Cardinal Plumbing Heating & Air Inc

As new, first-time homeowners, we called on Cardinal HVAC & Plumbing for an inspection and service on our new home's HVAC unit. James did a thorough inspection of our system, finding several urgent issues that he presented as genuinely needing immediate addressing for not only our unit's health, but our own as well. With more than reasonable pricing, James was able to begin making the necessary upgrades same day, working quietly and quickly, and didn't leave until the other needed services were scheduled. After just one service appointment and install, we feel in great hands with Cardinal and their Nest Protection Plan in our home going forward!

Kyle was very professional! He knew the details about the unit he was installing, reviewed the contract terms and explained his work upon completion. He was prompt and even cleaned up after the work was completed. Also , he offered to help me replace the contents from the cabinet under the sink! Much appreciated!!

Great experience with Cardinal! We were long overdue for HVAC routine maintenance and were able to quickly schedule this week. Jay was our tech and he truly went above and beyond. Not only did he do a very thorough take down of our now 20+ year old furnace to inspect/troubleshoot, he also provided a lot of practical and helpful tips for overall HVAC and home maintenance. He was very detailed in his explanations and recommendations, we didn't feel pressured whatsoever. Highly recommend Cardinal for any HVAC needs - and thank you again Jay!

Do not recommend. We were existing customers with Cardinal and used them a few times for fixing our plumbing issues and installing our water heater. The first few times went well. However, when our AC broke down during the summer, we called them 3 times to schedule emergency appointment to fix our AC. Each time they "confirmed" the appointment but in the end no one showed up. The people who took the calls seemed to be clueless each time we called. We had to stay in the hotel for a few days and in the end had another company come out and fix the issue for us. Now our water heater which cardinal installed just broke down (not implying this was necessarily their fault) but we will not be using their service ever again.

I set up an apt to replace my garbage disposal with a 12-4 arrival time. They cancelled the apt on the day of the apt. We rescheduled the apt but they only had a Saturday apt available. I cancelled my plans on Saturday so I would be home for a 12-4 arrival time. They cancelled the apt on the day of the apt....AGAIN. They wanted to reschedule but I declined. Not a reliable company.

I understand covid-19 hit us all hard! It's been a rough time fir all- people are working remotely and may not have answers. But you would think 3 months is a long enough time to have some one reach out to help you get things sorted!! I'v been a "HVAC maintenance club member" since Sept 2020. My initial service then led me to believe I was in good hands and paid in full for the year long subscription. Since then it's been troublesome getting a hold of anyone capable of answering questions! Way back in Sept I was told the UV light bulb I had on my air scrubber was fused and needed replacement. The technician servicing said it would cost close to $400. With the steep price tag, I choose to leave the replacement for Spring service time, and spring being allergy season for me, the timing would work out perfectly. The technician who came out in March 2021 for the spring check and tune up informed me that the bulb replacement was actually $150 and covered by cardinal. He checked that the bulb was in stock and could be replaced soon, but someone would call for scheduling an appointment for that. After the tech left, all I heard was crickets from Cardinal. Calling in-numerous times all I was ever able to do was talk to customer service that is working remotely. They have standard scripted answers to all and everything. I'm not sure what is going on at that end. Do they not convey messages or do the messages that get conveyed fall on deaf ears? It took 3 months for someone to come out to replace a BULB. In the middle, sometime in May, I got a call saying "your part is in stock and we will be contacting you to schedule an appointment"!!! WTH FINALLY after threatening to write a bad review, I was contacted to schedule a bulb replacement time. This was taken care of on June 4 2021. close to 3 MONTHS after I requested the order. And to add fuel to the fire, the customer service rep who scheduled the appointment says "I'm sorry for the delay blah blah blah, but we'd be willing to come out to have that taken care off for you". Seriously? You are "willing" to come out? Clearly a wrong choice of words, but the damage was done. I asked for bulb replacement along with cancellation of services along with a refund for the year's worth of care I had paid for. This is not what I expected when I signed up - unhelpful, Inknowledgeable technicians and even worse customer care! The answer I got was that she'd talk to the accounting department and get back to me by the end of the week. It was a Thursday, so I asked if she meant tomorrow Friday? And she says "ummm yeh the end of the week" The technician who came in this time was cordial and patiently heard my story. Apologised for the delay and said he would bring this up with his manager/boss. He also mentioned that in my service history he saw a bulb replacement appointment was set up for May 8th. By who!??? The person who left that strange message for me? No one contacted me to set it up, and neither did anyone show up according to the appointment. He went off about how cardinal has hired a third party for customer service. They don't know much and give scripted answers about bringing it up with higher management etc etc. Anyways. He replaced the bulb, but he also damaged the attic door, which he said would be covered by them to fix. And you guessed it "someone would call to schedule" Crickets!!!! Neither have I heard anything in regard to service termination and refund, nor has anyone contacted me to fix the damaged door. Cardinal plumbing heating and air! Full of lies. All they want is to somehow get in your house to service you initially and sell their yearly subscription. Then I guess their job is done. You'r on your own trying to get a decent soul to help you. I wish I could give them a negative star as a review! Stay away.

