Polar Bear Air Conditioning

Name: Polar Bear Air Conditioning
Address: 1045 Wisconsin Ave NW, Washington, DC, 20007, US
Telephone: 202-333-1310
Price range: $$$$
Rating: 2.5

1045 Wisconsin Ave NW
Washington, DC 20007 202-333-1310

Checkbook's Top Rating
Quality	NO
Price	NO

31 ratings
65% gave a "superior" overall rating
- Prices 42% higher than average
Compare 195 nearby heating & air-conditioning contractors
"This was the first, and only time I will use Polar. My rooftop furnace had completely stopped. I..."
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Prices for Polar Bear Air Conditioning

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Consumer Ratings for Polar Bear Air Conditioning — 31 Ratings

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Complaints for Polar Bear Air Conditioning

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Areas Served by Polar Bear Air Conditioning:

Alexandria
Arlington Co.
DC–NE
DC–NW
DC–SE
DC–SW
Loudoun Co.

Equipment company services/installs:

Humidifiers
Air ducts (sheet metal work)
Central air conditioners
Electric furnaces
Gas furnaces

Hot water heating systems
Heat pumps

Consumer Comments for Polar Bear Air Conditioning

Consumer from Washington, DC
Dec 29, 2023

This was the first, and only time I will use Polar. My rooftop furnace had completely stopped. I intended to call two or three contractors. The first said he thought the compression switch was bad. He replaced it, it didn't make a difference and he said he would come back. Never heard from him again. Second one said the heat exchanger was cracked and said it would be $4000 to fix or $14,000 to replace!! Third one said the same thing and would give me a proposal. That was two weeks ago! In desperation, I called Polar and they sent two techs to do the job of one tech. They quoted me the cost of one tech ($159). They sent 30 minutes on the roof and said the problem was the thermostat which they would replace for only $359! I bought it for $88. I asked about the heat exchanger and they said it would take a lot of work and they would come back if I replaced the thermostat! I asked them to hook up the thermostat and the furnace came on immediately. One of the tech's observed "it's working" and said no more. They left as if they were late for their next job! Because my two previous contractors no longer work in the District I've been flailing around for a reputable company. Whatever you do don't call Polar, they are the worst, I feel taken and I'm left very angry!!

Consumer from Washington, DC
Mar 23, 2023

I had a short-cycling boiler problem where the boiler would fire up and 15 seconds later shut down. The Polar Bear tech came out, spent 15 minutes at the boiler where he watched it turn on to ignite but the full burn cycle failed start. He assessed that I needed a new, core, expensive part to cure the fix. I approved the decision and he said he would order it and then schedule the return visit to install it. But there was no additional feedback from Polar Bear in the following week. Telephone calls to the office had a cheerful conversation with the scheduler, but no response on what part had been ordered and when it would arrive in DC. I was quoted the price for the repair (part plus installation). Following a week with no information from Polar Bear and with electric radiators heating parts of the house during an extreme cold spell, I contacted another company who took pity on our household's plight and came by 2 hours later. They spent more time assessing the problem and checked out different possible problems. The final step in the diagnosis was to by-pass the thermostat - which caused full ignition and "normal" boiler operation. This non-PB technician then asked what kind of thermostat I had... A Nest... on a two-wire system..."That's the issue... There's a known problem when the Nest's internal battery loses charge on a two-wire system. At that point it can either control the boiler or charge the battery. This is why your system is short cycling." Polar Bear should have known this. On the plus side, when we called the office they did refund the cost of the visit and new part that was ordered. And they were available to look at the system on the same day we called with the original problem.

Consumer from Washington, DC
Feb 12, 2023

Polar Bear installed a new boiler for me many years ago, and a new a/c system more recently. I was very happy. Then the year after the new a/c was installed, I had water leaking into my bedroom. I called and no one responded. Since their work had been so good, I assumed it was a roof problem and hired roofers. They said that drip pan had been installed wrong and that there was no caulking around the unit on the roof, causing the leaking. They patched it. Again I called Polar Bear and sent a written inquiry I wanted them to look and tell me if the roofers were wrong. Once again, no call, no response at all. Don't expect them to answer if you have a problem.

...and 8 more consumer comments for Polar Bear Air Conditioning

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