HVAC Installer Job Descriptions?

[MissMel]

I need help finding a job description for an HVAC Installer . I am looking for something that gives details about the everyday requirements and tasks of an installer, including systems, skill set etc....
If some one has been installing for 18 years what would you expect to see?

[John Markl]

If somebody has been installing for 18 years, then they are sadly lacking in ambition.....

[yellowirenut]

If somebody has been installing for 18 years, then they are sadly lacking in ambition.....

not if they are doing commercial/induatrial installs

[John Markl]

not if they are doing commercial/induatrial installs

My opinion stands. :D

[yellowirenut]

..edit...not worth my time

[MissMel]

I am sorry , let me refrase why I am asking this question. I am in school for business management, one of my assignments is to make a resume for some one other than myself, ( A good friend of mine) alas not knowing much about the industry myself I was hoping to gain some help here as to what a typical job description would look like so I could tie the skills my friend has based off an actual job description.
But curiosity strikes me... Why would one be lacking conviction if they were installing for that long? Is it not a good career direction? I ask out of sincerity not to antagonize . Thank you for your time.

[drj_controls]

Drop me an e-mail and I will send what I have when I get back in town. The descriptions I have are for installers, service techs and managers, different levels and responsibilities.

[John Markl]

Why would one be lacking conviction if they were installing for that long? Is it not a good career direction? I ask out of sincerity not to antagonize . Thank you for your time.

After 18 years, most would expect an HVAC employee to have moved up from "installer". Service Tech, Start-up Tech, Estimator, Department Manager, something.

Maybe some companies want someone who would do grunt work for 18 years, but I'd like guys with a little more ambition.

Someone who presented me with a resume stating 18 years as an installer wouldn't get an interview.

Perhaps if you were more specific in what their duties were, you might be able to paint a better picture....something that would indicate some progression over time.

[MissMel]

DRj: Thank you

John; I can certainly see your point. My friend started out in a company in a different town for the first 6 years, the next three years were spent with a company he really was getting no where with, in which case he found the company he has been with now since 2006, where he gets raises regularly, never laid off because he is a lead etc... He does not want to do service work because he does not want to be on call, but he knows how to do it certainly.
I guess what I am getting at is he is not rejecting the idea of moving up but there has to be room to as well, and the company he is in now treats there employees well so for now there is no upper positions to move into. In whole his ambition shows in his quality and pace and I am sure when a spot were to open he would be first in line. :)

( oh and to make a correction I was over estimating his time on the job, he has been doing it since April 1997. so just 13 years :) )

[Joe Harper]

If somebody has been installing for 18 years, then they are sadly lacking in ambition.....

What a sad statement. What if the installer likes what they do for a living?
I know a couple of installers that have been doing it for almost 20 years. They like it and are excellent at it. When they worked together, they could do three resi systems in a day.
Not everyone wants to be a service tech. Installers look at our hours, on call rotations and problems with systems. Then they call us suckers. They do thier 8-5 M-F and go home. Phone doesnt ring. Depending on the market the pay is close to average tech pay. Ambition is the desire for personal achievement. That would be determined by the person, not the onlooker.

[Joe Harper]

After 18 years, most would expect an HVAC employee to have moved up from "installer". Service Tech, Start-up Tech, Estimator, Department Manager, something.

Maybe some companies want someone who would do grunt work for 18 years, but I'd like guys with a little more ambition.

Someone who presented me with a resume stating 18 years as an installer wouldn't get an interview.

Perhaps if you were more specific in what their duties were, you might be able to paint a better picture....something that would indicate some progression over time.

Perhaps this is why you cant find a technician? Just a thought...

[John Markl]

Perhaps this is why you cant find a technician? Just a thought...

Just the opposite. I can find plenty of 8-4:30 guys, ie: installlers.

They all get that "beer thirty" look in their eyes around 3:30, and start looking for excuses to stop the job they're on.

[maxpower]

They all get that "beer thirty" look in their eyes around 3:30, and start looking for excuses to stop the job they're on.

you mean that's not normal? lol :eek2:

[John Markl]

Not everyone wants to be a service tech. Installers look at our hours, on call rotations and problems with systems. Then they call us suckers. They do thier 8-5 M-F and go home. Phone doesnt ring. Depending on the market the pay is close to average tech pay. Ambition is the desire for personal achievement. That would be determined by the person, not the onlooker.

Ambition ~ a. An eager or strong desire to achieve something....

I think you've just defined the difference between a service tech and an installer for me.....which was my point to begin with.

While I don't want to derail the op's purpose, from where I'm sitting, a resume from an 18-year installer just isn't that good.

A: They've been doing the same thing at the same place for 18 years with no upward movement....not good.

B: They've been doing the same thing at a whole bunch of different places for 18 years, ie: a job-hopper.

Either way, it doesn't speak well as far as impressing a potential employer of one's drive for success.

[drj_controls]

I haven't seen an e-mail, drop me one and I can reply with the documents.

