HVAC Residential Market

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While residents and business owners in Texas, Louisiana, and Florida struggle to rebuild their lives following the path of destruction left by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, local HVAC contractors and manufacturers have an opportunity to step in and do what they do best — provide comfort.

The NEWS spotlights the industry’s latest commercial heating products in the following photo feature. The manufacturers provided us with brief descriptions of the features included with each product. For more information, please contact the manufacturers or their distributors.

All technicians at some point will need to call and speak with a manufacturer’s technical support adviser. I have made many calls to these advisers throughout my career and learned how to best get the information I needed from them.

Effective weld purging is only achieved by making sure that oxygen is displaced from the purge zone prior to and during welding. Any residual oxygen can cause significant loss of corrosion resistance and a reduction in joint strength. It is therefore essential to seal the pipe on either side of the joint and maintain this seal throughout the process.

The high failure rate or inability to grow beyond a few trucks is due primarily to an entrepreneur’s lack of business training. The technical skills acquired, which are, of course, an asset, soon become a liability in terms of not having mastered business skills necessary for success and profitability.

On Dec. 31, 2016, the 30 percent residential and 10 percent commercial federal tax credits for geothermal heat pumps expired while credits for solar and wind were extended.

Energy Star certification is an important distinction for HVAC manufacturers’ products to achieve. The designation recognizes highly efficient performance, and 2017’s list of the most efficient boilers delivers a bevy of products from a wide range of manufacturers.

HR 1090 — The Technologies for Energy Security Act of 2017 — introduced by Rep. Tom Reed, R-N.Y., would correct a congressional oversight in late-2015 that extended tax credits for solar and wind but left behind “orphaned” technologies, like geothermal heat pumps, fuel cells, microturbines, small wind, and combined heat and power (CHP) when their credits expired Jan. 1 of this year. The Reed bill currently boasts 108 cosponsors, 59 of which are Republicans.

Four decades of involvement with distributors and their customer bases reveals that most contractors aren’t taking full advantage of everything their favorite distributors can offer. If you do, it will mean more cash to your bottom line.