Who AI assistants recommend for furnace installation and replacement

1. What people actually asked
2. What your furnace installation and replacement page has to explain
3. What the assistants looked for before recommending anyone
4. Your furnace installation and replacement page checklist
5. Questions owners ask
6. How we got these numbers
7. See it on your own website

What people actually asked

We asked for furnace installation and replacement in three different ways. Here is each one, word for word, with how many of the 287 answers it produced between September 5 and October 12, 2026:

• “I'm looking to get furnace installation and replacement done in 33772 in two weeks. Who should I get quotes from?”98 answers, asked with five different timings: before the end of the month, in two weeks, sometime this month, in the next few weeks and next month
• “Furnace installation and replacement near me — I'm in Dunedin, FL. Who do you recommend?”95 answers
• “Who should I call for furnace installation and replacement in Pinellas Park, FL?”94 answers

Together, the 287 answers covered eight towns in Pinellas County: Clearwater, Dunedin, Largo, Pinellas Park, Seminole, St. Petersburg, Tarpon Springs and Palm Harbor. Each town came up in 35 to 36 answers. By assistant: ChatGPT 120, Claude 95 and Google AI Mode 72.

Customers also call it “new furnace installation”, “furnace replacement”, “gas furnace installation” or “electric furnace installation”, so use those words on the page as well.

The question underneath all of them

“How do I compare furnace replacement proposals fairly?” Equipment, installation work and warranty terms must be compared on the same basis.

What your furnace installation and replacement page has to explain

In this area a "furnace" is often not a gas furnace at all. Answers kept saying most local homes heat with a heat pump or an air handler with electric heat strips. Assistants told customers to ask each company what the home has now and what it would be replaced with. A page that explains these systems in plain words, and which ones the company installs, starts the conversation in the right place.

Many answers also told customers to ask whether a heat pump would suit the home better than a like-for-like furnace swap. Some warned the opposite way: a company may quote a heat pump unless the customer asks for a furnace. A page that says when the company recommends each option, and that it will quote both, helps the customer compare fairly.

Quotes for this job are hard to compare unless they cover the same things. Assistants told customers to get written quotes listing the equipment, the permit, ductwork and electrical changes, removal of the old unit, and the warranties. A sample proposal, with the customer's details removed, shows which supporting work is included and which is assessed separately.

What the assistants looked for before recommending anyone

We read all 287 answers to see what the assistants looked for before naming a company for furnace installation and replacement, what they told the customer to ask, and what they said they couldn’t find.

What the assistants told customers to ask

Most common first:

What heating does the home have now?

Many answers told customers to check whether they have a gas furnace, an electric furnace, or a heat pump or air handler with electric heat strips. Assistants said companies use these words loosely, so customers should ask what the home has before comparing prices.

52% of the answers (150 of 287) brought this up.

Ask what your current system is and what they'd replace it with.

Is the permit and inspection in the price?

Assistants told customers to ask who pulls the permit and whether the permit fee and inspection are in the quote. Some noted local cities and counties require a permit to change out heating equipment.

41% of the answers (119 of 287) brought this up.

Ask whether the permit and inspection are included.

Does each quote name the same kind of equipment?

Answers told customers to get the brand, model and efficiency rating in each written quote. Without them, a cheaper quote may simply be for a smaller or less efficient system.

36% of the answers (104 of 287) brought this up.

Ask for the equipment brand and model, the warranty, and whether permits are included.

Which supporting changes are included?

Assistants told customers to ask whether the quote covers removal of the old unit, ductwork changes, electrical work and a new thermostat. These items are where quotes for the same equipment differed most.

35% of the answers (100 of 287) brought this up.

Ask whether the quote includes a permit, removal of the old unit, and any duct or electrical work.

Are the equipment and labor warranties listed separately?

Many answers told customers to ask for the equipment warranty and the labor warranty as separate items. A long manufacturer warranty does not cover the installer's work, so customers wanted both spelled out.

34% of the answers (98 of 287) brought this up.

Ask for a written estimate, license number, equipment warranty, labor warranty, and whether they’ll do a proper load calculation before sizing the system.

Will the company quote a heat pump as well?

Many answers told customers to ask whether a heat pump would suit the home better than a new furnace. Some said companies may quote a heat pump unless the customer asks for a furnace, so customers wanted both options on paper.

27% of the answers (77 of 287) brought this up.

Ask for a heat pump option too, since it's often the more efficient choice here.

What the assistants couldn’t find

In 32 of the 287 answers, the assistant said it couldn’t find or confirm something it needed about a company. By assistant: Claude in 32 of its 95, ChatGPT in 0 of its 120 and Google AI Mode in 0 of its 72. As we asked it, Claude usually says what it couldn’t confirm; ChatGPT and Google AI Mode seldom do, so these counts mostly show what Claude couldn’t find. Most often:

• A phone number or other way to reach the company: 23 answers
• Reviews it could check: 9 answers
• A license or insurance it could check: 5 answers
• Whether the company serves the customer’s town or ZIP code: 5 answers
• When the company could do the work: 3 answers

Phone numbers were what assistants most often could not find for this job, and many could not verify reviews or licenses. A page with a working number, a license link and a way to request an estimate answers what they told customers to look up.

