In the NE a fair price for a true service and cleaning with necessary screen, filter, nozzle, simple gaskets and break down /cleaning of chamber should be 79 - 129.

Make sure they are capable and give you a printed readout of combustion efficiency, smoke, CO, draft and so on. If they canÂt do this or unless you can trust an old timer call someone else.

This is about the only way to tell if they know what they are doing or just sent a kid to vacuum and bang on the pipes.

Hey zl700, I don't have a tester capable of printing out an efficiency test. I use my trusty ol' Bachrach kit and I fill out an old fashioned hard copy form with all the pertinant info. I've be doing this type of work for over 40 years. So because I choose not to buy a fancy electronic gizmo and have to replace the oxygen senson every few months whether I use the machine or not I should be considered a kid with a vacuum? HUH?

Mr HVAC

Sounds like you fall into the old timer that you can trust, that I did mention.
The fact that you fill out the sheet speaks for itself.

I have seen start up sheets on equipment before and thought did this person start a burner or a pool pump because the spaces were blank or didnÂt make sense.

My point was if you call an oil co and schedule service and a young person shows up with a vac, probably an apprentice and hired last week, the poster may not get a good cleaning and burner setup.

I'm thinking if you read the post again along with my point of view, you shouldnÂt be offended.

I was just being a buster zl, I know what you meant when you gave that advice and you're absolutely correct. I know exactly what your talking about, I started off in the trade working for a contractor just like that. Fresh out of tech school and didn't really know my butt from a hole in the ground about the trade yet and Joe Hack and Company is throwing me out to the wolves. He told me once if I didn't know what I was doing on somebodys system then just turn on the soot vac and bang the pipes or ductwork once in a while for about a half an hour, then make out a ticket and boogie! I learned a long time ago to treat people no better or no worse then I wanted to be treated myself. A little advice for anyone reading this. Don't be afraid to go pay that tech a visit while he's working on your system. Ask him a question or two. If he tells you he can't work around people just remind him whose house he happens to be in and if he doesn't like having the customer there, to bad, it's your house. But at the same time don't be a distrusting royal PITA either!

Around here $79-129 will get you a quick nozzle & filter change. If you want anything cleaned, it's in the $200s +. We follow these cheap guys around all winter.

Maybe different from a company who makes money selling you oil but I just can't see how a firm can make money doing a 2-3 hour thorough job for that little.

I'm cool MR HVAC
Sometimes I think more than I type though.
I agree with the checking on the tech too, just don't plant your chin on his shoulder. They put the big windows in the car oil change places for a reason, so we can watch them put the oil back in.