Duke City Heating & Cooling

WOW!!! This company is exceptional! I have had some negative experiences in ABQ with other HVAC/plumbing contractors, especially concerning high prices and these guys are fantastically priced plus do a wonderful job.

Mike came promptly to my rescue twice in a month because as my house was in escrow we found out that our sono tubes had collapsed on the North side and the furnace needed to be replaced, the entire system to be changed to a heating system using the wall vents and the floor vents as cool air returns. The work that seemed to me and my realtor like a mammoth one was done in no time with extreme cleanliness, expertise and attention to details. Mike Franco and Robert are real professionals, always on time and they clean after themselves, very rare these days!

Then as some termites apparently had nested in the sono tubes, the floor vents could no longer be used and we had to install a register in the entrance of the house and plug all the floor vents with concrete so that no critters would come through ever! Mike came back and did the job again in no time, everything was left immaculate and the system was completely redone for quite a reasonable price. Kudos to this company!!!

Mike Franco comes at the exact time he says for the exact price quoted that is a fourth of the other companies quotes!

It is a no brainer to hire such a marvelous HVAC and electrical contractor!
Believe me, the pool of honest, efficient and reasonably priced HVAC/plumbing and electrical contractors in Albuquerque is slim to say the least, Duke City Heating & Cooling is worth 20 stars not just 5!

If I still owned a home in ABQ I would hire them always for any plumbing, electrical work I'd have, but I moved and I highly recommend them to anyone in need of such work. They can't be beat. i gave their card to realtors friends of mine who will hire them when they come across any HVAC, plumbing or electrical trouble.

You should definitely call them and give them a try, you won't be disappointed.

A million thanks to Duke City Heating and Cooling, the entire staff including Gloria, is top notch! I'm so grateful that my house sold and the buyer was very happy thanks to them and their quick response.

I researched many heating/cooling companies this spring when we discovered our old swamp cooler had died. They installed a new one and it works great. They came by to winterize the new system and we are very  happy with their work. The service people are fantastic, very trustworthy, friendly, and never pushy. I observed them doing some work on a neighbor's roof, was impressed with the work and their appropriate interaction with people. I wrote down the phone number from a jacket of one of the technicians and the rest is history. We would never consider using anyone but Duke City for future service.

I am a Realtor in Albuquerque and I have called on Duke City Heating and Cooling several times to fix different things in homes that we are under contract with and they have always been courteous, prompt, and helpful.  I recommend them to other Realtors as well as friends and family!

Love these folks.  They're super helpful, and we've been using them since we first moved here two years ago.  Gloria always makes me feel like they remember me, and value my business, and the techs are great too.  Even when we have weird stuff happen with our system, Duke City gets everything fixed so we are cool (or warm) and comfortable in our home.

Big thanks to Paul for coming out to our new home and installing ceiling fans and swapping one of the light fixtures.

It's always a stressful thing working on a brand new home, in a brand new area, but Paul and Duke City Heating made things easy. We also plan on using them for all of the yearly maintenance and any other projects that may pop up.

I called Duke City to help me out after another company left me hanging. I am very pleased with the quick response and the quality of work was very good as was the price. Communication was excellent and the touch back with estimates for further work was quick and reasonable. Thanks Duke City Heating and Cooling.

Called them out to clean a furnace and change the filter.  They could not have been more professional and quick.  The price was very fair.  I realized afterwards how easily they could have cheated me.  I had told them before they started that the furnace had not had any attention for three years and the house had been very dirty (long story).  If they had suggested some expensive work I would not have been surprised.  But they reported that the top-quality filter I had installed three years ago had saved the day.  These guys are quick, professional and most of all HONEST.

Beware of their free estimates!  I asked for an estimate in June and just received a bill for $95.01!!!  I had called them because they have some good reviews and because their estimates were said to be free.  I requested an estimate only and did not authorize any type of work.  No one bothered to tell me afterwards that I would be receiving a bill.  I would not recommend this company.

Extremely disappointed and pissed with these guys. They were very nice on the phone and made an appointment to come out. They said they would email me an estimate. When I called back I spoke to Gloria who advised they do not have time. When I tried to get clarification she advised they have no time for an estimate or to work. This is very unprofessional. If one is slammed, I get it, but do not waste other people's time and claim to be willing to do multiple jobs and then disappear. We contacted another company who came out and even fixed my most emergent problem same day. He will be coming out to fix the rest. Cristal electric is much better and much more professional than duke city. Very annoying! Bad customer
Service. It is very unfortunate because they did seem very nice!

We have had them come out several times to assist us in fixing up our foreclosure purchase.  They have been prompt, easy to work with and Adrian has been super friendly, knowledgeable and the prices are reasonable.  I know we will have more work done and we will definitely call Duke City!