I would strongly NOT recommend Cardinal Plumbing Heating & Air as they charged me over double what another plumber would have charged. During a heavy rainstorm we had water leaking into our basement so I called them and they sent out a plumber named Jesse. He arrived and said that the sump pump and the check valve for the sump pump were bad....both located in a closet in our basement. He had an iPad type device with him and he showed me the prices on the iPad for a new sump pump and the check valve. He scrolled through the items pretty quickly and gave me a total of around $990 to replace both which came out to $677 for the sump pump and $312 for the check valve. He said don't charge an hourly rate like most plumbers do but that the labor to install the parts is built into the price. He said that if I agree to purchase their one year service warranty for $179, he can take off 15% of the price of the two parts so that if he takes off the 15% ($148) and then adds the $179 back on then I really end up paying only $31 for the service contact. But all he did was jack up the price 15% and then says he is taking it off....all smoke and mirrors. I had no idea about the cost to replace them and since this was an emergency and I needed something done quickly because water was leaking into our basement, I told him to go ahead and do it. So the total with the $179 warranty included came out to $1019 plus change. He finished the job in about an hour and then pulled out his iPad again and had to scroll through numerous screens and I signed or initialed with my finger on the iPad in places where told me to. There was a lot of legal jargon that I really didn't have time to read so I just took Jesse's word on what I was agreeing to when I signed or initialed. It was very frustrating in signing on the iPad with the very tiny font that I couldn't even read. When I was done signing, he left but did not give me a receipt or proof that the work was done since it was all on the iPad and said a copy of what I had just signed would be emailed to me the following day. I've never had a company doing work on our house not give me a written copy and I didn't feel comfortable with it. He left and I had no proof of what I had just signed. The next day I did receive an emailed copy. I started looking over the prices and did an online search at one of the major home improvement stores and was floored by I found. The 1/3 horsepower sump pump that I paid $575 for sell for only $125. The check valve for the sump pump that I paid $265 for sells for only $25. I understand that plumbers are going to charge more than what I would pay at a home improvement store but not mark-ups of $450 and $240 respectively. I felt I had been scammed big time so decided to call another plumber and tell them what I needed done and see what they would charge. I randomly called one that had good ratings and he said that the total to install the two items including parts and labor would be around $400 broken down like this: Sump pump - $230 Check valve - $50 Total labor - $ 114 So Cardinal Plumbing charged me over double of what another plumber would charge for exactly the same thing. I called and spoke with a manger at Cardinal and complained about the charges and asked for a partial refund but he flat out refused. He did agree to refund me the $179 for the service warranty since I told him I would never be using them again. Would advise anyone needing plumbing work done to avoid Cardinal Plumbing or you may get ripped-off like I did. Always check a plumber's prices online before you agree to the work....don't make the mistake I did. Below is a photo of my receipt showing the charges with personal information cropped out. Click on the photo to expand it.

