No problem!

Vol. 7: Issue #19 Letter: #143 (Previous newsletters available in archives on web site)

No problem!

Doing the last “hot spell”, some of us were discussing the different horror stories and comments we’d heard. The one that stuck in my mind was the woman who said “whenever someone responds to a question I’ve asked, with the answer “No problem”…my first thought is “Yeah, no problem for you but probably a big problem for me”.

Merry Sherman      She said “it’s strange to me, that I can buy a dress from China…get strawberries from the local market in Jan, or find out more than I want to know about nearly any subject by Googling it on line, but to find a HVAC company that has knowledgeable employees including service technicians, that know more about Indoor Comfort than just “fixing things”…and doesn't charge an arm and a leg in the process”, well I’d think the millennium had arrived.

     Seems she had been disappointed over the years in the response she had received from the several companies she had called when her HVAC system required service. And her request, while seemingly simple, is really quite complex and involves 2 equally important (but quite different) things. One concerns knowledge and experience and the other are costs, and like the old song says “you can’t have one without the other”.

     Let’s address the easy one first: Costs. When you call a professional company for even a relatively simple repair, the cost is not usually determined by how complicated the job might be, but must include not only a qualified technician’s time but all overhead expenses. So there is a certain minimum charge that must be made on every call, no matter how simple (or complex) the job might be.

At Climatemakers, we call this a “diagnostic charge”. Currently, it’s $79. Sometimes people get upset paying $79 for a job that may seem to them only took 10 - 15 minutes to complete. What they conveniently overlook, is what it costs our company to bring the service technician to your door. And that somebody must pay for the dispatcher, truck, fuel, tools, insurance coverage, office equipment, etc., etc, etc. Now if you would bring your HVAC to our shop…that would be a different story!

     Some HVAC companies (like ours) charge a flat rate for their repair work, whether it takes one, two or more hours to do the job. People who don't like surprises find this far more satisfying than paying by the hour.

     And finally…if you do find a HVAC company whose prices are very cheap...look out! We’ve said it before, but it bears repeating “you don’t always get what you pay for, but almost never, ever get more than you pay for”…and that's no baloney.

Next time we’ll address “Knowledge and Experience.

COUNTDOWN ALERT: 19 days remaining:

     Already you have missed the cut-off dates for the humongous 40% seasonal discount and the gigantic 30% discount for the service we offer, that gets your heating system prepared to keep you warm all winter, safely and as economically as possible.

     You must act today, if you are going to take advantage of even our 20% discount (which ain't bad). You can see this sliding scale of discounts and/or make your on line reservations by clicking here . You can also see specific definitions of each of the 32 points we check by clicking here .

     If the uncertainity and fluctations, about rising oil prices have you shivering, even though fall is only a few weeks old, then whether you heat your home with oil, natural gas, or electricity, our 32 point “tune-up-check up” to your heating system is the best way to get ready for cold weather.

     The cost of the "check-up/tune-up" is a small price to pay for superior equipment performance that result in lower energy bills and extended life performance. Remember, THE MAJOR CAUSE OF EQUIPMENT FAILURE IS INADEQUATE MAINTENANCE.

     And finally, please remember, if you have any questions about the HVAC system in your house; how we can be of better service to you, or about our web site, please email them to me. I'd like to hear from you...and if you’d like to hear from your government on this subject of energy, here’s a new website I just found www.energyhog.org


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Climatically

Merry Sherman
2nd Generation President
Phone #: 757-468-5800
Fax #: 757-468-5805
email: comfort@climatemakers.com
Web site: http://www.climatemakers.com
"Your family's indoor comfort is our family's business"

     P.S. This newsletter is not an orphan. In our newsletter archives, there are over 125 letters with similar tips and helpful hints to make your life in your house, more comfortable. You can see the list by clicking here.

     P.P.S. To keep our website as current as possible, we have just added 3 new pages to the ever growing total (now in excess of 250+ pages). We think you will find the new page depicting “Climatemakers Cartoon Family” especially interesting. You can see it by clicking here.

     This constantly updating of our website is not only to add content but to make it easier for you to navigate…so that you can find answers to your questions about HVAC, quicker than ever before. If you haven’t visited the website recently, and especially if you have any qualms about the performance or the cost of cooling this summer, you will find many items of interest.

     For example, on one of our newest web pages entitled 101 ways to save energy, you can see a detailed list of the many ways you can use to reduce energy costs (just click here). Or you might want to see one of our newer pages, "The Amazing Scroll Compressor" where you can see an animated explanation of what many people claim to be the greatest technological improvement in heating and air conditioning history by clicking here.

     P.P.P.S. You can also see for yourself, the professional response your call for services generates (and the response you can expect), by clicking here to see our recently updated overview of operations.

      To see all the page titles of our 250+ page web site at a glance, click here.

     Or you can select from some of the most popular accessories like a programmable thermostat that automatically regulates the heating/cooling in your house to suit your lifestyle (click here) or an electronic air cleaner that removes dirt, dust and pollen to improve your health (click here) or an automatic humidifier to add moisture to the air in the winter (click here) or how to add a zoning system that will saves you money as it increases or decreases the heating/cooling in those rooms where and when it is not needed (click here).