I wanted to wait a bit with A/C working before I wrote a review.  Great fast service.   They were able to get my a/c into a tight space where other companies had backed off.   It works fantastic.   I had to give a star off because I told them to leave the swamp cooler on the top of the roof and they took it down like they were doing me a favor.   No, they are worth at least $1000 used I am finding out.   That is kind of shady in my opinion when I had a conversation about leaving it up there.   Other than that, I am happy that I went with them.   Be careful though, your old swamp coolers are worth some money.  Research them and then let them go for a good price.

Gloria and Mike were very nice and quick to accommodate me. My furnace went on on Christmas Eve and was living off space heaters. I called them Monday to set up a quote for a new furnace and Mike was able to get out that day. I got a fair quote and everything was explained to me. I was able to get everything set up for the install quickly. Time for install was short and well done. It's so nice to have a new dependable furnace. The people at this company are friendly and professional.

Showed up on time and completed the work also provided ways to save money and things to look for.

So maybe this doesn't represent a true experience with the company, but I think it qualifies for a review.

I call Mike. What's happening? he asks.

I have a strange leak on the floor by my dishwasher, it's been pooling up for the past few days. I think I need someone to come take a look at it.

Before I send somebody over, he says, why don't you take a look at it. Here's how.

Basically, Mike walked me through the basics of opening up the bottom panel of the washer, identifying the leak, and helping me easily fix an issue that would have cost a hefty price to hire someone to handle. The way we look at it, if we can save people some money on the stuff they can do themselves, we can focus on the important work.

Bravo, Mike, bravo.

Duke city came out to in May 2020 to turn off my heater and turn on my AC.  I made the mistake of not being there and instead left my 20 year old daughter to handle paying the bill. They told her that they needed to fix the hoses in the unit even though it was brand new (house was purchased in 2019 and unit was installed earlier that year brand new.) Bill was paid in full even though they broke one of our gutters (they did send someone out to fix it weeks later after I had to call and remind them) and a week later we had to call them back out because the AC unit was leaking water and even came through our roof and damaged a light fixture in our bathroom and warped the ceiling as well. When they came to fix it they said that a hose had broke off and damaged the motor and they would replace it. The team that replaced the motor left without letting my daughter know and didn't come back in to turn on the water for the AC unit so it only blew hot air until we had TLC come out and turn it on.  Although they fixed the problem that they themselves caused they had the audacity to charge me still for their own negligence. The hoses didn't need to be replaced - they were still new! I also had to go through another HVAC company and pay them to fix the fact nobody ever came back in to turn on the water.  Now they have someone harassing me at my work and my cell phone threatening legal action because of an unpaid bill.  They damaged my house and didn't even care and now they're trying to charge me for something they did. Avoid at all costs!!!

We installed a new HVAC system two years ago and neglected to do routine maintenance since then (except cleaning the washable air handler filter infrequently).  The two technicians showed up on time yesterday (promised 9-10 AM) after sending an on our way text).  They recommended using the pleated filters instead of the blue fiberglass variety. He had a 20x25 pleated filter in the truck that was a little long for our space. So, he took a pair of shears, chopped off just enough, and used the cardboard form cleared of material to put a border back on! Voila!  

Another service was cleaning the fins (?) on the outdoor compressor. After turning off the power outside, he used a hose to flush out the accumulated detritus in the unit. Our system is back to working great again!

I had a chance to speak with one of the brother/owners, Paul, this evening, to share my feedback on the service call. Sounds like a very nice guy. I thanked him for their well-trained techs.

We had a great experience with Duke City. From the beginning process to the end, we are thrilled with the service received. The scheduling, the estimate, the installation of product and the final bill processing all went smoothly. Their prices are reasonable, offer quality products and efficient in the install.

A big shout out to Gloria, Mike, Estevon, Adam, Josh & Tom! Everyone was professional, knowledgeable, kind and considerate in each of their respective qualifications. We absolutely recommend them and will continue to do future business with them.

We have been really pleased with this company. The previous business that handled matters related to our room HVAC were not dependable so we searched on YELP and read all the good reviews about Duke City Heating & Cooling. We called and received an appointment fairly quickly since our new HVAC system had sprung a leak! HVAC professionals arrived at the appointed date and time and texted about a half hour before arrival to confirm. They are  skilled and efficient and completed then work and then provided us with photos (since the system is on the roof). About a month or so later we had a plumbing issue and they were equally as professional about scheduling the visit, letting us know they were on the way, arriving at the appointed time and fixing the problem.  We highly recommend them. And Gloria is very empathetic and helpful when you call and explain the problems to her!

