FREE · IN YOUR HOME · NO OBLIGATION

Free In-Home AC Estimate — No Obligation

A real in-home estimate — a visit, a Manual J load calculation and a written, line-item price. No cost, no obligation, and nobody will call you eleven times afterward.

Prefer to talk to a person? Call 941-269-3433. Florida State Certified contractor · License CAC1822364.

GET MY FREE ESTIMATE

Before you book

What “Free Estimate” Means Here — and What It Doesn’t

Two different things get called an estimate in this trade, and most companies let you find out which one you are getting after the technician is already in your driveway.

	Replacement estimate	Repair diagnosis
What it is	We come to your home, calculate the load, look at your ductwork and electrical, and give you a written price for a new system	We find out what is actually wrong with the system you have
What it costs	Free. No obligation	A diagnostic fee, and you will be told the amount when you book — never at the door
How long	Long enough to run the load calculation and look at the ductwork properly	Depends on the fault

A replacement estimate is free because it is a sales visit and we should pay for our own sales visits. A repair visit is not the same thing and carries a diagnostic fee, because finding a fault takes a trained technician, a stocked van and time. When a company advertises free diagnostics, it is worth asking where that cost is recovered.

We would rather tell you which is which now than surprise you at the door.

What an AC replacement cost comes to in Florida depends on the calculated load, the equipment tier and the condition of your ductwork — which is exactly why we will not put a number on it over the phone.

The visit

What Happens During the Visit

Four things, in this order.

We ask how you actually use the house. Which rooms are used, which ones are closed off, whether anyone is home during the day, whether the house sits empty part of the year. This changes the answer more than most homeowners expect.
We run a Manual J load calculation. Square footage, ceiling height, insulation, window area and orientation, solar gain, and occupancy. System sizing comes from that calculation, not from the tonnage of the unit we are removing.
We check the ductwork and the electrical. Static pressure measured, return air assessed, duct leakage looked at, panel and disconnect checked.
You get a written proposal. Nothing is quoted verbally and nothing is decided that day.

The load calculation

This is the part that separates a real estimate from a price. Florida Building Code Section R403.7 requires equipment to be sized by ACCA Manual S against loads calculated by ACCA Manual J — and it specifically prohibits adding safety factors or padding for future expansion. Rounding up is not caution here; it is a code violation, and in a climate this humid it produces a system that cools the air without removing the moisture.

The Department of Energy’s target is capacity between 95% and 115% of the calculated load, or the next nominal size. How we size a system →

The ductwork and airflow check

Ductwork is the failure variable nobody quotes on. A correctly sized system on undersized returns or leaking ducts still will not deliver what it was designed to deliver, and installing new equipment on top of that problem is how a homeowner ends up disappointed by a system that is working exactly as specified.

We measure static pressure before we quote, so if there is a duct problem it is in the proposal instead of in a phone call three weeks after installation. Airflow verification tells us whether the system is actually moving the CFM per ton it was designed for, or whether the ductwork is strangling it.

The written proposal

See the next section. In short: model numbers, scope, permit and price, all on paper.

On paper

What’s in the Proposal You’ll Get

A proposal with one number and a brand name on it is not a proposal. It is a price, and you cannot compare it to anything.

Here is what should be on every quote you collect, ours included:

Line-item scope — what is being removed, what is being installed, what is being modified
Equipment model numbers — indoor and outdoor, both of them
The AHRI matched-system certificate number — proof the indoor and outdoor units are rated to work together, which is what the efficiency rating on the box actually depends on
The permit, named and included in the price
How long the price is valid
The warranty terms — parts, labor, and what the labor warranty costs to extend
The guarantees that attach, in writing

If you are collecting three quotes, ask all three for the model numbers and the AHRI match. It takes one email and it is the single fastest way to find out whether you are comparing the same thing.

Read our seven written guarantees →

Money

Rebates

Start here, because the order matters: if you are a Duke Energy customer, book the free Home Energy Check before you replace anything. Duke’s rebate requires a Home Energy Check completed within the previous 24 months and completed before the work begins. Replace your system first and you forfeit between $300 and $1,000.

Verified as of August 2026:

Utility	Rebate	What it requires
Duke Energy Florida	$300–$1,000	Free Home Energy Check within 24 months, completed before work starts · all-electric home · condenser and air handler changed together
Tampa Electric (TECO)	$40 at SEER2 15.20+ · $550 at SEER2 16.20+	Apply within 90 days
FPL	$200, applied as an instant invoice credit	SEER2 15.2+ · complete system · FPL-approved contractor · void after 90 days

Withlacoochee River Electric and LCEC do not currently publish an equipment rebate.

On federal tax credits: they are gone. The 25C and 25D credits both ended on 31 December 2025 under Public Law 119-21, and nothing replaced them federally. A great deal of the industry is still advertising the $2,000 heat pump credit — if you see it on a quote, that is worth asking about. If your system was placed in service on or before 31 December 2025, you can still claim it on your 2025 return.

We will tell you which of these you qualify for at the estimate visit, and we handle the rebate paperwork rather than leaving it with you.

Questions

Questions About Estimates

Are AC estimates really free?

For a replacement, yes — free, in your home, with no obligation. A repair diagnosis is different and is priced separately, for the reason explained at the top of this page. You will be told that amount when you book.

What is the difference between an estimate and a quote?

An estimate is an informed projection. A quote is a fixed price. What we give you is a fixed written price, and under our No Change Order Guarantee it does not move — if we missed something during design, that is our cost, not yours.

How many quotes should I get?

Three is a reasonable number, and we would rather you got them. The thing that makes three quotes useful is comparing the same variables — model numbers, AHRI match, whether a load calculation was actually run, the permit, and the labor warranty term. Three prices with no detail behind them tells you nothing except which company is cheapest, which is rarely the question you are actually asking.

Do I need to be home?

Yes. We need attic and electrical panel access, and we need to ask you questions about how the house is used that nobody else can answer.

How long does it take?

Longer than a walk-around and a number, which is the point. We are measuring rooms, running a Manual J load calculation, checking static pressure and looking at your electrical panel before anything is written down. If you want a number in five minutes, any contractor can give you one — it just will not mean anything.

Book Your Estimate

Free, in your home, no obligation. Call 941-269-3433 or use the form at the top of this page.

Call now: 941-269-3433 Schedule service Contact us

TLS Air Conditioning · License CAC1822364 · 6210 44th St N, Pinellas Park, FL 33781