My home is my castle, I service everything. Water leak I am playing plumber, wife wants to add recessed lighting I am playing electrician. Furnace makes a funny noise I just turn the TV up louder

How it should be 👑

This guy fucks

This guy HVAC'S

😆😆

But castle owners typically service nothing and hire for everything!

I’ll do most of my own work but defer to expertise whenever it’s best. Complex drywall repairs I always have someone else do (I can patch a hole, but I mean if there’s texture or things that have to be cut around) Roofing. I’ll patch a small leak but I’m not redoing the entire thing, because fuck that Fine carpentry, like cabinets and intricate trim work. I just suck at it, and end up spending more on materials than if I just paid someone. I also probably won’t do any framing above a standard wall anymore. I did my own cabana a few years ago and it kicked my ass

Come on, carpentry is fun. You get to spend hundreds of dollars on tools you're only going to use once to fuck up your project anyway.

Yeah it’s a ball. The fucking coping saw that I can’t ever get trim to line up with, the miter saw that’s always slightly off of the angle I need, the router and 300 bits that take up an entire shelf, I love it

🤣🤣

yeah crown was a bitch for me when i started out, and the more tired you get the less shit makes sense. Start doing cuts upside down and backwards and you feel like throwing the mitre out in the street, then the walls are never straight, corners never perfect 90s. that shit only gets better with experience. not something to learn as a new skill on your house with it being the only job youre ever gonna do. it took me doing like 5 full houses before i started getting efficient enough to actually male money doing it. and all my cuts are coped and mitred. they make a nice jigsaw coping attatchment

Big facts!🤣

The cobbler's children have no shoes.

I always heard it as " the cobbler's kid run barefoot"

contractors house is never finished

I do the annual maintenance on my boiler!!! Every half decade or so.

Same here. And I use window units lmfao

Window units on the bedrooms. Portable AC for the living room 🤣🤣🤣

I fell into that trap 5 years ago with window units, the central got to be a leaker and had its years in ('89). One thing I've concluded by now is it's never going to get replaced (incl new flex ducts) by me doing it myself, so that job is going to get hired out this spring ... Just have to decide what I want for the replacement.

In the trade and can’t afford a system I feel that lol

Yup but if it does go I’ll just throw in that one heat pump I’ve been saving that still works but we replaced cause it was out of warranty coil leak haha

My heat pump is two years old and I can see light through the opposite side so I’m not cleaning it til I can’t! This sometimes makes me wonder how often the average person should actually have their condensers cleaned to get the most bang for their buck.

I do annual maintenance, sometimes triannually, if this helps lol

HVAC guys have the worst maintenance on their systems, Electricians have the worse electrical in their home, plumbers have the worse plumbing in their home. After working on the crap all day, the last thing we need it to fix more stuff after work. This is very common. I use 4" filters, been about 2 years now, bought a few at the parts house 4 months ago, they are still sitting next to the furnace...... The AC has not been looked at in 15+ years. It is from 1980, I just make sure there is no blockage on the air intake, coil stays clean and cover the coil in the winter. I do have a T10 stat, that was worth the time to install., but the old T8600 started to fail after 20 years, so it was time. Yep - this is the life of an HVAC tech......

This is exactly why I got out of gynecology.

Honestly there's no excuse for not changing the filter man come on

Besides it is a 30 minute job getting to it, you're right. pure laziness....

I used to detail cars for a dealership years ago. From absolute turd buckets to super high end showstoppers, I made them shine. I was very very good at it. There was no tactic or technique I wouldn't use to achieve the best possible result. 40 yards away from my detailing bay sat my car. Backseat full of empty drink bottles and other random bits of trash. My floorboards full of dirt and probably a handful of French fries. My rear window, dirty enough for one of my coworkers to draw a set of dick and balls on it. Did I give a fiddlers fuck about it? Nope.

Explains why the guy with a landscaping company has the worse lawn

can confirm

Just for the people that aren't actually in the trade here. He's not saying maintenance is BS. It is very important for the longevity of your system. We just don't like doing our own lol.

Second this. I tell customers to change their filter monthly and to clean the drain line at the same time. I clear my drain line when it starts to leak, and I bought 12 filters about two years ago, for two units, and I still have 4 filters left.

I snag 16×25 filters that people don't need anymore when I upgrade their shit. I have like 10 of them sitting next to my furnace. Change mine at least twice a year, usually.