[dad211]

as a former service tech who now does resi retro installs i love my job have alot more time to spend with the family and i make just as much even more tahen some techs i am nate certified in installs as well as service and plan on starting school in fall for my bachelors in mech engineering so as for ambition i have it and ive seen a lot of service techs that dont have ambition that stay with the same place for years and all they do is change parts or adjust refri levels

[Joe Harper]

as a former service tech who now does resi retro installs i love my job have alot more time to spend with the family and i make just as much even more tahen some techs i am nate certified in installs as well as service and plan on starting school in fall for my bachelors in mech engineering so as for ambition i have it and ive seen a lot of service techs that dont have ambition that stay with the same place for years and all they do is change parts or adjust refri levels

Your not helping his case here.... :)

[dad211]

Your not helping his case here.... :)

i know was just venting a bit i'm just tired of this industry as a whole not treating installers on the same level as techs

[Some Dude]

I worked with a guy who did commercial installs for 30 years and was darn good at it.
There are companys who have teams as in, install, commercial, controls,centrifugal, boilers, refrigeration etc.
Theres not a darn thing wrong with someone wanting to work in a certain field, thats where we teach our people and hone our skills.
Ive done it all, and i like installs better, at least you get to see your stuff run.
I worked for one contractor that you never saw a start up, that really sucked, why because they had a start up crew.
Mostly i ran service, heavy commercial etc until i started my own place.
I love resi because it pays unlike the 30 , 60 , 90 days on commercial.

[John Markl]

i know was just venting a bit i'm just tired of this industry as a whole not treating installers on the same level as techs

You feel that installers are on the same plane, as service techs?

Interesting. :pop:

[Some Dude]

You feel that installers are on the same plane, as service techs?

Interesting. :pop:

The right installer is the right service techs equal, especially in commercial.

[John Markl]

The right installer is the right service techs equal, especially in commercial.

An installer and a service tech present two completely different mind sets.

Egos aside, they clearly are not equal, or the pay scales and demand would reflect this.

A service based company can survive without installers. But it won't work the other way around.

[Some Dude]

An installer and a service tech present two completely different mind sets.

Egos aside, they clearly are not equal, or the pay scales and demand would reflect this.

A service based company can survive without installers. But it won't work the other way around.

Why would anybody work it the other way around?
Service what you install, its not rocket science.
They both work together or they should at least compliment each other.

[John Markl]

Why would anybody work it the other way around?
Service what you install, its not rocket science.
They both work together or they should at least compliment each other.

The point being, a company with a service tech can make a go of it without and installer, whereas, a company with an installer, but no service tech can't.

Gotta have a doctor to run a doctor's office.

All the rhetoric in the world won't change the fact that a service tech in our industry has far more value and demand than an installer.

[John Markl]

Service what you install, its not rocket science.


I don't know too many companies that only service what they sell, and hang around very long.

[73Stingray]

I can only comment on my own limited experience (only 3 or 4 years)...but I started out doing service...and love the challenges and finding solutions, and the satisfaction that it brings...but on the flip side... I just recently started working at a large company with several branches....got hired on for the resi hvac install side and absolutely love it!!!!

The seniors have juniors to help them, and the seniors are all licensed sheet metal guys....We don't get the "beer thirty" look in our eyes...probably because we work piecework...
Get to work on time, load up and go....Get to the job site, get the job done, do it right the first time around, when you are done you are done for the day!!!! That is a bonus, especially on days when you are back to the shop by 2 in the afternoon and can leave.
Then its miller time!!!!
There is the odd day when things may not go as planned, that end up being 5 to 7 pm, but they are not as common...But it is way better to be able to be home on weekends, not be on call, and usually be home early enough to pick the kids up from school and sit and have dinner together around the table at night!!!!!
No worrying about the boss wondering where you are....No gps tracking to worry about, customers generally get bored of watching an install after about 10 minutes, instead of looking over your shoulder for a 1/2 hr and trying to "help" diagnose a problem...lol

The coming a/c season may change things a bit and 5 pm quitting times might be more common, but still highly doable..
Install is for people who want to work...Service is for the lazy (that's not my opinion, just what the senior installer's tell me)

And yes the service side does make a little more money, but the trade off for me is huge!! Fortunately, by the time I get to where the kids are college age and money is more of a priority to pay for their college and stuff, I will have my time in, and be able to move over to the service side....and by that time I will be old enough and tired enough to want to have a "lazy" service job.....lol
No flames please...we all work hard for our bennies

[Joe Harper]

The question I have is; if someone was ambitious, why would they be in Sherman Texas looking for a job? Certianly the ambitious type would go to Dallas to work.

[John Markl]

The question I have is; if someone was ambitious, why would they be in Sherman Texas looking for a job? Certianly the ambitious type would go to Dallas to work.

That shows how little you know about Sherman, Texas ;)

[Joe Harper]

I dont know much about sherman, you are correct. I like small towns, you cant make as much money as working out of a major city though. Been there, done that.

[hivacer]

Installations take much more skill and knowledge than service in my opinion, at least on technical jobs. Also, installers can make much more than service guys. I have spent many 50-60 hour weeks installing boilers and other numerous pipefitting jobs that are in high demand because there are few people who can do the work and make it look right as well as make sure it works right when your done. I do controls, electrical, pipefitting and sheet metal and whatever else it takes, this takes a vast amount of knowledge to do it right, much more than a little troubleshooting and replacing a part, or looking at some guages and fiddling around with wires, as do most "service techs" I know who choose to do only service.

If you are talking about the basic residential installations, I agree, I was past that after a couple of years, but installer can mean alot of things:pop:

[maxpower]

Like wise. If you don't know the proper way it was suppost to be installed,you can't fix it. Many problems result from improper installs.:)

The way technology is going someone who does installs only probably wouldn't be able to troubleshoot commercial single package units.
Ex. Trane Intellipaks.

[hivacer]

Yep, with new geothermal, condensing boilers, high end residential equipment, and most complicated pipefitting and sheet metal jobs take a very smart and well trained installer. You need to be a service tech and then move on to installation to install the technical jobs, or at least tell somebody else exactly how to do each step.