I didn't find phone numbers for most of these companies, so their websites are the quickest way to request an estimate.

Where the assistants sent people

Each answer linked to the pages the assistant relied on. Of the 215 ChatGPT and Claude answers about furnace installation and replacement, this is how many linked at least once to each kind of site:

• A contractor’s own website: 94% (203 answers)
• A directory or review site such as Yelp, Angi or the BBB: 69% (149 answers)
• A manufacturer or home-improvement guide: 37% (79 answers)
• An official license lookup: 8% (17 answers)
• A Google search or Maps page: 2% (5 answers)

A contractor’s own website was the page linked most often, so your site is usually what the customer is sent to read.

Google AI Mode works differently. In 78% of its 72 answers, the links opened Google’s own listing for a business rather than a website. There, your Google Business Profile is the page the customer sees, so it needs the same facts as your site.

The checks behind every recommendation, applied to furnace installation and replacement

Can the customer reach a person?

Phone numbers were the thing assistants most often could not find. Some warned against generic call-center numbers that pass the customer to whichever contractor buys the lead.

23 of the 287 answers about furnace installation and replacement, 23 of them from Claude, said the assistant couldn’t confirm this. In our July–August study across eight trades, it cost a business its place in 147 of the 290 conversations where it came up.

What do recent customers say?

Assistants often found no reviews, or only directory ratings they could not verify, and told customers to check recent Google reviews themselves.

9 of the 287 answers about furnace installation and replacement, 9 of them from Claude, said the assistant couldn’t confirm this. In our July–August study across eight trades, it cost a business its place in 139 of the 569 conversations where it came up.

Do you serve the customer’s town or ZIP code?

For an installation, coverage means the company does in-home estimates and installs at the customer's address. Some answers found pages that listed no ZIP codes, or ZIP checkers that said the address was not served.

5 of the 287 answers about furnace installation and replacement, 5 of them from Claude, said the assistant couldn’t confirm this. In our July–August study across eight trades, it cost a business its place in 350 of the 554 conversations where it came up.

Source: How we research what AI assistants recommend.

Your furnace installation and replacement page checklist

Work through this list on your furnace installation and replacement page. Each item answers something the assistants looked for above.

1. Use “furnace installation and replacement”, “new furnace installation” or “furnace replacement” in the page title, the main heading and the first paragraph.
2. Explain the heating systems common in local homes, say which ones you install, and how you confirm what a home has.
3. Say that you pull the permit, whether the fee is in the quote, and how the inspection is scheduled.
4. Say which brands you install, and show that every proposal lists the model, size and efficiency rating.
5. List the supporting work included in a standard replacement, and name what is assessed and quoted separately.
6. State the manufacturer's equipment warranty and your own labor warranty as separate lines, with their terms.
7. Say when you recommend a furnace and when a heat pump, and that you will quote both when the customer asks.
8. Put your own working phone number and an estimate request form on the furnace installation page.
9. Link to your recent reviews and point to ones from customers who had heating equipment replaced.
10. List the towns and ZIP codes where you do furnace estimates and installations.

Going further: let assistants see real openings

For planned work like furnace installation and replacement, a useful opening says whether it is for an assessment or the job itself, and whether the customer’s address is covered.

Merchant Context builds custom integrations with scheduling software so customers and AI assistants can read your current availability. Where your system records the job type, service area, duration and crew capacity, the integration can show those details with each opening, so an assistant can match it to the request instead of guessing.

We scope each connection to the software and data you actually have. A displayed opening is not a confirmed booking: the customer still confirms through your normal booking process, and the information is only useful while it is fresh.

Source: Merchant Context: custom integrations in the AEO service · checked 2026-10-14.

Questions owners ask

How do I compare furnace replacement quotes?

Answers told customers to compare quotes on the same items. These were the equipment brand, model and efficiency, the permit, and supporting work such as ductwork and removal of the old unit. They also wanted the equipment and labor warranties listed separately. A sample proposal on the page makes this easy.

Should I replace my furnace with a heat pump?

Assistants did not give one answer. They told customers to ask each company whether a heat pump would suit the home better, and to get both options quoted. A page should explain when the company recommends each.

Do I actually have a furnace?

Many answers said local homes often heat with a heat pump or an air handler with electric heat strips rather than a gas furnace. They told customers to ask the company to confirm. The page should explain these systems in plain words.

Which AI assistants did you test?

ChatGPT, Claude and Google AI Mode. Between September 5 and October 12, 2026, they answered 287 questions about furnace installation and replacement: ChatGPT 120, Claude 95, Google AI Mode 72.

Will these changes guarantee a recommendation?

No. Nobody can promise that. These changes supply what the assistants were looking for in our research. Whether they move recommendations for your business is something to measure after they go live.

See it on your own website

Send us your website address and we’ll make a free preview of your homepage, rewritten so customers and assistants can find your furnace installation and replacement answers. You pay only if you accept it: $2,000 a month, month to month, with no build fee.

Get your free homepage preview

Source: Merchant Context: the current website offer · checked 2026-10-14.

Keep reading

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