Heat Pumps are getting “Hotter”
October 6, 2008
A recent post on the Home Air Direct Blog indicates that the sales of Air-Source Heat Pumps in the US are growing at an accelerated rate amid the rising cost of energy fuels. It also suggests that homeowners are taking control of their finances during these unstable economic times, by making improvements to their current home comfort systems in order to become more efficient and in turn, more “Green”.
Green is a multiple use term in this case, as many who make these upgrades are not only being “Green” by the very nature of reducing the use of non-renewable resources by becoming more energy efficient, but they are also being “Green” by increasing their financial efficiency as well.
You can view the entire article over on the Home Air Direct Blog, by clicking here.
How To Make $1,205.72 In Just 10 Minutes
October 5, 2008
How To Make $1,205.72 In Just 10 Minutes is exactly what happened recently during an online “Live Help” conversation between “Karen”, a homeowner and a professional from Home Air Direct.
A little background: Karen is a homeowner who has been in search of and has decided to purchase a BlueTube UV Germicidal Light for her home heating and cooling system, to help relieve her family of some allergy issues that they have been suffering from. Karen contacted a local HVAC contractor and asked them to come out to discuss the possible purchase. The contractor looked over her system and made a recommendation for a 15″ BlueTube UV Light and gave her a quote for the light and complete installation, including “Start-Up Procedures”, indicating that this was a very technical procedure. Karen was stunned. The all inclusive (eyes rolling) was for $1,400. Wow!
Karen decided to do some online investigating of her own for the BlueTube UV Germicidal Light. She ran across Home Air Direct, a company that specializes in Homeowner Direct Whirlpool Home Heating & Cooling Products and noticed that they also offer the BlueTube UV Light.
When Karen clicked on the store link for the BlueTube UV Light, she was stunned. According to this store, she could purchase for $194.28 the same UV light that the contractor had quoted installed for $1,400. She was stunned and elated. Still a little weary, and thinking that maybe the installation is so complicated that she would have no choice, she clicked on the “Live Help” feature of Home Air Direct and asked two questions. The first question was, “Does the BlueTube UV Light come with installation instructions?” The second question was, “Is it possible that a local contractor could have quoted her $1,400 for the installation of this item?” Read more
Why ASKBOYD? Because It Was The Right Thing To Do!
September 30, 2008
Sometimes we need to say something out loud. We have such a strong conviction to do the right thing, and we must find a platform and shout our beliefs, especially when we think that there is an imbalance of justice. That is why I built ASKBOYD.
I am the creator of this information site. I think it is important for you to know why I felt the need to build and maintain this platform. Most of my last decade has been spent working directly with HVAC contractors at the wholesale level. My positions over this time have ranged from a sales rep. up to being the Vice President of a wholesale Distribution company. One thing that never changed over the course of that decade, was daily contact with contractors. We have helped them decide, what is the best equipment for them to install on individual jobs, and have helped them profit from these installations. Many of these contractors have been most demanding. They expect levels of service that are above and beyond the call consistently and yet negotiate pricing that barely allows the wholesaler to survive.
One constant that I noticed as I was trying to satisfy the needs of the higher maintenance HVAC contractors, was that they were very vocal about the level of profits that they were making from homeowners, to the point of flying in the face of logic when they were barely allowing their supplier to survive.
I may have told this story somewhere else on this site, but I think it bears repeating. Last year, just days before I left the wholesale HVAC industry to build ASKBOYD, I was visiting with a contractor customer. Read more
The Lifetime Warranty Claim
March 19, 2008
The Lifetime Warranty Claim
So you are shopping for a new heating and air conditioning system? You have spent hours researching the internet, calling local dealers and asking family and friend for opinion and now you are more confused then ever. That’s ok. You should be doing the due diligence necessary to make sure you are doing the right thing. HVAC, even in the best of circumstances is expensive and not something we ever really plan on dealing with. It is usually a crisis management issue.
How HVAC Works
March 7, 2008
Air conditioning includes both the cooling and heating of air. It also cleans the air and controls the moisture level.
An air conditioner is able to cool a building because it removes heat from the indoor air and transfers it outdoors. A chemical refrigerant in the system absorbs the unwanted heat and pumps it through a system of piping to the outside coil. The fan, located in the outside unit, blows outside air over the hot coil, transferring heat from the refrigerant to the outdoor air.
How the Residential HVAC Industry operates and what it means to you the homeowner.
February 24, 2008
Before getting into the nuts and bolts of the supply chain of HVAC, Let’s take a look at a couple other related industries so you can get a sense of why it is important for you to know any of this at all.
First let’s take Plumbing. Back in the day when your parents built or remodeled houses, the normal procedure for getting your plumbing work completed was to call your plumber and meet with him to go over your project. You would tell the plumber what type of fixtures and faucets and other plumbing related apparatus you wanted. Once you made that decision, your plumber would go to his wholesale supply house and purchase your fixtures and then install them for you. He would mark up the price of your plumbing products along with his labor and you would pay him for everything. Not so these days. Now, it is common practice for you to go to your local big box store, plumbing showroom or On-Line and purchase fixtures yourself.