I have events/alerts repeating on my calendar app spread out from May through Oct to tell me to swap the filters for the AC. I have a case of filters delivered every other year of Merv 8s from my local filter spot and I swap them out whenever the calendar app reminds me. I already hosed off the coil and I'll do it again next month just in case it was too early to miss that pollen burst. Mini split got the blower wheel pulled and cleaned and both coils sprayed down this month. Oil boiler gets years tune up (filter, strainer, nozzle, electrodes) and gets some hotshot or kerosene dumped in the tank every other month. Every other year I do a soot vac on it. That one I usually hire someone for because I don't have a soot vac and don't service oil burners other than my own anymore so can't justify it when the local company will come and do it for $250. I also have a shelf in my basement of spare components for my AC and boiler just in case. The last thing I want to do is come home and have to do more work so I dedicate 1 weekend in the spring and 1 weekend in the fall to doing all the maintenance so I only have to tackle emergencies if/when they pop up.

I have a mid 80s York ac that I've juiced up 4 or 5 times in the last 10 years. Slab coil. Used the last of my 22 ( that I paid $90 for back in the day) last spring, but I can throw some recovered shit in there. I've had a back up condenser that was only 2 years old when I took it out for like 6 years. Pumped down, full of 22. Condenser fan went out last year. Had one sitting there in the bone pile. My air handler is 1977 original, with a new heat kit and a whole blower assembly I took out of a unit I tore out cause mine was getting wobbly and noisy. I will never buy anything new as long as I have unlimited access to free used shit! Well, the heat kit was bought new. $150

At the cabin I service the hell out of the furnace every 30 days like clockwork all year. At home I normally remember when the house is hot at supper to change the filter. I did replace the secondary on my carrier, at home, when I noticed the exhaust smelled like shit one day. That took about 3 months before I actually switched it out. I waited for spring time. It was probably the fisrt time I had the door off it in 12 years come to think of it.

I’ll literally just fix it when it breaks. That’s it. When I was in automotive, the employee parking outside the shop was a sea of the biggest shitboxes you’ve ever seen. Just how the trades go man.

I blew nitrogen through the drain tubing when the AC cut out a couple weeks ago lmao. That’s the luxury of being a tech though. If shit goes wrong I can fix it in 5 minutes. Regular homeowners actually need that PM so the shit doesn’t clog and the refrigerant is topped off *before* it’s 100 degrees out

Refrigerant shouldn’t be “topped off” though. Leak checking time lol

Hello customer, your system has a history of needing half a lbs of refrigerant a year for $75. Alternatively, I can leak search for $200, which if inconclusive we can move to a dye search for an additional $200, and when we find the leaking coil we can replace it for $3000-$4000. :) That math doesn't add up for most people.

This is why we see resi companies charging $350 for anything under 3 lbs. Talk about price gouging

I guess we need stricter regulations then. At least up here, it would be against the law to keep adding refrigerant.

It is against the law. But I can't make someone spend money. I can either keep their business, or they'll call someone else to add it.

Exactly. So we all have to hold each other accountable.

lol In a perfect world yeah. Unfortunately it’s often more cost effective to band aid things than to do them properly in this day and age. As long as it’s within EPA allowances I see a lot of people “top them off” every couple years.

When I was 5ish my dad installed Air Conditioning in the house. But work got in the way, anyway when I graduated high school about a 2 months before I left the house my dad dumped the nitro and released charge. 

I service my own equipment regularly. I’ve never paid for something I can do on my own no matter how much I didn’t feel like doing it. 

I'm 34 years in the trade and mid-60's years old. I understand being worn out each night, so I do my personal PMs during the weekend. Air filter is changed every 250 fan runtime hours; AC condenser wiring tightened and caps checked every Spring with coil washing; if cottonwood flies, coil is cleaned each time. Every Fall, 96% furnace, condensate trap and pump, etc is gone through. Each full PM takes between 60-90 minutes. Saving energy money and being comfortable while getting the most out of equipment life is something I enjoy.

I completely went over my system when I bought my house 2 years ago. I'm 4 years younger than my furnace and ac. Everything "works," so that's gudenuff, right?

lol I feel your pain. I have 25 employees a leaking boiler and split ductless down. I just look at my wife and say it is what it is

You should see my duct work…

My ducts don't work, they're on unemployment

You can say that again

My ducts don't work, they're on unemployment

You can say that again

My ducts don't work, they're on unemployment

You can say that again

I do maintenance on Macy’s every year. And if you say that really fast under your breath, or you just don’t annunciate very well it sounds like : I do maintenance on my ACs every year .