I'm updating my review from 1 star to 3. This week (11/6/17) I received a voicemail from one of the owners, requesting a callback to discuss our previous experience. I was not able to promptly call back but had planned to. I just received a visit from this owner who wanted to make a personal apology for what happened with our last job. Nikolai was very apologetic and expressed genuine concern for wanting to make things right. While this doesn't change what happened, it really gives me closure. Customers can rest assured that Cardinal will not only investigate, but take steps to improve the situation. That says a lot. I've always maintained that they do good work and the guys doing the work are exceptional in both attitude and skill. Because of the amount of effort Nikolai put into restoring this situation, my feelings about the company have improved significantly. Here is my original review from 8/3/17: I definitely do not recommend this company. While our first experience with them went well, my most recent did not. I will say that all of the workers that came to our home were professional, courteous and friendly. Cardinal did work for us recently which included locating a leak in the water main and bringing the existing water main to code. It was during the attempts at locating the leak that they tore through the water main where the line enters the house. That relocation work was not done correctly and subsequently water leaked into our bedroom. We waited for nearly 4 weeks for resolution and nobody contacted us to get the work fixed - I had to call them. When I called Cardinal to ask why nobody had corrected the issue, I was told by one of the receptionists that she thought our job was taken care of. She also reprimanded me for leaving an unpaid invoice. It was unpaid because water was still leaking into our basement and there was a gaping 5 foot deep hole in my yard. We ended up calling another company to fix the work. The second company was stellar, outstanding and prompt. The second company fixed the leak, re-waterproofed the area that they had installed a few years ago AND backfilled the hole. It's been several weeks since the work was completed and we have paid the invoice to Cardinal. Per their estimate, they were to come back and seed the two areas of our lawn that have been left bare. When I requested the completion of this final portion of the job, I was told to call the second company, as the second company back filed one of the two holes. (the other one had been back filled weeks ago by Cardinal). I didn't argue with the person on the phone. I decided it really wouldn't get me anywhere to attempt a discussion or split hairs. If that's how they want to leave this, that's on them. I just won't recommend them to anyone in the future.

Our A/C went out during a recent heat wave and we have 2 small children. I called Cardinal and they sent out a Design Technician to our home. He was nice and professional and stayed 2-hours to get through his checklist. Cardinal does a great job of communicating up to the hand-off to their Design Consultants and this is where the process and customer satisfaction portion of their service really failed. I received 3 different quotes and agreed on a replacement unit and cost and asked for the earliest possible installation date. I kept asking for a sales order form and confirmation of the installation date. I never received a sales order form. After several texts and phone calls (that were never answered) I finally grew frustrated and called the main office to get a response. They reached out to their design consultant and he sent a text that said he'd get back to me. He never did. I did receive an auto-text from somebody claiming to be the owner, but the contact card included in the text was broken, which is kind of fitting. I never followed-up because I don't hire people who don't do what they say they're going to do. I was able to call another provider and same day they sent out somebody to the house. He spent 30 minutes going through his checklist (not 2-hours). They sent me a sales order form that night and they gave me their earliest installation date, which was 3-4 days from our agreement/signature. All it would have taken for Cardinal was to have the design consultant respond with the truth. If you can't help me, fine. If your installation date is later than anticipated, fine. The fact that I call the main office and asked for follow-up should also have warranted a call from a manager/owner. Recommendation to Cardinal Ownership: You guys need to own the hand-off to the design consultants from a communications perspective and deals won/lost. You really need quality control over this portion of your business and at least with this design consultant. I'd also recommend digging into his particular deals/conversations b/c I surely can't be the only one who is experiencing this lack of communication...who does business this way? I literally cut the check with the new company and I'll probably need more help with some of the additional properties that I own/will own. On top of that, I felt compelled to write this negative review (which I never do unless they're positive) and I don't have time for this really. That's how upset we are about this.

After finding out that my HVAC system was leaking in my basement because the whole thing was rusted and needed to be replaced, I was horrified, annoyed, and apprehensive. I got several quotes, ranging in price and scope. Cardinal was absolutely a standout. Whole other companies sent salespeople to give me quotes, Cardinal sent a senior HVAC technician. He spoke with me, at length, about my system, the proposed repairs, recommendations, and assessments of my existing systems to ensure they were brought up to code. We had our hot water heater replaced by a home warranty company a year or two ago, and the technician pointed out several issues with the install that were not up to code and potentially damaging in the long run. These weren't expensive fixes either - small things to prevent future damage like the water heater flooding our basement. Cardinal's quote came in significantly less than other, larger companies, but they also sent a qualified HVAC tech to assess the system initially. My quote was not rushed, the tech was incredibly knowledgeable, but also open, friendly, and receptive to all of my questions. Cardinal's quote came with a similar guarantee as other companies: a 10 year manufacturer's warranty and 10 years labor guarantee. What I didn't realize initially is that it also came with a full year's service of HVAC and plumbing preventative care. They will come and flush my water heater, inspect my HVAC, etc, all free of charge. They came today to install our HVAC system. Our quoted time was 8 AM-12 pm. I was notified via text that they were on route at approximately 8 am, and given a link to track their progress to my house. The first tech arrived at around 8:30, and walked me through the installation process. Installation of any hardware can be a bit noisy, and occasionally it was, as was expected. What fully shocked me is how the installers left my house. I had come down periodically and seen a few grease spots on the floor, making a mental note to clean it up later. What I didn't realize is that the installing technicians would leave my house cleaner than it was before they came. You could never even tell they were here. I don't think I have ever been so thoroughly impressed by a contracting company in my life. I will recommend Cardinal to anyone, for any service they provide. They have gone far and beyond what I have expected. If your HVAC system needs a full replacement: these are the people to call. I am so glad we hired them!

