Cool Operators

So Weston did what he has been doing since he was a teenager working in his father’s air-conditioning shop. He made sure the customer was taken care of. "Later, when I had to walk half a mile to a gas station," he says, laughing, "I got to wondering whether my father’s way of doing things really makes that much sense."

When Norman Weston opened his air-conditioning sales and repair business on Metropolitan Ave. in 1956, "personal service was just something that everyone did," says Michael, who took over in 1986. "But the business has changed."

One of the changes has been the advent of deep discounters who drop the box into the trunk of your car and don’t want to hear from you again. And it’s what Weston Brothers Air Conditioning does differently from those businesses that make it the best place we found to have your air conditioner repaired.

One customer who bought a unit powerful enough to chill an airplane hangar from a discount appliance store couldn’t understand why it wasn’t cooling his living room at all. When he couldn’t get an answer from the dealer, he called Weston. "I asked where it was positioned," recalls Joan Weston, Michael’s wife and partner.

THE AC-TEAM Workers stack
newly arrived units.

Michael adds, in a we-don’t-do-that-kind-of-thing-here tone: "The person who sold him the unit never bothered to ask where it would be located." This kind of free phone consultation, designed to make a service call unnecessary, is a hallmark of Weston’s personalized service. "Most people aren’t sure what they need," says Michael. "We go over all of the variables: voltage, room measurements, whether the space is exposed to direct sunlight, whether it’s a window or a sleeve unit and so on."

Then there are a few basics that are overlooked surprisingly often: "You wouldn’t believe how many people think their air conditioner is dead when it’s just blown a fuse," says Joan. What makes Weston Brothers so different is that "we service customers and build relationships," Michael says. "Our competition just sells boxes."

Before taking over from their fathers, both Michael and Joan were trained in other professions: he as a mechanical engineer and she as a nurse. "But we like this better," he says.

"We go out of our way not to go on service calls," says Michael, but when one is necessary (and not covered by the machine’s original warranty), the price is $59, which the Westons will apply toward the price of any new machine you buy from them. What you get for your money is an experienced technician, wearing a uniform with a nametag, who places a tarp on your floor before he begins working and cleans up after himself when he’s done.

"There’s still a niche of people out there who want this kind of service," says Joan. "As long as there’s a demand for it, we’ll be here." Best of all, they’ll be there within two business days (sooner, if it’s an emergency).

Weston can offer this kind of responsiveness, even at the height of the season, because they have a fleet of six trucks and a staff of 16 technicians.