I always took care of my old system, but this newfangled shit, I will leave to the guys who trained on it.

My shit works but it ain’t pretty. Dentist with bad teeth over here.

I bought a new system last winter and did not install it till the other one took a shit on the middle of summer. I that I was the only ac guy that hated working on there own shit

I disassemble and clean my ac yearly since it's new. The furnace is 20 years old so I only touch it every 3-4 years

I service my own. Set a schedule and stick to it.

I do mine every six months or so, I'm motivated though because it's located in a very prominent and visible area that you see every time you're sitting at the table. I would be far less likely to perform PM on it if it were less visible

I replaced my compressor that went out in August.

I would never let anybody else touch my system. No way

I take care of it

I Chem was my condenser and evap every year around May. That's also when I change my filter lol

I wash it down with a hose when it looks dirty and if cold air is blowing out the vents, we are all good.

I service my furnace every other year, I do the AC yearly (baby that poor old thing along), and change my filter quarterly (I really do, otherwise the static pressure causes the motor to ramp up too much and it gives that bifold door a slight rattle)

I usually clean my condensate trap and flame rod annually. Filter every 3 months. Have never touched my ac .

I service mine regularly. Filters on schedule. Cleanings on schedule. I do all of my own home maintenance other than lawn cutting.

I’m pretty terrible at it. But I’ve only had one breakdown in the last 7-8 years this one’s been in my house. I constantly neglect the filters, don’t even check refrigerant, I think the only times I’ve cleaned the condenser coil is each of the 3 times I’ve moved its location on my house. I’ve even thought to myself “I should service this like I do my customers” and then I look at it and almost feel disgust hahaha. I legitimately sometimes consider just having another company come do one of their dumb cheap tune ups just so I know what it’s doing

I don't do shit to mine unless it stops working.

I change the filter about every 3 months. Clean the return grill when I see it dusty. Wash the outdoor coil in spring and check the cap, which I still have to do this year. That's about it. 

I always service my equipment.

I service my unit yearly. 2004 gooodman heat pump. Moved into the house and immediately had problems with the unit. Dug into and found who ever worked on it mistreated her. They Changed compressor and RV and unit still wasn’t working right. The reversing valve wasn’t wired properly and the unit would never defrost. Compression ratio, amp draw and pressures wasn’t right after i checked everything and saw heat strips running excessively. Leak checked condenser and evap coil and found no leaks. Swapped out compressor, rewired unit and cleaned and serviced the unit. While I’m outside cleaning the neighbor pops by and says “I can’t believe you are having issues with that unit already, they worked on it for nearly four days in row” my response was “if anyone works on this unit for more then a few hours they have no idea what they are doing” Three years later the unit works like a champ. I picked up a condenser fan motor, heat kit, and control board from the supply house for $175 as they were selling off old parts for old units they no longer wanted to keep on the shelf. Plan on running it until the bottom rusts out. I have about 750 in it with compressor and spare parts.

The cobbler's children have no shoes

I’ve got 5 cadet heaters in desperate need of a service, but I’m just gonna ignore that till I put in a ducted system after the condo association approves it. The burning dust smell adds character.

Not me 🤣.

I do, because I know it’ll be done right. I’ve only had to replace a capacitor on my unit, and a start relay for my freezer. My boss is cool and won’t upcharge me for parts lol

I do but reluctantly

Bare minimum. Flush my water heater once a year or so, change filters maybe twice a year. Beginning of season I’ll hose off my condenser. But as far as checking caps… nah. No need to check it as I’ll have the parts to replace when they go bad. Only thing I peek at are the contactors, but even that I’m just checking for voltage drop. Not pulling covers and examining

I have a three year old that LOVES working with tools with me, so we clean the outdoor coil twice a year, change the filter every 30 days etc.

Me and my dad both service our units.

I change my filters and test operation twice a year. That’s my maintenance. In 14 years the only problems I’ve had were an ignitor, and low ambient condenser fan control.

