A condenser is not a parcel. It weighs two to three hundred pounds, it travels on a pallet on a tractor-trailer, and the driver who brings it is not going to carry it into your garage.
If you have never taken an LTL freight delivery before, this is what to expect. Read it before you order rather than on the day — most of what goes wrong with freight goes wrong in the ten minutes the truck is at your address.
1. What delivery includes
There is nothing to choose at checkout. Every order is delivered to your address on a truck with a liftgate — a powered platform that lowers the crate to the ground — for one published price:
- $349 across the eastern, central and southern US.
- $499 in Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.
It does not change with the weight of your order. A two-crate complete system costs the same to deliver as a single condenser.
Why the liftgate is not optional here. Most freight sellers quote a cheaper “curbside” rate and charge for the liftgate separately — and plenty of people pick curbside to save the money, then find themselves looking at a 300 lb crate sitting four feet up in the back of a trailer with no way to get it down. Getting it off with two people and no equipment is how backs get hurt and condensers get dropped. A unit you drop yourself is not a freight claim. So we include it rather than sell it to you.
2. Book your installer before the equipment arrives
Freight lands on your driveway on a pallet. If it sits there for three weeks while you look for a contractor, you have several hundred pounds of equipment in the yard and no plan — and you are outside the 30-day return window before you have started.
Our guide on how to find an installer covers what to ask and what labour-only work should cost.
3. What actually arrives
A complete system is two separate crates — the outdoor condenser and the indoor air handler. They are two line items on the carrier's paperwork and they do not always travel together. It is normal for them to arrive on different trucks, sometimes on different days. Do not assume something is missing because only one crate came.
Ductless mini-splits are the exception: they ship as two cartons by parcel carrier rather than freight, so they turn up like an ordinary delivery.
4. The delivery appointment
The carrier contacts you to schedule. That call is not optional — freight is not left unattended, and a missed appointment can mean a redelivery fee charged by the carrier.
Whoever meets the truck has to be someone who can inspect the equipment and sign for it. If that is not you, brief them with the next section first, because their signature binds you.
5. Inspect before you sign. This is the part that matters.
The delivery receipt the driver hands you is a legal document. Signing it clean is you stating that the freight arrived in good condition. Once you have done that, a damage claim becomes very difficult to recover.
So take the time. The driver may be in a hurry. That is not your problem.
What to look at
- The crate and pallet. Crushed corners, punctures, torn shrink wrap, staining, or a load that has shifted or is leaning.
- The cabinet. Dents, deep scratches, a bowed panel — anything suggesting the unit took a hit.
- The coil fins. Flattened or combed-over areas on a condenser.
- Oil residue. An oily film or streak anywhere on a condenser can mean a refrigerant leak from a cracked line or fitting. This is the one that looks minor and is not.
- The model and serial numbers. Check them against your order before you sign. A wrong model is far easier to sort out on the driveway than after the truck has gone.
If you find damage
- Write it on the delivery receipt before you sign — and be specific. "Crate crushed, left rear corner, cabinet dented beneath" is worth far more than "damaged". Make sure it is on the driver's copy as well as yours.
- Photograph everything, including the packaging and the pallet, before anything is moved or unwrapped.
- Email the photos to sales@hvacsupplypro.com within 24 hours, and call us.
You can still accept a shipment you have noted damage on, and usually you should — refusing it restarts the entire freight cycle. Refuse outright only if the equipment is obviously destroyed. If you are not sure, call us from the driveway on (239) 266-9766 while the driver is still there and we will tell you which it is.
6. Why a clean signature is so expensive
Standard carrier liability on LTL freight is set by weight, not by what the equipment is worth — commonly $5.00 per pound. On a 490 lb complete system that is about $2,450 of cover, against equipment that can cost more than $10,000.
That gap belongs to the carrier, not to you: we replace freight-damaged equipment rather than refunding it, and we handle the claim. But the claim itself stands or falls on what is written on that receipt. Ten minutes with a phone camera is the difference between a replacement and an argument.
7. Once it is on the ground
- Leave it crated until your installer is ready. Uncrating early exposes it to weather and makes a return impossible.
- Keep condensers upright. Never store or move one on its side — it puts compressor oil where it should not be.
- Store it dry and off the ground if it will be sitting for more than a day or two.
- Keep the packaging for 30 days. Returns require the original packaging, so breaking the crate down the same afternoon closes that door behind you.
Not sure what you need?
If you are not certain your driveway will take a tractor-trailer, or you have a narrow lane, a steep slope or a gate to work around, call before you order. We would far rather spend five minutes on that than have a truck turn up somewhere it cannot go.
(239) 266-9766 · sales@hvacsupplypro.com · Mon–Sat 8am–5pm ET