bigkingdingaling
104596
2361
95
How do you quote me $1,300 while saying that's after a $300 discount for having your premium service agreement?! Bought an OEM part too, not a knockoff.
It was the furnace inducer motor, took me exactly 30 mins to do the whole process, not counting the gas oversight. Should have started an hvac company if that's normal markups.
yaaaasure
Our pool heater stopped working, guy quoted us $3100 for a new one. husband cleaned it out - works perfectly
TheRatWhistler
Have you tried putting it in rice?
wrestlingisreal
Strong work my friend and thats some serious crap by that company.
penut61
If you have the skills you don’t pay those bills
StubbornRabbit
Because the market dictates what a trademan can charge. Better the market, better his pay, higher your price. Glad you got it done.
lucidity4all
If you're in the Chicago land area do not go to 4seasons they will do everything they can to rip you off
Pafolo
Well they advertise like crazy so I bet the charge to cover this nice commercials
looseasamoose
You might have got a bung deal but a lot of those fees do cover real work and liability insurance. Well done on your work but not everyone
looseasamoose
Should be messing with mains voltage and gas. Half the average public are stupid as bricks
butcherfan0301
You're not paying for labor, you're paying for expertise. There are 5 ways to wire up a light, 4 of which can burn down your house.
indified
yeah, but nearly 1200 in labor for an inducer motor? thats like, 2400 dollars an hour for labor, doctors dont even make that
byohzzrd
Had to replace the hvac circuit board. Got quoted $600. Bought the board online for $70. 4 screws and 5 connections. Took 30 minutes.
Beanmaninsertyeariwasborn
Just bought a house, diy home repair gives me the heeby geebies
silentwolf1999
Youtube.
Pafolo
That’s full of idiots that don’t know what there doing
westu1
Wait until they tell you your whole AC system is shot when really you only need a $30 capacitor. That will get you excited!!!
fishguyky
Lol. That just happened to me a month ago. Thank goodness my dad is an electrician.
GrumpyOldMillennial
Ditto. Draft inducer motor was basically shot. Quoted $800 to replace. I bought OEM for $162 and had it replaced in 10 min.
bigkingdingaling
That's the part I replaced!
shakefu
$120 part with markup. $300/hr with drive time. $1000 for knowing how to fix it.
Pafolo
Yep knowledge isn’t free
trustworthyfart
YouTube is though.
Pafolo
YouTube is full of miss information form idiots that think they know something. There are good channels out there but maybe more fools.
andreSleepVillain
Be careful with gas equipment if you don't know what you are doing it can and will kill you.
andreSleepVillain
But 1300 is an insanely high price
Pafolo
1300 or death... one sounds better then the other.
andreSleepVillain
Maybe find another company haha
ataradov
That is until your house burns down and insurance does not pay because of unqualified repair.
fishguyky
Who is going to be stupid enough to admit they caused it?
ataradov
That depends on what part was at issue. They don't just pay the money, they actually investigate things.
philosoraptopterodactyl
"We told him what the problem was, haven't worked on it since."
YouSufferWithCognitiveDissonance
I replaced the run capacitor in my AC condenser unit, part cost $18, took 10 minutes, AC now uses 2 amps less electricity.
YouSufferWithCognitiveDissonance
The start capacitor needs replacing as well, OEM part costs $56, found a generic part under $20.
YouSufferWithCognitiveDissonance
Word of advice, never clean the condenser coils with a power washer.
Pafolo
Fins bend easy
upcountrycare
pressure washer works great if you know what you are doing. Washing condenser with a garden hose is enough to fold the fins if you mess up.
philosoraptopterodactyl
As someone who's done a fair share of PM's under a very experienced tech, i would never even think of using a power washer. 1/2
philosoraptopterodactyl
This is why the world needs professionals and not diy guys... because diy guys can fuck up a whole lot out of ignorance.
TheMayorOfTittyCity
Had a repair guy tell my my fridge was totaled. Replaced a disk fuse with one from a junker at a dumpster for free and it worked again.
ChaHaeIn
Thats why I believe there should be much more focus on DIY/repairing in Media and school. Would maybe also help alot of peaople who 1/2
philosoraptopterodactyl
theres is... its called boces.
