First Responder, Military, and Senior Discounts.
First Responder, Military, and Senior Discounts.
HVAC technicians spend a significant amount of time explaining things customers cannot see, cannot easily verify, and may know very little about.
That creates responsibility.
The customer should understand:
This does not require a degree in public speaking.
It requires clear communication, honest answers, and respect for the person standing in front of you.
Tell them what you found. Show them how you know.
Before opening equipment, listen to what the customer has experienced.
They may tell you:
The technician arrived 11 minutes ago.
The customer has been living in the house.
Give them a minute.
Allow the customer to finish explaining the problem.
Even if you believe you already know the answer.
Especially if you believe you already know the answer.
The final sentence may contain the information that proves your first assumption wrong.
Some customer explanations will take longer than technically necessary.
Remain patient.
If the story begins:
“So back in 2017…”
there may still eventually be relevant HVAC information.
Wait for it.
Customers may reproduce equipment noises verbally.
Listen respectfully.
“It goes rrrrrrrr—click—rrrrrrrr—click.”
This is admissible diagnostic information.
Do not laugh.
If necessary, request clarification:
“Was it more of a buzzing sound or a grinding sound?”
The customer may then perform an enhanced version.
Continue diagnosis.
Technicians shall explain HVAC problems in language a reasonable homeowner can understand.
Technical terminology may be used when useful.
Technical terminology shall not be used solely to demonstrate that the technician knows technical terminology.
Instead of:
“Your system is experiencing inadequate latent capacity due to reduced evaporator airflow.”
consider:
“We’re not moving enough air across the coil, and that’s affecting how the system removes heat and humidity.”
Same problem.
Considerably fewer hostages.
Do not use a $10 HVAC word when a normal word will explain the same thing.
“Your evaporator is experiencing insufficient sensible heat transfer resulting from reduced saturation temperature.”
Congratulations.
You have successfully explained the problem to yourself.
Try again.
“We’re not moving enough air across the coil, so it’s getting too cold and beginning to freeze.”
Now the person actually paying for the repair knows what you’re talking about.
Technical knowledge is demonstrated by understanding complicated things.
Not by making simple things sound complicated.
HVAC contains many acronyms:
The customer is not required to know any of them.
If your explanation contains more acronyms than words:
Start over.
Customers are not taking an HVAC certification exam.
They are also not taking an English exam.
If a customer uses a technically incorrect term, regional pronunciation, common mispronunciation, or different version of a word—and you clearly understand what they mean—
Do not correct them.
Examples include:
All are acceptable when the meaning is clear.
You know what they mean.
If the customer says:
“I think it needs Freon.”
do not immediately respond:
“Actually, Freon is a trademark, and your system uses R-410A refrigerant.”
Nobody asked.
If the type of refrigerant becomes relevant:
Explain it.
Otherwise:
Continue living.
If the customer says:
“The compressor outside isn’t coming on.”
and you understand that they mean the outdoor unit isn’t running:
Communication was successful.
Go look at the outdoor unit.
Do not conduct an impromptu vocabulary lesson in the living room.
If you later determine the actual compressor has failed and need to explain that specific component:
Now the distinction matters.
Explain it.
The same rule applies to ordinary language.
Technicians shall not correct customers who say things such as:
You understood them.
Communication was successful.
They called an HVAC company.
Not a linguist.
Technicians should exercise extreme caution before beginning a sentence with:
“Actually…”
There are legitimate uses of this word.
Correcting the homeowner’s pronunciation of espresso while their house is 89°F is not one of them.
Customers may have:
None of this is relevant to whether their capacitor has failed.
Do not:
If you understood what the customer meant, communication worked.
Congratulations on knowing the technically correct word.
Continue working.
Good communication is not simply explaining things.
It is asking useful questions.
Examples:
“When did you first notice it?”
“Does it happen every time?”
“Has anyone worked on the system recently?”
“Is the upstairs always warmer, or is that new?”
“What do you mean when you say it freezes?”
That last question matters.
“Freezing” may mean:
Clarify.
If you don’t understand what the customer means:
Ask.
Do not nod thoughtfully and hope additional information eventually makes the situation clear.
