When I was growing up my family didn’t give me very many options when it came to education.
My mom and dad wanted me to go into a specialized trade rather than going off and getting a stupid four-year degree. I wanted to go into business and advertising but instead I was signed up for the local trade school and haphazardly enrolled in central heating and cooling technician courses. Within 18 months I got my professional HVAC certification and I was able to legally work as a residential ventilation expert. I quickly found a local air quality control repair shop that wanted to hire young HVAC workers directly out of school. That’s when I began my life’s greatest adventure, traveling across the city in an HVAC work van and encountering all sorts of obstacles in various residential situations. It turns out, there’s a lot to worry about as a professional HVAC technician. First of all, you never know if people are going to have friendly indoor pets or wild watch dogs. I have been attacked by several dogs while attempting to service outdoor air conditioning units before. The hospital bills are generally covered by my HVAC dealership, but the mental scars remain. You also have to be careful when it comes to the HVAC owners, themselves. People will lie to you about the age and maintenance records of their heating and cooling devices all the time. They will try to tell you that you have recently serviced the HVAC appliances so that they can save money on a routine maintenance bill. There are also plenty of people who insist that you haven’t fixed their HVAC system after you’ve absolutely made the appropriate repair. I can’t tell you how many folks have tried to tell my boss that I failed to perform the correct heating and cooling diagnostics and repairs. As an HVAC inspector, you’re going to encounter a lot of difficult days. I sure wish my parents knew that before they forced me into the field.
