Verified record
Typical Greater Boston range for this kind of work, from regional averages — not a quote from Sila Heating, Air Conditioning, Plumbing & Electrical. Use it to sanity-check bids, then get the real number in writing.
Estimated range
$5,000 – $11,400
Typical HVAC project around $8,200
Sila Heating, Air Conditioning, Plumbing & Electrical is a Stoneham-based HVAC shop that reads like two different businesses depending on where you look — a wall of five-star Google reviews naming individual technicians, and a Reddit reputation that calls the company "the worst" or "a scam" nearly every time it comes up. The volume backing the good side is real: Google shows 4.8★ across 4,823 ratings, HomeAdvisor and Angi both show 4.7★ from roughly 4,800 ratings apiece, and in the past six months alone 446 new reviews have landed with only 19 negative. Recent visits keep describing the same kind of call — Zane walking a longtime customer through refrigerant-phaseout changes during an AC tune-up, Pat C getting a system running "as good as new" in a few hours. A February 2026 review described a furnace call answered at 8 a.m. the morning after it died, the technician diagnosing a cracked heat exchanger on the spot. Off the review platforms, the story sours. Reddit threads in r/boston, r/CambridgeMA, r/SalemMA and elsewhere return to the same complaints year after year — pricing called "double the competitors," blanket warnings to avoid the company, and repeated claims that service slipped after a private-equity or Goldman Sachs ownership change. A few of those threads describe a specific pattern: a technician pushes a full system replacement, then a second opinion finds a minor fix would do — one 2024 commenter says a $15,000 new-unit quote turned out to be a flame sensor that just needed cleaning. A handful of individual accounts are worth reading before booking anything large. A 2024 Angi review describes a $1,200 charge to swap a $299 kitchen faucet with no itemized invoice. A HomeAdvisor review describes a roughly $107,000 heat pump installation that stretched from a two-month estimate to eight months after an electrical design violated Somerville's setback code. And a November 2025 Google review alleges a technician showed an elderly relative a furnace photo that wasn't from that visit and shut off her gas over a claimed carbon monoxide leak during a cold snap. For a routine repair or maintenance call, the sheer number of specific, technician-level compliments here is hard to dismiss. For anything bigger — a full system swap, a large install — get a second quote and ask exactly what the diagnosis found before signing off.
“Please don’t ever hire Sila for anything.”
“Sila is owned by Goldman Sachs. Don’t hire them for anything.”
“We used Sila and were happy. They were very professional and organized.”
“Avoid Sila...they put in a new gas fired boiler for us to replace one they had serviced for years.”
“I'll never recommend Sila only because they sent me a hilariously out of touch mailer once.”
“Sila is a rip off.”
“Skip Sila, they are significantly over priced.”
“I have had two (Sila and Akian) that wait until 5 minutes of the scheduled time to tell me that they’re not coming.”
“Sila Heating, Air Conditioning, Plumbing & Electrical”
“Sila”
Unfortunately, NETR (now Sila Boston) has been completely incapable of supporting existing customers when they need service most. We had our mini-splits installed three years ago, and even that experience was frustrating - it took NETR nearly two years to complete the permitting process with the city despite multiple follow-ups from us. This year, we scheduled our complimentary service appointment because several of our indoor units stopped cooling properly. We have a four-month-old baby at home during a heat wave, and it took multiple calls explaining the situation before Sila would send a technician. In the meantime, our appointments were repeatedly cancelled and rescheduled. When a technician finally came out, they confirmed there is a refrigerant leak that requires repair. Since then, we've repeatedly tried to schedule the repair, but our calls and requests have gone unanswered. It's nearly impossible to get past their AI answering service to reach a real person, leaving us with no clear timeline for a permanent repair after only an interim fix by the technician. We're incredibly disappointed. Installing a heat pump is a major investment, and the quality of post-installation service matters just as much as the installation itself. Based on our experience, Sila Boston has failed to provide the level of customer support we were promised, and we can no longer recommend them to friends, neighbors, or other local families. If someone from Sila Boston reaches out and resolves this promptly, I'll gladly update this review to reflect that experience
The service was outstanding. Great communication, Fast response to a plumbing problem. Showed up on time and our technician, Josh was incredibly professional and competent.
Brian did a great job. Very efficient and personable. Would highly recommend.
Quick and to the point
Hired but they were a no show! If you are looking for assurance that someone will show, go with someone else. I was told in person that if I decided to hire them today that they would have someone on site tomorrow. I made it clear, due to pending travel, that I had to have someone on site without delay. Despite commitments made they were a no show. Also note, upon calling several times no person would pick up; I got voicemail or their AI attendant. Now I will incur additional fees to change my flight as a result. The technician that came seemed knowledgeable and explained things to me, they just didn?t come through. Someone named Todd called me after and refunded me $69, the diagnostic fee. Unfortunately. this does not cover expenses incurred due to having to change my flight. Again, if having someone show up as scheduled is important, go with someone else.
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Established 2.0 rating
Quoted 20% under a competing bid4.1
Prompt emergency response3.0