Acceptable:
“When you say it shuts off, do you mean the outdoor unit stops but the indoor fan keeps running?”
Not acceptable:
“Yeah, definitely.”
when you have absolutely no idea what they meant.
Technicians shall not provide customers with a complete catalog of everything that could theoretically be wrong before diagnosing the equipment.
“Could be the capacitor. Could be the motor. Could be the board. Could be low on Freon. Could be the compressor.”
Thank you.
You have successfully listed components found inside an air conditioner.
Now diagnose it.
“I had one last week doing the exact same thing and it was the TXV.”
Interesting.
This one still requires diagnosis.
The previous air conditioner is not a test instrument.
Very few components always fail.
If one truly did:
Manufacturers would eventually notice.
Probably.
After diagnosis, explain the findings before presenting the solution.
A good explanation generally answers:
Example:
“The capacitor has failed. It’s rated for 45 microfarads and it’s measuring essentially zero. That component helps the compressor operate properly. We can replace it today.”
Clear.
Short.
Useful.
Nobody needed a PowerPoint.
When practical, show customers the evidence supporting significant findings.
This may include:
The purpose is not to conduct an HVAC certification course in the driveway.
The purpose is transparency.
If we’re asking someone to spend money because of something we found, we should be comfortable showing them what we found.
Holding a meter in front of the customer and saying:
“Look at that.”
is not an explanation.
The customer has no idea what the number is supposed to be.
Instead:
“This capacitor is rated for 45 microfarads. We’re measuring essentially zero. That’s why I’m recommending replacement.”
Now the number means something.
Evidence without context is theater.
The more significant the recommendation, the more important clear evidence becomes.
If you tell a customer:
“Your compressor is grounded.”
do not immediately put the meter back in the bag and begin discussing replacement equipment.
Show the measurement.
Explain what grounded means.
Explain what it means for the system.
Explain the available options.
A major diagnosis should not consist of:
“Yep.”
followed by an estimate.
Do not create certainty that does not exist.
Acceptable:
“Everything is operating normally right now, so I can’t reproduce the failure.”
Also acceptable:
“This could be the cause, but I don’t have enough evidence yet to tell you that confidently.”
Also acceptable:
“I don’t know.”
These statements do not make a technician look incompetent.
Guessing confidently does.
Do not invent percentages to make uncertainty sound scientific.
“I’m 97% sure it’s the board.”
How was 97% calculated?
Was there a formula?
A spreadsheet?
A board probability laboratory?
If you are reasonably confident:
Explain why.
If you are uncertain:
Explain why.
Leave the imaginary statistics out of it.
When discussing work, clearly distinguish between:
Necessary to correct the current problem or address a legitimate safety issue.
An identified condition we believe should reasonably be addressed.
An improvement the customer may choose but does not currently need.
Something worth watching that does not presently justify repair.
These are not the same thing.
Do not present all four with identical urgency.
Use the words:
“You need…”
when the customer actually needs something.
If the failed capacitor must be replaced to restore operation:
Fine.
If the blower motor is currently operating but showing a condition worth monitoring:
Say:
“I recommend keeping an eye on this.”
Not:
“You need a blower motor.”
Words matter because urgency matters.
Sometimes the correct recommendation is:
Nothing.
This remains an approved recommendation.
The technician may leave.
No additional component must be located merely because the invoice looks lonely.
For significant repairs, communication should generally follow this order:
Problem.
What is wrong?
Evidence.
How do we know?
Recommendation.
What do we believe should be done?
Price.
What will it cost?
Do not begin:
“It’s going to be $896.”
when the customer asked:
“What’s wrong?”
That is not what they asked.
Likewise, do not bury the price under a 15-minute refrigeration lecture hoping the customer becomes too exhausted to object.
Problem → Evidence → Recommendation → Price.
Avoid unnecessarily alarming language.
Instead of:
“Your system is completely shot.”
explain what failed.
Instead of:
“This thing is on borrowed time.”
explain the condition and risk.
Instead of:
“Your coil is destroyed.”
explain whether it is leaking, corroded, damaged, dirty, or simply ugly.
Instead of:
“This is really bad.”
tell them what is bad.
Specific information beats dramatic adjectives.
