Band-Aids, Hacks, and Ethics - Short #244

HVAC School - For Techs, By Techs

Bryan Orr

Training, Careers, Airconditioning, Self-improvement, Hvac, Business, Education, Refrigeration, Heating, Ac, Apprenticeship

4.8 • 985 Ratings

🗓️ 10 June 2025

⏱️ 11 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In this short podcast episode, Bryan talks about band-aids, hacks, and ethics. He explores ethical "band-aid" solutions and how to charge for them. He also covers the difference between patching up equipment ethically and unethical repairs.

Temporary fixes and ugly permanent fixes fall into the ethical gray area for a lot of people, especially if technicians or HVAC business managers don't know where to draw the line between replacing a part completely and patching up issues. Patching condenser coils is an example of repair work that can be ethical. Some protocols say that the copper needs to be cut out and couplings need to be installed, but you can often patch tubing in areas where there isn't too much vibration. As always, you want to make sure that the system can hold pressure whenever you patch up a leak.

The ethics question comes into play when the longevity of the equipment or repair is questionable. Bryan draws the line when the system has structural integrity issues, including damaged fins and severe corrosion. Beyond a certain point, patching a system up either won't be effective or will be an added expense without a payoff. Some companies also strongly favor sales over repairs, so some of those decisions may also come down to company policy.

The key to ethical and successful "hack" work is situational awareness; you need to know which repairs you're capable of, your company's policies, and the client's needs. You ultimately need to make sure your actions are legal and safe for you and the client.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Greetings and salutations. This is the HVAC school podcast. I'm Brian, and this is the podcast where I do short episodes sometimes and talk about band-aids and hacks and where I draw the line. But before I do that, I want to thank our great sponsors.
0:20.0	Navak and navacglobal.com and the breakfree power tube bender model NTB7L.
0:28.8	Seriously, this thing is really great.
0:30.4	Ben's even large-sized tubing up to 7-8s OD.
0:34.2	Find out more at TrueTechTools.com.
0:36.6	Use the offer code to get schooled for a great discount at checkout.
0:40.5	Carrier and Carrier.com. Carrier has been a long-term sponsor for the podcast.
0:45.7	They've made it possible very early on for us to do what we do, and they are the products that we sell day in and day out.
0:51.6	Everything from single stage equipment all the way up to
0:54.5	the green speed extreme, one of the most efficient products on the market today. Find out more
1:00.7	about what Carrier has to offer and about becoming a carrier dealer by going to Carrier.com.
1:07.0	Refrigeration Technologies at Refragtec.com and specifically the new Viper wet rag heat shield.
1:14.1	The revolutionary flame resistant welding pad designed to be used either wet or dry.
1:20.8	Find a viper wet rag heat shield at a distributor near you or go to TrueTechTools.com
1:25.8	and use offer code, get schooled for a great discount at checkout.
1:30.7	I got this question, actually from somebody on my team, about Band-Aids, hacks, and ethics.
1:38.3	So first off, within the HVAC school and broader technical community, I think it's important to first recognize that we're
1:46.3	the nerds of the group. We get really worked up about things that a lot of other people don't
1:50.4	care about at all. And I like to think that's a good thing. It drives things forward. We've done a lot on
1:55.5	deep vacuum and the airflow side of the system and building science and all that stuff.
2:01.8	But there's a whole world that operates by just patching things up, just making it work for one more year.
2:09.8	I actually enjoy that type of work.
	...

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