FAQ
Questions we are actually asked
Everything below is the answer you would get on the phone, written down so you can read it before you call.
Answers
The general ones
We service Sub-Zero refrigeration only.
- Do you work on any brand other than Sub-Zero?
- No. Sub-Zero refrigeration is the whole of the business — built-in units, integrated columns, undercounter drawers, wine storage and ice makers. If your appliance is another make, we will say so on the phone rather than take the visit.
- Do you service heating or air conditioning?
- No, and it is worth saying plainly. Hibernia Cold Systems is a refrigeration shop: built-in refrigerators, columns, undercounter drawers, wine storage and ice makers. Furnaces, heat pumps, air handlers and ductwork are a different trade, and a call about those gets an honest redirection on the phone rather than a visit.
- Are you part of the Sub-Zero service network?
- No, and we never say otherwise. Hibernia Cold Systems is an independent shop. No manufacturer has appointed us, trained us or endorsed us, and the notice at the top of every page on this site says exactly that.
- What does the first visit cost?
- A flat $80 covers the visit and the diagnosis. It is credited toward the repair if you go ahead with the work. There is no separate call-out charge, no mileage line and no after-hours surcharge, because we do not run an after-hours service.
- Will you tell me the price before you start?
- You get a written estimate before any part is ordered or any labour is billed. Nothing proceeds without your approval. If the honest answer is that the repair costs more than the cabinet is worth to you, you will hear that too.
- What is covered afterwards?
- Labour is warranted for 90 days and parts for 365 days from the date of the repair. Genuine OEM parts are used throughout, so the replacement matches what the cabinet was built with.
- How long does a repair take?
- A diagnosis takes one visit. Common wear parts — gaskets, fans, thermistors, control boards for current platforms — are often fitted the same day. Anything ordered depends on the supplier, and we give you the expected date in writing rather than a guess on the doorstep.
- Do you handle refrigerant work?
- Yes. Sealed-system work is done by technicians holding EPA Section 608 certification, which is the credential the law requires for recovering and charging refrigerant. It is the only certification this company claims.
- Do you offer emergency or 24-hour service?
- No. We work Monday – Friday 8:00am – 6:00pm and Saturday 9:00am – 4:00pm. Calls placed outside these hours are returned the next working morning. A cabinet that is losing temperature is worth a call first thing, and we will tell you what to move and what to keep shut in the meantime.
- How far do you travel?
- Out of Fleming Island and roughly 40 miles around it, which covers Clay, Duval, St. Johns counties. Doctors Lake, Orange Park and the Eagle Harbor and Pace Island side of the island are all short runs.
- Can you still get parts for a built-in from the 1990s?
- Usually, and the serial number is what settles it. Fans, thermistors, door closers, gaskets and hinge hardware are generally available for cabinets of that age; some control boards for the earliest platforms are not, and where a board has been superseded the replacement sometimes carries a different connector or firmware. We check availability against your serial number before we quote, and if a part has genuinely run out we say so rather than sell you a visit that cannot end in a repair.
- What should I have ready when I call?
- The symptom in your own words, roughly how old the cabinet is, and the model and serial number if you can reach the data plate — it is usually inside the fresh-food compartment near the top or behind the grille. If you cannot find it, we will read it on site.
What it costs
The money ones
Every figure below comes from the same table the pricing page prints.
- What do you charge per hour?
- Nothing, because we do not bill by the hour and there is no clock for you to watch. The visit is $80 flat and covers the whole diagnostic sequence. The repair is then quoted as one figure from the band it falls into, parts and labour together, and the $80 comes off it.
- What is the most expensive part to replace in a built-in refrigerator?
- The sealed system, by a distance: compressor and refrigerant work is $870–$2,460. The electronic control is the next dearest at $420–$840. Everything else — fans, defrost parts, water valves, door seals — falls between $250 and $650, which is why those are measured out first.
- Why would two quotes differ on the same symptom?
- Three things move the figure: which part the measurement actually condemns, whether the cabinet has to come out of its opening to reach it, and which of the two sealed systems is involved. One warm compartment can end at a $250–$650 door seal or at $870–$2,460 of sealed-system work.
- How long should one of these cabinets last?
- Longer than an ordinary refrigerator. The trade generally expects two decades or more from a built-in that has been kept clean and serviced, and the cabinet usually outlives the parts inside it. We publish no average of our own, because a fleet figure is not something this shop can honestly measure.
- Is it worth paying for a visit before I decide anything?
- That is exactly what the $80 is for. It buys the fault named and the figure written down, and if the honest answer is that the repair is not worth doing, you hear that with the replacement number beside it. Nothing is ordered or billed until you have approved it.
Still stuck
Ask us the twelfth
If your question is not here, it is probably specific to your cabinet, and those are better answered out loud. Call during working hours and describe what it is doing.