Every HVAC company in Puget Sound advertises a warranty. Almost nobody explains it, and homeowners sign proposals without knowing that the word "warranty" on page one usually means two completely different promises made by two completely different companies.
Here's the version we'd give a neighbor at the kitchen table.
There are two warranties, not one
When you buy a ducted heat pump, a mini-split, or a furnace, you're getting coverage from two directions.
The manufacturer's parts warranty
This comes from the factory — Day & Night, Carrier, American Standard, Mitsubishi, Daikin, Hitachi. It covers the physical components: compressor, coil, control board, blower motor, reversing valve. If a covered part fails from a defect within the term, the manufacturer ships a replacement part.
What it does not cover is a technician's time. The part arrives free. The four hours of labor to diagnose the fault, recover refrigerant, swap the component, evacuate, recharge, and verify operation is a bill somebody has to pay.
The contractor's labor warranty
This comes from the company that installed the system. It covers the work — the truck roll, the diagnosis, the hands on the equipment. It's the half that runs out first at most companies, often at one year, sometimes at two.
A 10-year parts and labor warranty means both halves run for a decade. That's what every Varsity installation carries, on every brand we install, at every equipment tier.
Why the labor half is the expensive half
Run the math on a real failure. A heat pump repair in standard Puget Sound markets runs $150 to $1,500 depending on the fault ($175 to $1,800 in affluent markets, $200 to $2,000 in luxury markets). A big chunk of the top of that range is labor and refrigerant handling, not the box the part came in.
| Failure type | What the factory part warranty covers | What labor coverage covers |
|---|---|---|
| Failure typeCapacitor or contactor | What the factory part warranty coversThe component | What labor coverage coversTrip, diagnosis, replacement |
| Failure typeControl or defrost board | What the factory part warranty coversThe component | What labor coverage coversTrip, diagnosis, wiring, testing |
| Failure typeBlower or fan motor | What the factory part warranty coversThe component | What labor coverage coversRemoval, install, balancing, testing |
| Failure typeReversing valve | What the factory part warranty coversThe valve | What labor coverage coversRecovery, brazing, evacuation, recharge |
| Failure typeCompressor | What the factory part warranty coversThe compressor | What labor coverage coversThe largest labor job on the list |
A compressor is the classic example. Year seven, the compressor fails. Factory sends the compressor. Without labor coverage, you're writing a check for the most labor-intensive repair in residential HVAC — on a system you already paid $12,000 to $18,000 for.
That's the gap the second warranty closes.
What a 10-year parts and labor warranty covers
- Component failures from defect or normal operation on the equipment we installed.
- The technician time to diagnose and correct those failures.
- Our workmanship. If a line set connection we brazed leaks, if a condensate line we ran drips, if a duct transition we fabricated separates — that's ours to fix. No debate about whose fault it is.
That last one matters more than people expect. Most premature HVAC failures in Western Washington aren't defective equipment. They're installation problems: wrong sizing, poor airflow, sloppy refrigerant charge, a condensate path that was never going to work in a damp crawl space. A workmanship promise from an owner-operated company that still answers the phone in year eight is worth more than a longer number from a call center.
What it does not cover — honestly
No warranty covers everything, and any company implying otherwise is setting you up for a bad conversation later.
- Routine maintenance. Annual service, coil cleaning, refrigerant checks. That's ownership cost, not a defect.
- Filters. A $20 consumable is on you, and a neglected one causes real failures.
- Neglect-driven failures. A blower motor that burns out because the filter hasn't been changed since the Obama administration is a maintenance failure, not a manufacturing defect.
- Outside damage. Flooding, lightning, power surges, rodents chewing wiring, a tree limb through the outdoor unit. That's a homeowners insurance conversation.
- Unauthorized work. If someone else opens the sealed refrigerant system, coverage on that system generally ends.
- Equipment we didn't install. We repair every major brand, but our labor warranty applies to our own installations.
The two things that quietly kill coverage
Registration
Most manufacturers require the equipment to be registered within a set window after installation, and unregistered systems often drop to a shorter base term. It takes five minutes and it's on the installer to do it. We register warranties at the walkthrough and hand you the paperwork. If a contractor doesn't mention registration at all, ask.
Documented maintenance
Manufacturers can ask for maintenance records when they evaluate a major claim, especially a compressor. Keep your service receipts in the same folder as the install paperwork. It's the cheapest insurance in this whole article.
How to compare warranties across three quotes
HVAC bids are hard to compare because the equipment specs, the scope, and the coverage all move at once. When you're staring at three proposals, isolate these:
- Parts term and labor term, stated separately. "10-year warranty" with no second word usually means parts only.
- Whether the labor term is the installer's or a purchased third-party plan. Both can be legitimate. They behave very differently when you call.
- Whether a maintenance agreement is required to keep coverage alive, and what that costs annually for ten years.
- Who you actually call in year six. A local, owner-operated crew and a national dispatch queue are not the same experience at 4 p.m. on a Friday in January.
- Whether permits were pulled. Unpermitted work can complicate both warranty claims and a future home sale. We pull the mechanical permit on every job.
The warranty is also a decent proxy for how confident a contractor is in their own install. Brand matters less than most people assume — our take on heat pump brands says the same thing. Installation quality decides the outcome, and a company willing to stand behind labor for a decade is telling you what they think of their own work.
Warranty versus replacement math
Here's where the coverage earns its keep. A system with no labor coverage and a $1,400 repair in year nine forces an ugly decision: spend it, or start over at $10,000 to $16,000 for a replacement. A system with ten years of parts and labor turns that same failure into a phone call and a scheduled visit.
It doesn't make the equipment immortal. Well-maintained heat pumps in our mild marine climate typically last well past the warranty term. But it removes the four-figure surprise from the middle of the system's life, which is exactly when surprises happen.
Want to see real numbers first?
If you're comparing systems and want a starting price before anyone visits, our instant estimate tool gives you Good, Better, and Best ranges in about 60 seconds. When you're ready for a firm number, book a free in-home visit through get an estimate or call (253) 785-4622, Monday through Friday, 8 to 6. We'll walk through the load calculation, the equipment tiers, and exactly what the ten years of parts and labor coverage includes — in writing, before you decide anything.
That's the whole point of the warranty. Not a marketing line on a proposal. A promise from people who answer the phone after the check clears.