Technicians shall avoid examining equipment and then making a face that causes the customer to ask:
“Oh God. What is it?”
If you found something:
Explain it.
If you haven’t:
Control your eyebrows.
Customers should know the price before authorized work begins.
Explain:
Then obtain authorization.
Do not perform the repair and afterward announce:
“So here’s where we’re at…”
No.
We should have been where we’re at before spending their money.
State the price professionally.
Do not say:
“Unfortunately, it’s…”
“I know it’s crazy.”
“Don’t shoot the messenger.”
“I don’t make the prices.”
If it is our legitimate price:
Present it.
If the customer asks why it costs what it costs:
Explain appropriately.
Acting embarrassed by our own price only causes the customer to wonder whether they should also be concerned about our price.
A customer may decline a repair.
That’s their decision.
Do not:
Explain any legitimate consequences.
Document the declined recommendation.
Remain professional.
Do not say this.
Even if you believe it.
Especially with the little smile.
Nobody likes that guy.
Occasionally a customer will have HVAC experience.
They may be:
Do not become defensive.
Talk shop if appropriate.
Show your work.
If they know more about a particular subject than you:
Excellent.
You may learn something.
This does not reduce your rank.
Do not talk down to them.
Not knowing how refrigeration works is normal.
Most people have spent their lives learning other things.
The customer is not stupid because they call the condensing unit:
“The compressor thing outside.”
You knew exactly what they meant.
See §6.4.
Apparently we anticipated this.
Customers are allowed to ask:
“Why?”
They are also allowed to ask it more than once.
If a customer does not understand:
Explain differently.
Repeating the exact same technical sentence louder is not a different explanation.
Do not use:
“You’re just going to have to trust me.”
Trust is the result we’re trying to earn.
It is not diagnostic evidence.
Show them.
Explain it.
Let them decide whether they trust you.
If another contractor made a different recommendation:
Explain what we found.
Do not claim to know why they reached their conclusion.
Acceptable:
“I don’t see evidence that the TXV has failed. Here’s what I’m seeing.”
Not acceptable:
“They were just trying to sell you something.”
Maybe they were.
Maybe they weren’t.
We weren’t there.
We diagnose equipment. We do not diagnose motives.
Do not ask:
“Who installed this?”
using a tone that already communicates:
“Because I’d like to insult them.”
The installer may have been:
The final possibility deserves special consideration.
Ask who performed previous work when the information is actually relevant.
Otherwise:
Diagnose the equipment.
If you tell the customer something and later discover you were wrong:
Correct it.
“I told you earlier I thought the motor had failed. After testing further, that’s not what we’re seeing. Here’s what I found.”
That is infinitely better than spending the next 45 minutes attempting to force reality to support your original statement.
The goal is to diagnose the equipment.
Not defend your ego.
If the customer asks:
“Did you check the float switch?”
and you suddenly realize you didn’t:
Say:
“Not yet. Let me check it.”
Do not say:
“Yep.”
and then secretly migrate toward the air handler five minutes later.
Forgetting something is fixable.
Lying about checking it isn’t.
Employees are permitted to say:
“I don’t know.”
This may be followed by:
“Let me find out.”
This is generally preferable to inventing an answer.
See Section 12 — The “I Don’t Know” Policy.
We wrote an entire section about this.
We appear to feel strongly about it.
Technicians may call:
in front of the customer.
This is not embarrassing.
It demonstrates that the technician cares more about obtaining the correct answer than pretending to already know it.
Acceptable:
“I’m seeing something unusual. I’m going to call technical support and verify this before I recommend anything.”
Excellent.
Alternative procedure:
Walk around the condenser three more times hoping the answer appears.
Not recommended.
Technicians shall exercise extreme caution with any sentence beginning:
“Between you and me…”
You are wearing a Klein Cooling shirt.
There is no between you and me.
If the customer should know something:
Say it professionally.
If Klein Cooling would not want you saying it:
That is probably useful information regarding whether you should say it.
To the customer:
The office is Klein Cooling.
The technician is Klein Cooling.
The installer is Klein Cooling.
Sales is Klein Cooling.
Management is Klein Cooling.
Do not tell the customer:
“The office screwed that up.”
