inspection and standard servicing if standard servicing is what the unit needs. The inspection takes about 10 to 15 minutes, and all nine points are done before any servicing or repair work begins. The full list and the wording are on the pre-check page.

The reason for doing it that way round is simple. Many things that look like a broken aircon are not: a blocked drain, a dirty coil or low refrigerant all present as "not cold" or "dripping". If the technician starts cleaning before looking, you can pay for the wrong job and still have the problem afterwards.

What you owe if you say "let me think about it"

This is the part people worry about, so here it is plainly, as published on the pre-check page:

• If standard servicing fixes it, the $55 is the service. There is no separate charge for the diagnosis.
• If the pre-check shows it needs more (a gas top-up, a chemical wash, a repair, a part), you get a clear quote. If you go ahead, the $55 minimum is part of the total, so you are not charged twice for the diagnosis.
• If you decide not to go ahead with the recommended fix, the $55 covers the visit and the diagnosis. Nothing further is charged.

So "I would like to think about it" costs you the visit and nothing more. If a company will not tell you what saying no costs before you say it, that is worth knowing too.

One exception worth reading carefully: when a leak has to be pinpointed, the dedicated pressure or leak test is priced on its own, per fan coil unit, and quoted before it is done. We cover that in how to check a gas leak quote before you approve it. In short, agree the test fee first, and ask what happens to it if you then approve the repair.

What a useful quote contains

A number on its own is not a quote. After a pre-check you should be able to get five things, and it is reasonable to ask for them one by one:

1. Which unit. In a multi-unit system the fault is often in one room. A quote that says "the aircon" has not said where the problem is.
2. Which of the nine points found it. Every recommendation should trace back to something observed: a temperature drop that was too small, a pressure reading, a drain that did not flow, a rust or oil stain on the pipework.
3. What the fix is, in words. "Chemical wash", "gas top-up", "drainage repair": the name of the job, not "full treatment".
4. The price, and what it is per. Per unit, per outdoor circuit or per fan coil unit. Gas top-up, for instance, is priced per outdoor circuit, not per indoor unit.
5. What happens if you do nothing. The technician should be able to say what is wrong, why it matters and what happens if you leave it. Sometimes the honest answer is "nothing much, watch it".

At aircons.sg the price shown is the final price, and it is given before the work starts, not part-way through it. Whoever you choose, that is the standard to hold a quote to.

Match the quote to the nine points

Here is how the points on our pre-check turn into a conversation about money. You can use the same list to test any technician, ours or someone else's.

• Power and thermostat test. Confirms supply, board response and remote function before anything is taken apart. A board problem is a different quote from a dirty coil. See what to ask before you approve a PCB replacement.
• Temperature drop. Compares intake and output air. This is what helps tell a gas problem from a cleaning problem, so it should come up whenever "not cold" is the complaint.
• Compressor pressure reading. Gauges on the refrigerant side. A low reading points at a leak, which is a different job from a top-up.
• Drainage flow. Is the pipe clear? Blocked drainage is the first suspect when there is water on the floor.
• Outdoor condenser inspection. Fan, coil and external pipework. It is where fan failure and coil corrosion show up.
• Fan blower spin test. Listening for bearing noise, looking for a cracked or unbalanced wheel.
• Damage and corrosion check. Rust, oil stains, cracked piping. Ask to see the oil stain or the rust if that is the reason for the quote.
• Filter and coil dirt assessment. This is where the technician says whether you need a general service or a chemical wash. The photograph at the top of this post is a filter of the kind this point is about.
• Operating noise diagnostic. Bearing wear, fan blade issues, refrigerant flow noise or compressor stress, identified by ear.

If a quote includes something that none of the nine points can explain, ask which observation it came from. A good technician will answer in a sentence. A vague answer is a reason to take the second quote.

Getting a second quote that can actually be compared

Two prices for "aircon work" are rarely two prices for the same work. Before you put them side by side:

• Same job name. Servicing, chemical wash and chemical overhaul are three different jobs. Our published prices are on the pricing page: normal servicing $55 for 1 unit, $90 for 2, $120 for 3, $160 for 4 and $35 for each unit from 5; chemical wash $135 for 1 unit; chemical overhaul $200 for 1 unit. Our guide to reading a servicing checklist line by line shows how two quotes with the same price can describe different jobs.
• Same unit count and same unit. One fan coil unit or the whole system? Per unit or per circuit?
• Did they inspect first? If the second company quotes over WhatsApp from a description, that quote is a guess until someone has looked. That is fine as a ballpark, not as a decision.
• What happens to the visit fee? Ask whether it is deducted from the repair if you go ahead, as ours is, or charged on top.
• Same warranty. Our workmanship warranty is 90 days. Whatever the other company offers, get it in writing next to the price.

It also helps to write down what the first technician told you while you still remember it: which unit, which point of the inspection, which job name, what price. Ask for a photograph of whatever they found, a stain, a cracked part, a dirty coil. The second company can then quote the same thing rather than start from a verbal summary. More on what to ask to see in what your aircon technician should show you before they leave.

When thinking it over is not the right call

Taking time is sensible for a wash versus a service, or for a quote that feels high. It is less sensible when the symptom is a safety one. A burning smell, a breaker that keeps tripping, or water running towards a socket should be switched off at the isolator and looked at promptly. Start with what to do first when an aircon smells of burning. Everything else can wait for a considered second opinion.

If you would like us to look

If you already have a quote from another company, send us what it says: the unit, the job name and the price. We will tell you what a visit would cover and what the published price for that job is. If you would rather book the visit, general servicing is $55 for 1 unit on our pricing page, and it starts with the 9-point pre-check. WhatsApp us on 9107 2601 and we will tell you what to expect before we come.