ChaHaeIn
go right to the store after something is broken instead of trying to fix it to appreciate their stuff 2/2
trustworthyfart
I think There should be a VR “game” that tears common house hold devices down and shows how they work and how to fix them.
rydecker
People are amazed that I can tune up my own mower and do basic maint. on my house furnace and water systems. Watch you-tube, own some tools,
Pafolo
People now a day don’t wanna do work.
maxplaBeast
Yes, if you do the gas thing correctly, it works. If not, two possibilities -- BOOM or "they never woke up."
DigYourselfBaby
Told the guy I needed a new igniter. He shows up, looks, "it's the igniter". I had to pay for the hour it took him to drive to 1/2
DigYourselfBaby
the other side of town & back since he did't bother to bring the igniter I told him I needed. 2/2
G081
my dryer broke, called and told them it was the bearing. they came to the house and told me the bearing was bad.
buttondick
Because homeowners usually aren't right when they diagnose stuff.
DigYourselfBaby
They've been to replace the igniter here every four years. He could have at least brought one with him.
Moljnir
RIGHT TO REPAIR, MOTHAFUKKAAAAAAA
Sumdumguy42
Did they say they charge 1300 for 30mins of work or was your „amateur“ description so vague they estimated a day‘s worth of work?
Sumdumguy42
It’s always easy to paint the company as the bad guys. And then two posts down we have professions bitch about clients who don’t know what
Sumdumguy42
They want or can’t articulate what they want.
bigkingdingaling
They came out to check why it wasn't heating and to do the seasonal checkup. They said what needed to be done and quoted accordingly
Sumdumguy42
Ok. Fuck them. Maybe talk to the boss and ask why their competition only wants 300 with parts, ask to see an itemized list of your quote?
trustworthyfart
There must be two hvac techs on here downvoting all your comments.
bigkingdingaling
If they'd send me a pm, I'm all about paying cash for sidework
tomatoboy
Scheduled service contract HVAC companies, especially fixed price ones, are often ripoffs, use a local company that doesn’t advertise on TV.
HelpfulCorn
Idk, mine is really good. They put a defective connector in the drain line and it leaked through the ceiling. They paid all repairs
tomatoboy
Note that I said often, not always.
tomatoboy
And use your maintenance visits to assess if you want that company to do any work for you in the future.
bigkingdingaling
One hangup is by using their service contract, they extend the warranty and cover all parts/labor on the attic unit I bought, for 10 yrs
tomatoboy
If you’re locked into a service contract for 10 years as a result, in the end you’re probably paying more than just paying for the repairs.
Wobblestone
Warranties on furnaces dont care about who you use. They company registers the warranty and YOU have that warranty, not that company.
AccioKittyKitty
Is blue penguin good or bad? You used it in both contexts.
Dragonfury5
Red is rad, blue is bad
AccioKittyKitty
Thank you! I always get them confused and just have to go by context. Nice looking out!
bigkingdingaling
Bad. Screwed up the second time.
Problemwoodchuck
Yep. A tech once turned off my grandmother's gas heat in winter & told her she needed a new furnace for $2k. All it needed was a blower belt
YouSufferWithCognitiveDissonance
Now that's tacky
bigkingdingaling
Def had the feeling they were pushing for a new unit vs repair. Jack the repair up and make replacing a better financial plan.
azazell64
Is there more to the story such as a cracked heat exchanger as well (common in certain older furnaces) as the belt so he tagged it
azazell64
So your grandma didn't get carbon monoxide poisoning?
Problemwoodchuck
I don't think so. Another shop checked it for leaks & found nothing. They replaced the belt & maybe the blower
LetsEatPizzaAndFuck
Hvac is on the high end of wages. Just because you fixed one issue doesn’t mean you can run a business or solve other issues.
philosoraptopterodactyl
Unless you've worked in the field, I dont recommend doing anything yourself.
LetsEatPizzaAndFuck
I wouldn’t say that. My favorite line from the wife was “My husband tried to” the cost doubled in my head. Because I had to fix what he did
LetsEatPizzaAndFuck
Then what the original problem was.
Pafolo
You have to unfuck what they did and then still try to find the original problem.
