Furnace & heating
AC repair
Heat pumps
Ductless mini splits
Carrier
Trane
GoodmanSeasonal tune-up and full diagnostic on your Carrier, Trane, or Goodman system - readings shown to you before any repair is proposed
Diagnosis first, numbers second - you approve the repair price before a single part goes in.
Get your free estimateHVAC Company in East Palo Alto, CA
Coldharbour Heating & Air is an HVAC company serving East Palo Alto, and our work here tends to revolve around one thing: older homes that were never built for the equipment people expect today. East Palo Alto’s mix of 1940s-to-1970s single-family houses, newer townhome developments, and a mild-but-occasionally-hot Peninsula climate means most jobs are retrofits, not straightforward swaps. Ductwork is often undersized or missing entirely. Electrical panels are frequently outdated. The good news is that these are solvable problems, and they’re the kinds of jobs our technicians see regularly. Call (669) 800-4179 and a live person will answer, any time of day.
Why East Palo Alto Homes Are Different
East Palo Alto sits close enough to the Bay that temperatures stay moderate most of the year, but summer heat waves can still push into the 90s, and winter mornings occasionally dip near freezing. The real challenge isn’t the weather extremes, though. It’s the housing stock. Many homes in neighborhoods like the Gardens were built in the 1950s with floor furnaces and no central air at all. Others have window units bolted into walls and minimal insulation in the attic. When homeowners decide to add central cooling or upgrade to a heat pump, the job often involves running new ductwork through tight crawlspaces, reconfiguring closet space for an air handler, and sometimes upgrading a 60-amp electrical panel before the new equipment can even be installed. Newer townhome developments present a different set of constraints: shared walls, smaller mechanical closets, and HOA rules that sometimes require pre-approval for exterior condenser placement. None of this is unusual for us, but it does mean the work in East Palo Alto rarely looks like a simple equipment swap. It’s design work, and it starts with understanding how the house was originally built.
Styles & brands we work with
Our Main East Palo Alto Services
Most East Palo Alto homeowners reach out to us for two reasons: something stopped working, or they’re done limping along with an aging system and want a proper long-term fix. Here’s what each job looks like in this city.
AC Repair in East Palo Alto
When a cooling system fails during a Peninsula heat wave, the house heats up fast, especially in older East Palo Alto homes with minimal insulation. Our technicians diagnose the problem, explain what they found in plain English, and hand over a written price before any tool comes out. Common failures here include aging condensers that have been running for 20-plus years, refrigerant leaks in corroded coil connections, and blower motors that quit without warning. Every repair gets a 365-day written guarantee: if it fails within a year, we come back and fix it at no charge. Full details are on our AC Repair in East Palo Alto page.
Furnace Repair in East Palo Alto
Winter mornings near the Bay can dip into the 30s, and when a furnace quits at 6 a.m., it’s not something to wait out. We repair gas furnaces, electric furnaces, and the occasional remaining floor furnace that still heats older East Palo Alto homes. Igniters, flame sensors, gas valves, and blower motors are the usual culprits. The work is covered by the 365-Day Done Right Promise: a written guarantee that brings us back free if the repair fails inside a full year. See typical failures and repair details on our Furnace Repair in East Palo Alto page.
AC Installation in East Palo Alto
Replacing or adding air conditioning in East Palo Alto is rarely as simple as setting a new unit where the old one sat. Many original homes here never had central air, so installation means designing duct runs, sizing the system for the home’s actual square footage and insulation level, and sometimes coordinating an electrical panel upgrade. In newer townhomes, we work within HOA requirements and tighter mechanical spaces. We give a written fixed price before any work is scheduled, set a firm install date, and handle the equipment selection based on what the house actually needs. Read more on our AC Installation in East Palo Alto page.
What happens when you call
- 1
A real person answersNo phone trees - you reach a local pro.
- 2
You get an upfront price rangeHonest numbers before anyone is dispatched.
- 3
A background-checked tech heads outLicensed & insured, dispatched right away.
- 4
You approve before work beginsNothing starts until you say go.
Brands We Service in East Palo Alto
Our technicians work on Trane, Lennox, Goodman, and Rheem equipment, along with five other major residential brands. No matter what system is already in the home, the tech who arrives knows how to diagnose and repair it. For a full breakdown of what we service, see our brands.
See the difference
Before
After
Before
After
Before
AfterPricing for HVAC Company in East Palo Alto, CA
| Service | Typical range in East Palo Alto |
|---|---|
| AC repair | $150 – $650 |
| Furnace repair | $150 – $700 |
| AC installation (full system) | $3,500 – $7,500 |
| Seasonal tune-up | $80 – $200 |
What pushes a job toward the upper end in East Palo Alto is usually the house itself: undersized ductwork that has to be modified, an electrical panel that needs upgrading before a new system can run, or cramped access points that add labor time. We hand over the written price before any work begins, and that price does not change at the door.
Neighborhoods We Serve in East Palo Alto
We work throughout East Palo Alto, including the neighborhoods and streets where older homes and newer developments sit side by side. Our typical response time across the city is same-day for emergencies and within one business day for scheduled calls.
- The Gardens
- University Circle area
- Newbridge Street corridor
- East Palo Alto townhome developments
Service Area – Cities Near East Palo Alto
East Palo Alto sits in the middle of our broader Peninsula coverage. If you’re in a neighboring city and need HVAC work, we also serve San Jose, CA, Fremont, CA, Sunnyvale, CA, and Santa Clara, CA. Dispatch and scheduling are coordinated from our San Francisco Bay Area office, and crews serve East Palo Alto locally.
Serving East Palo Alto, CA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the East Palo Alto area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
FAQs About HVAC Company in East Palo Alto
For emergency repairs, we aim for same-day arrival across East Palo Alto. Non-emergency calls are typically scheduled within one business day. A live person answers our phone 24 hours a day, so you’ll know your window the moment you call (669) 800-4179.
Some East Palo Alto townhome communities require pre-approval for exterior condenser placement or rooftop units. Check your HOA’s rules, but don’t let that slow you down: we give a written quote and firm install date, which gives you what you need to submit for approval quickly.
That’s common in the original 1950s-era East Palo Alto homes. We design duct runs or, in some homes, recommend a ductless mini-split system that requires no ducts at all. The right approach depends on the home’s layout, insulation, and your heating and cooling goals. Call us for a free estimate.
For a free estimate, call Coldharbour Heating & Air at (669) 800-4179. A live person answers around the clock, and the price you’re quoted is the price you’ll pay.
What happens when you call
- 1A real person answersNo phone trees - talk to a local hvac pro.
- 2You get an upfront price rangeHonest numbers before anyone is dispatched. No surprises.
- 3We come out and measureLicensed & insured, at a time that suits you - the visit and the quote are both free.
- 4You get the price in writingLine-itemed, yours to keep, and nothing starts until you say go.
What East Palo Alto Customers Say
"Our upstairs never cooled right. He found the duct run was half blocked and the system low on charge, fixed both, and now the whole house is even. Explained every step."
- Deanna Boleyn"New AC and furnace. They gave me a written quote with a couple of options and no pressure. Showed up on the day they promised and the new system is so much quieter."
- Gloria Dunn"New mini split for the addition. Clean install, on time two days running, and the price matched the written quote to the dollar."
- Yvonne Prewitt