When an HVAC system issue arises in your home it is time to call in a quality HVAC technician for repairs or maintenance. Many people put these sorts of things off, but this is the worst thing you can do! The longer you leave a frozen, overheated, or leaky part in an HVAC system, the more trouble you are asking for. Also, if you leave the issue for too long, you may end up with a total system failure which will almost certainly cost you more to repair. So, if you’re having a problem with your home – or office – HVAC system, it’s time to call in an expert. Below, we will discuss the things you need to look for to ensure you are hiring a quality HVAC technician. Read on to discover all of our top tips.
Ask Your Friends
Know other friends or family who have quality HVAC systems installed in their homes? Well, as with many things in life it’s good to get an opinion from people you trust. So, the first thing you should do is ask these friends for their advice. Who installed their system? Who maintains it for them? Are they reliable? How much do they cost? Do they know if they were trained in one of the quality HVAC programs with certification? These are all questions you should ask. Hopefully, the people you know will give you clear and honest reviews of their experiences with their technician or company, helping you make an informed decision about who would be a good fit for you.
Read Reviews
If you don’t have any direct links through friends or family to a quality HVAC technician, it’s time to get online. There are hundreds of different independent review sites on the internet, many of which are directly designed for consumers to give honest reviews of tradespeople – like HVAC engineers. Search through some of the top review sites for tradespeople for great technicians in your city or county. Here, you are guaranteed to find honest and frank reviews from other customers like yourself. It is always best to check review sites, even if you’ve got a direct recommendation from a friend, as they provide a broader range of experiences and reviews from multiple people. Be wary of fake reviews, though. Disregard any five-star reviews that seem copy and pasted or have no text at all, as these may well be the work of bots or the tradesperson themselves trying to boost their scores.
Are They Experienced?
Whether looking on a review site or a technician’s website, it is always best to see how long they have been in business. It is often the case that less experienced technicians may charge less, but, it is up to you whether you’d like to hire someone completely new to the job. Tech people in this field go through rigorous training but you may still feel more confident hiring a person or company who has been trading a long time. After all, you probably wouldn’t want to hire an inexperienced person in many fields, and that’s ok. The choice is yours, but we totally understand if you choose to go with a company with far more history, experience, and background than one that has none.
Compare Prices
The next thing you need to do is start reaching out to different providers to get quotes. Getting a quote from a technician does not then mean you are obliged to use them, it is simply an expression of interest and request for a price. This means you can ask various local companies or individuals for prices for your work. Whether it’s a full installation, repair, or replacement of parts of your HVAC system, a quality technician should give you a no-obligation quote. They may require a visit to your home to assess the job, which also gives you a chance to meet them and see if you think you’d be happy having them work on your building.
When it comes to price, it isn’t necessarily always that the cheapest is the worst and the most expensive is the best. You have to weigh the price up with everything else. If someone has come to you with a price at the lower end of the scale but has terrible reviews, it’s probably not worth taking a shot on them. However, someone in the mid-range of quote price with great reviews may be your guy! It’s about balancing price, personality, experience, and quality. Sometimes there’s a reason the most expensive person is also the highest-rated, and so on.
Are They Licensed?
Now, this is a hugely important point. All HVAC technicians have to complete a specific course or apprenticeship to get the job. They may train in a school or through a placement apprenticeship scheme. Either way, they have to complete it, pass exams and practical tests, and receive accreditation before becoming a professional HVAC technician. It is vital that you ask to see their qualifications before letting them undertake work on your home. Without doing so, you could be in for a disastrous job and have no backing from warranties or insurers.
Check If They Service Your Specific Equipment
Finally, but equally as important, it’s always worth checking your specific equipment before reaching out to techs. The issue is, there are so many different manufacturers of quality HVAC gear, that sometimes different companies or technicians specialize in certain brands. It doesn’t necessarily mean they can’t deal with your brand, but wouldn’t you rather someone who is a specialist in your brands’ equipment does the job? If they haven’t worked on your particular system before you may wish to reach out to other companies who have, just to be safe.
A combination of all of these top tips will help point you in the direction of your best local HVAC technician and help you decide who you should hire. Remember to ask for their credentials and seek out the person with the best reviews. Whatever you need sorting, your quality HVAC technician will be able to help.