I've had Cardinal Plumbing come out for a couple jobs over the years, and they've always fixed the relevant issue; no concerns over quality. They came out twice during the era of COVID-19, (for separate issues) and they wore masks (the first one wore I believe a disposable mask, and the second one wore a neck gaiter mask) and disposable booties over their shoes. They put down a disposable mat over my outdoor welcome mat, which was nice. I have noticed that in the last two visits, they recommended more than was necessary. In the first visit, I needed the toilet flapper replaced since the toilet was running in between uses. The plumber checked everything over and recommended a rebuild of the mechanism inside the toilet tank, saying the parts were all old and they should be replaced proactively. I asked how much the flapper replacement alone would cost, and we agreed to it. This fixed the issue, and I haven't had any toilet issues since that visit earlier this year. In the second visit, I called because I was experiencing lukewarm water in my home. The plumber checked things out and told me my water heater was 10 years old and that a repair likely wouldn't work due to age and the fact it hadn't been maintained. He gave me estimates to replace the water heater, with and without the membership. He told me it was not the mixing valve since the water heater was "throwing a code." It kind of sounded like a sales pitch. When I expressed slight concern and said I would like to get a couple other estimates and discuss with other members of my complex, he mentioned what to look out for when other plumbers quote lower prices, and I do appreciate the info he gave me. I then called another reputable company in the area. The plumber from that company came in, looked over the setup, and was able to fix the issue that day by replacing the mixing valve. I was quite relieved to find I now had piping hot water again! He confirmed what my home inspector had, that the water heater was only 7 years old, and said that it was functioning normally. The charge to repair the mixing valve was nominal compared to the estimate to replace the water heater. So all in all, I do recommend Cardinal's work; I just think it may be best to get a second estimate sometimes.

My experience with Cardinal Plumbing was great! Our furnace started acting up, and we contacted Cardinal Plumbing to have someone come out and help us understand the issue and how to resolve it. Cardinal first sent tech Jamie H. our way. He assessed the issue and determined that repairing it would cost a few thousand dollars. He also noted that since both our furnace and A/C unit were 15+ years old and nearing the end of their lifespan, we may just want to replace the whole system rather than sinking money into repairs. He informed us that another Cardinal rep can come to the home, no charge, and get the proper specs of a new system to help us decide if we want to go that route. Cardinal then sent out another tech, Eray B., a few hours later to do a consultation and get the correct specs to give us a quote for the potential install. He was incredibly thorough, knowledgeable, personable, and genuinely invested in making sure we felt informed every step of the way. Eray took the time to sit with us, walk us through all of our options, share his professional opinion, and review the contract line by line until we were completely comfortable. We decided on upgrading our system and scheduled the install for the next day. The install was scheduled for 8AM that next day, and Gage D. and Alejandro A. showed up at that time. They started with a walkthrough of the work area, gave an estimated timeline of 6-8 hours for the job, and walked me through everything they'd be doing before I signed off for them to get started. As part of the install, they also assessed our humidifier, informed me of its condition, and did their best to clean the filter despite it being very dirty. They offered their professional opinion on maintenance and potential upgrades as well. The job finished right within their estimated timeframe, and when they were done, they left the work area spotless and did a full walkthrough explaining everything they completed, how the new system works, and answered any questions we had. We never felt rushed or pressured at any point, and that made all the difference. Highly recommend Cardinal Plumbing for anyone looking for honest, expert service!