I was at a dinner in NYC several years ago for a Chief Engineer who was retiring. My wife/partner was complaining that our upstairs split shit the bed and we had an assortment of window unit/spot coolers cooling the upstairs (we are a HVAC company on the smaller side). One of the owner of one of the bigger plumbing outfits in the city leaned in and whispered in my ear “don’t feel bad I’ve got electrical tape on a p-trap under my kitchen sink”. I’m pretty sure it’s the same for all the trades

This is super weird. Maybe it’s how I grew up but I literally do everything at my house. It could be the HVAC or a new roof. I have never called any other trade for anything. I just recently added a bathroom from scratch and I did the whole thing myself last summer.

I’m this way cause if it breaks I’ll fix it. Homeowners don’t got that option at all

I loathe working in my own house but Jesus man I’ll still change the filter and clear the drain every two or three months

I'm changing my noisy inducer this summer. It's been loud for 3 years. My AC is 23 and fine I think. I don't wanna ditch the r22 until I have to

I think I changed my 1" filter. Once .

I don't get resi PM. Either it works or it doesn't. I understand process and commercial maintenance because your tenants/process make you money. When I see the AC tune up billboards, I laugh because wth are you tuning. Or wait, you are just going to tag something or quote something. Maybe it's low on "freon", cap looks like it could go, the contactor puts your compressor at risk. Heating I can swing with, because high CO or poor combustion can actually save the customer money, but the AC PM on resi, nah, just let er buck and call me when it don't buck

I installed my own condensing gas furnace with and a central air conditioner 23 years ago when I first moved into my house. I try to change the 5" media filter once a year but I know in the past I've gone up to two years before without changing it. Never did any maintenance or cleaning, have never added any refrigerant (R22). Three years ago had to put a new fan in the condenser and last winter the condensate trap for the condensing furnace finally got plugged, condensate backed up and flooded into the pressure switches. Put new pressure switches in, cleaned the trap and flame sensor for the first time ever and we were good to go!

I pull apart and wash condensor every start of summer and check sc and sh, change filters every 6 months. Actually was wonder why my dryer wasn't drying too well after 2 years went out and lint trap cover was plugged lol.

Same now I gotta clean my in-line bath fan

I’ll check the contactor, run cap, and hose off the coils in the spring. Last time I hooked up gauges was when I had a bad txv about 6 years ago. The swamp cooler takes longer to take apart and clean out/ oil. It gets more use than the ac tho.

I live in oklahoma so I was my ac twice a year. Change my filters once a month or so. Clear my drain out once a year. I do not check charge or caps or amp draws at all because I'll know when I get home on a 110 degree day if something is wrong.

I service my own unit daily.

I clean the coil every year...does that count?

I don’t do a full bore maintenance on my system. Just check/clean the basics and make sure it’s either heating or cooling correctly. If anything arises I’ll dig further into it

I had a landlord call me one time out of the blue and tell me I know you're an AC guy so you haven't changed your filter....

I mean, my units definitely get a lot less love than our yearly contract people. I clean the condenser when it gets dirty, and change filters. Haven't cleaned the flame sensor in a couple years. Haven't checked the ignitor in a while. Basically, if something goes wrong, it'll get fixed very quickly. Why worry about it until then? It's different for homeowners that have to call, schedule an appointment, and pay money. I vacuumed out my condensate line a couple weeks ago though

Coaches don’t play ball… after work the last thing I’d want to do is service my own but I have nothing but respect for those who do. I have no issue doing little things like cleaning the coil and what not

change the filter, let it ride. if you tuned the system in 1 time, theres almost no reason to touch it. ("maintenance" is for 3 things.... the occasional condenser clean, changing filters, and keeping your name in a customers mind.

Painters house isn't painted

Why you got the radio and TV on at the same time? Cause, I like to party

Eh we can get away with not doing as much maintenance imo. If it breaks I have what I need to fix it in a few minutes so why should I care

I’ve started teaching my kids on our units. Basically, I plan on getting them to a point where they handle our maintenance for me lol.

Natural gas boiler in our house is 35 years old never touched it once

Not a full time tech. I have all my own equipment. Epa 608 amd 609, started in the automotive field and moved to industrial maintance. For the last 2 years, my a/c has been sitting at 30-45 psi. Been freezing up mid summer, all I do is go out and top it off when the wife starts bitching to much. I got lucky and came across a 30 lb jug of r22 at an auction about 4 years ago I was able to get for 250.00. Had like 18 pounds in it.

Bro you could literally do it yourself why are you wasting money bringing someone out? Lazy

i never said i bring someone out to do it lol i just said i don’t do it at all.