Funwithpuns350
Had a similar situation. AC stopped working. Would've cost me hundreds of dollars but I bought a 30$ capacitor and 10 minutes later it works
YouSufferWithCognitiveDissonance
I only got shocked once, it tickled.
Pafolo
Well it’s 240v so...
bigkingdingaling
They want $244 to replace the capacitor, its a little low on the readings.
Pafolo
Well they gotta charge for drive time, parts, and labor.
bigkingdingaling
I understand overhead. They were already at the house when they wanted the $244, part was on the truck.
chilsworth
It’s easy to replace a capacitor, but if you don’t know to make sure it’s discharged before you do.. worst case you die lol
Corsair212
I've got a unit from the 80's on my house and the little booklet I found in the unit said 'discharge with a screwdriver across terminals lol
chilsworth
The 80’s were a savage time in the trades hahah.. techs still do it that way, but you should really use a high ohm resistor
Pafolo
That’s the way everyone does it just look away.
tinner20
Furnaces are pretty easy to diagnose. AC is where it can get tricky
YouSufferWithCognitiveDissonance
Not so tricky, but replacing some components can get pricey.
Pafolo
Doing anything that’s not a fan or capacitor requires an hvac license since you have to reclaim the system and put refrigerant back in
philosoraptopterodactyl
Having the tools to vacuum down the system, then charge it to the precise amount, account for the temperature split, is expensive and tricky
Pafolo
Also requires a license to buy refrigerant so you can’t do anything.
ErectileFunction
A lot of people have lost the ability to do things themselves. They pay out the ass for everything.
SleeveHo
They're just too lazy or dumb. So much easy to find info these days and fewer people make the attempt. It's weird.
CokieMonster69
Agreed. Before the internet you needed an electrician, now, the codes, best practices, and 20 YouTubes are at your fingertips
GUID
I just value my free time very highly.
Recaffeinated
There is also insurance. Some companies won't cover a house fire if your furnace is the cause and you repaired it or cleaned it yourself.
gmfunkd
My husband is super handy and will google anything. His newest project is replacing the wiring harness and PCB on our washer, he's the best.
idontknowhowthissiteworks
If it's broke...99% odds there's a youtube channel showing you how to fix it. Make your own decisions at that point. Stay savvy.
akspartankiiier
Not really. I could have replaced the transistor on my A/C. But mo one would sell one to me so I HAD to call a company. It was B.S.
sinskittles
You gotta go to the HVAC parts stores that the techs go to. We've bought capacitors and a transformer for our system that way!
WhenIsItNotAGoodTime4Pie
Order the damn thing online then. amazing what they sell on Amazon.
akspartankiiier
Bro, I live in Arizona. It was summer. Im not waiting any longer than I have to.
djhash
It’s really due to many things becoming extraordinarily complex, or special skills and tools. I know I am able to disassemble a furnace
Illwillhills
You overestimate the complexity of things. A large portion of tradesmen are idiots.
djhash
and put it back together. But will I risk my family’s life over a possible gas leak? No. And that’s how they take advantage of us.
WhenIsItNotAGoodTime4Pie
I use to work on boilers. Moved on to more expensive stuff. They are not that complicated. The guys fixing them are mostly idiots.
RandomActOfConfusion
The saying goes "what you don't know can kill you"
philosoraptopterodactyl
Mini-split systems that provide heat and air conditioning?
WhenIsItNotAGoodTime4Pie
Semiconductor
ErectileFunction
Things Iike gas and high voltage are a bit different. I know a lot of people that can't do basic things like change oil in car.
LuminoZero
Right here! Chemical Engineer, never learned how to change my own oil. I'm quite willing to pay for their expertise. 1/
LuminoZero
That said, an honest, reliable mechanic is one of the first things I seriously scout for when I move. It's important to know.
CongratsYouAreHereNow
in a way, it's not always taking advantage. we need trades people to be around and good at what they do. for that to happen, they need
CongratsYouAreHereNow
to be able to make a living from their trade. you're not just paying for the service, but for the skill, the training, and the availability
CongratsYouAreHereNow
look at it like a cost spread over years. 10 years for a boiler, $1000 for the service, that's 100/yr. you may still be able to do it