Previously shared how I learned Cardinal had overcharged more than $600 for a plumbing repair...but as they say on the infomercials "WAIT, THERE'S MORE!" Outdoor unit AC fan stopped spinning, so no AC. Cardinal had been bugging me about scheduling my "free" HVAC Tune-Up, so figured it would cost nothing to see what they might pull this time. They stated we need to replace the capacitor, hard start kit, and "highly recommended" replacing the contactor, which had "almost certainly" had also gone bad. Total Cost: $1,100! Asked if they could replace the capacitor first to see if fan would start..."Not unless you pay first for both the capacitor and hard start kit" which were "definitely bad". Replacing the capacitor alone would be $500. But wait, there's more! They also said because the system was more than 15 years old they also "highly recommended we replace the entire HVAC system". Total Cost: $18,000!! Now the good part... Reached out to Fairfax Cooling, a local family-owned business. Mike came by, switched out the capacitor with a new one he had on his truck in 5 minutes, followed by the fan immediately coming on. Told me the capacitor was $50, and his call $125, so if I wanted to pay $175 everything was done. NOTHING WRONG with the hard start kit or contactor. When I asked about the system being 15 years old and the recommendation to replace he said, "Your system is running perfectly. Why would you replace it. When it stops doing that let me know and we can beat $18,000 by thousands of dollars." He also suggested he could take a hose and wash off the coils, which were dirty and clogged, for $125, or I could do it. When I asked the difference if I did it, he laughed and said "You would save $125". 1. So now DOUBLE PROOF that Cardinal Heating & Air is in the business of jacking up your bill, with parts and repairs you didn't need, by as much as $1,000. Let alone recommending an entire new system, you also didn't need, for $18,000. They count on you not getting a second quote or questioning. 2. Also proof you should just call Fairfax Cooling.

IMPORTANT - IF USING CARDINAL GET A SECOND OPINION BEFORE PROCEEDING WITH $$ REPAIRS: We signed up for cardinal when we moved into our new home. Initially we had no issues with them after a year and a half of working with them. HOWEVER - because the cardinal employees work off commission you could easily get someone who attempts to scam you to make more money. It depends who you get showing up at your house (some of their employees are great). Sadly - that was the case with our last service appointment for our heater where the Cardinal employee told us we had a hazardous CO2 leak and pretended to have a headache (needed to go outside). He said we needed a new furnace ($7,000 in repairs). Something didn't seem right so we got a second opinion with their competitor (family owned /been in business 40+ years). The other company confirmed our unit was working perfectly fine - nothing was leaking. We informed Cardinal of the situation and the boss was very defensive/aggressive and swore that there was no way we were being scammed by their employee and insisted they do a second check. They sent out a team the next day to do the same check - long story short they confirmed unit was safe to use and there was no CO2 leak. We never got an apology or a call back from Cardinal saying they did anything to resolve the situation and prevent other people from becoming unsuspecting victims. I've never left a company a negative review in my life but my concern is not for myself but a family or an elderly couple who can't afford $7,000 in repairs but believes the advice from Cardinal and possibly takes out a loan or pulls from their life savings/retirement to buy a whole new unit to heat their family home for winter when in fact they're being scammed. PLEASE GET A SECOND OPINION.

We had to call Cardinal Plumbing during a true emergency when sewage started backing up into our bathrooms. They came out quickly, evaluated the situation, and determined that our main sewer line needed full replacement due to cracking, root intrusion, and the existing cast-iron pipe failing. They acted promptly and completed the replacement, which was a major job costing close to $15,000. We genuinely appreciated the urgency and professionalism in handling the repair itself during a very stressful time. However, the restoration process afterward required multiple follow-ups from our side. The yard was initially left in a rough condition after excavation. We understand the work was done in the middle of winter with frozen ground, but we expected the grading and leveling to be handled more proactively. After contacting them, the team returned to shorten an exposed access pipe and remove debris, but the area still remained uneven and unfinished. It took additional calls and messages before they came back a third time to properly level and grade the disturbed section so it blended with the surrounding yard. We also experienced delays in receiving confirmation that Loudoun Water had been contacted to complete the required inspection. That said, the staff were consistently kind, responsive when reached, and ultimately followed through until the job was completed correctly. Emergency sewer replacements are never easy, and we do recognize the effort it took to resolve the situation. Overall, we are giving four stars, mainly due to the slow communication and the need for repeated follow-ups, but the quality of the repair and the team’s willingness to eventually make things right does not go unnoticed.