After forty years in the HVAC business, my dad Ed retired.
He moved into the suite over my garage, because he wanted to stay close to his family. I encouraged him to move down south and enjoy his retirement, but he wanted to stay here. Partly it was about the kids, and partly he wanted to keep an eye on me. I took over the company for him, and although he’s retired, he’s not 100% retired. I don’t mind a bit, actually, because he has a wealth of information about the job that can’t be taught. Managing an HVAC company isn’t just about doing repairs, you also have to manage people, deal with customers, and pay all the bills. I value his wisdom. When it comes to the installation and repair of heating and cooling systems, I know what I am doing. I was certified for HVAC work back in 2005, and ever since then I have been active in the industry. The part of the job I am not as familiar with is building relationships with HVAC company sales reps and wholesalers. I need to learn how to generate proper invoices, and how to make sure all the HVAC customers pay in full without sending them to collections. I also have to keep the morale for the HVAC work crews strong, so that everyone remains focused on their work. With Ed as my advisor I am starting to make the transition from being an HVAC tech to an HVAC company owner. In this position, I rarely need to do any actual labor at all!