I've been through several plumbers and this one is the most strait forward and consistent.  Standard hourly rate but they cranked a lot of work .  Among three calls, I've had them fix my furnace, my swamp cooler, my leaky faucets, spigot, broken faucet handle.  They never went over the hour and always just figured out the problem quickly and delivered quality work.

First time using this company. Called because my furnace went out at a rental property and really needed someone to come that day. Girl was so nice and willing to fit me in. Adrian and his asst came to my house and were so nice and very knowledgable!  Would definitely do business with them again!!

Our furnace stopped working. We called Duke City, and they were able to come out same day (on a Thursday). Great. They diagnosed the issue within 30 minutes and were gone within the hour. Excellent. Unfortunately, they had to order the part, which wouldn't be in until Monday. Originally, the technician stated we'd pay expedited shipping on the part but they'd be out first thing Monday morning to get the part installed. I asked the tech before he left what was the price for everything. He verbally estimated $350-$375. He said the part was cheap and the labor would be the expensive part. I wasn't given the price in writing, showing the breakdown of the costs (this was my error, I should know better. They called us Friday evening to let us know they couldn't make it Monday as they were short on technicians. So after being quoted a price WITH expedited shipping, and to the fault of the company, we waited for install- we expected that original price to go down. They came that following Wednesday, and it was fixed within 30 minutes. (This is a total of roughly 2 hours of service, generously.)

Total cost $374.06, after they were nice enough to give a 5% military discount. Again, an invoice wasn't provided. However, I paid, and they were on their way.

My wife immediately pointed out the math didn't add up, 2 hours of service ($85 x 2 + $55 for a part = $225 plus tax). She called after the tech left to follow up regarding the charges.

I received my invoice the next morning around 8:30, as follows:
$195.00 for the part (hot surface igniter)
$170.00 for labor (2 hours worth)
Plus tax

I began to do research, as the original quoted price for the part was roughly $55. (Companies in the area won't release parts prices or sell to the public, only contractors, so when I called myself, prices could not be provided. However, I found the price for the part online, ranging $49 to $58, which is not the wholesale price that contractors get.)

My friend, who works for a local HVAC company, did a little research for me today. Here were the costs of the parts, as quoted by the 4 parts companies that they called -
1) $17 (the company Duke City got the part from - Johnstone Supply)
2) $13.76
3) $16.57
4) Same price as above, but plus shipping.

Duke City charged me $195 for a $14-$17 part through their company. That is flat out robbery. I understand wanting to make a little extra profit. Business has to make money. But, even giving them the benefit of the doubt, and saying they spent $20 on the part, that's almost 10x the price of the actual part!

My wife called Duke City and questioned Gloria, regarding the markup. She told my wife, Well, that's the price that was quoted by the first technician that did the diagnostic. I don't know where the miscommunication happened. Upon further request of resolution (as an oh well is not sufficient, she was told one of the business owners would follow up by tomorrow morning).

We will never do business with this company again. I will spread the word. Through social media, word of mouth, etc.

UDPATE
They sent me the invoice that they claim came from the parts company (Johnstone) and they broke it down as $88.60 for the part, and $99.55 for the freight/handling. Remember though, up above my friend clearly got a quote of $17 from the same company, for the same part. So something is up. Also, $99.55 for freight/handling?! They paid for what? Expedited shipping? Even though they knew they couldn't make it out until 3 days following their original promise of installation (Monday)? Give me a break. Not buying any of it. Regardless, if they gave me that price breakdown on the initial day of diagnoses, I would have turned it down. But, they didn't. They just verbally gave me the estimated cost of the whole project. Their verbal breakdown nowhere near matches the black and white invoice. Which, again, was 4 hours of service and a $55 part.

At the end of the end of the day, yes- the original price matched. But Duke City changed their breakdown- now, our invoice shows TWO hours of service and FOUR times the original quoted price on the part (when, really the part is only $17, as verified by another local HVAC contractor).

Now, my own opinion is that Duke City works with this company to inflate the prices of the parts that they sell. (We were also told by our friend, Johnstone will match a company's original quote to a client in an effort to support small businesses, regardless of what the actual price is.) This leads to return business for the parts company, and increased profits on behalf of Duke City for parts. (No wonder these parts companies won't release the price of the parts to the general public.) No matter the reasoning though, it's clear there is really something morally questionable about this company. Do business with them at the risk of your wallet. Imagine how many people they did this to before us?

This group of people are the best HVAC people I have ever worked with. They are honest, friendly, highly skilled and knowledgeable, and best of all, they are excellent at communicating with their clients. From scheduling and reminders to a call/text when they are in the way, they will always let you know what to expect. They show you parts that need replacing, but don't push you purchase. I wish all service businesses operated like these guys! Thank you Duke City!!

Paul Franco represents this company horribly. Based off of my experience with him, I would never use this company,