“They scheduled it wrong.”
“Sales should’ve caught that.”
“Install messed this up.”
“I don’t know what they’re doing over there.”
There is no they.
There is:
We.
If something went wrong:
“I’m sorry about that. Let me figure out what happened.”
Then address the internal issue internally.
Never make the customer stand in the middle of a Klein Cooling disagreement.
If another Klein Cooling employee made a mistake:
Address the problem.
Do not say:
“Yeah, he does that.”
This solves nothing.
It creates several new problems.
The customer does not need the organizational chart explaining exactly who screwed up.
Own the company response.
Fix the internal problem internally.
Employees may have difficult days.
There may be:
Do not arrive and greet the next customer with:
“Man, you wouldn’t believe the day I’m having.”
They might.
Their AC is broken.
Normal conversation is fine.
The customer should not feel like an inconvenience because Klein Cooling had a difficult day.
Avoid absolute promises involving:
Not:
“You’ll never have another problem with this.”
Instead:
“This repair corrects the problem we’re seeing today.”
Not:
“That compressor will last another five years.”
Instead:
Don’t say that.
You have no idea.
Customer text communication shall remain professional and understandable.
Do not send:
“ya its prob cap idk can chk tmw”
We have not reached a point in civilization where this is acceptable business communication.
Reasonable emoji use is permitted when appropriate.
Do not diagnose HVAC equipment exclusively through emoji.
🥵 → 🧊❌ → 💰
is not an estimate.
When calling a customer:
Identify yourself.
“Hi, this is Kevin with Klein Cooling.”
Do not begin:
“Hey, it’s me.”
There are currently several billion people who could plausibly be described as me.
If leaving a voicemail, include:
Do not leave:
“Hey. Call me.”
This creates mystery.
We are not producing a thriller.
Customers shall not be responsible for transferring information between Klein Cooling employees.
The customer should not need to say:
“The guy yesterday told the lady at the office who said she would tell you…”
If another employee needs information:
Document it.
Call them.
Message them.
Use the systems provided.
The customer hired an HVAC company.
They should not also be promoted to dispatcher.
Do not discuss another customer’s private information.
This includes:
You are there because their air conditioner required service.
You are not there to collect material.
Some customers want every detail.
Some want:
“What’s wrong and how much?”
Both are acceptable.
Adjust the level of explanation while still providing enough information for an informed decision.
If the customer’s eyes glaze over during your explanation of superheat:
You have exceeded the requested level of detail.
Land the plane.
Do not unnecessarily extend conversations.
Do not disappear without explaining what you’re doing.
If you need to:
tell the customer.
A technician vanishing for 25 minutes creates questions.
Usually beginning with:
“Where did he go?”
Before departure, make sure the customer understands:
Ask:
“Do you have any questions before I go?”
Then listen to the answer.
Do not ask while already halfway inside the truck.
Before finishing a customer conversation, ask:
Did I listen?
Did I explain what I actually know?
Did I show the evidence when appropriate?
Did I distinguish facts from possibilities?
Did I explain why I’m recommending the work?
Did I distinguish required work from recommendations and options?
Did I make the price clear?
Did I answer their questions?
Did I avoid diagnosing another person’s motives?
Did I represent Klein Cooling as “we,” not “they”?
Would the customer be able to explain, in basic terms, why they just spent this money?
If yes:
Good.
If no:
You’re not finished.
Tell them what you found.
Show them how you know.
Tell them what you don’t know.
Explain what you recommend.
Tell them what it costs.
Answer their questions.
Then let them decide.
Don’t impress them with HVAC vocabulary.
Don’t scare them with things you haven’t proven.
Don’t blame the office.
Don’t blame the installer.
Don’t blame The Previous Technician.
Don’t pretend you checked something you forgot to check.
Don’t diagnose somebody else’s motives.
Don’t make the customer stand in the middle of a company disagreement.
Talk to people like people.
And if the customer calls it Freon:
You know what they mean.
If they tell you the compressor outside isn’t running:
You know what they mean.
If they say expresso:
You know what they mean.
If you understood what the customer meant, communication worked.
Congratulations on knowing the technically correct word.
Continue working.
END OF SECTION 06