Last year, I got laid off and decided to offer my services for money.
I am an air conditioning technician and have worked in the cooling industry for years.
When I got laid off, I set up a social media account and advertised my services to home and commercial property owners. The indoor comfort business had not only taught me more about air conditioning but also survival skills. I started with the people around me, gradually got referrals, and could sustain myself through that rough period. My first job was in air conditioning repair at my neighbor’s place. He had woken to find a puddle of water near his HVAC installation. At first, he thought the cat spilled water, but when the air quality reduced that week, he sought my help. He heard about me from a friend that I had advised him on how often to schedule HVAC maintenance. Sometimes there is a challenge working alone in this line of work because when a complex system or issue arises, I can get another opinion or idea from a fellow air conditioning provider. When I worked for the air conditioning company, I paired with an experienced a/c serviceman, and we worked perfectly together on residential and commercial HVAC systems. Several weeks ago, a customer called me and requested I have a look at his multi-split air conditioning unit. After checking the quality air conditioner and replacing the filter, I still could not figure out the issue. I called an old colleague in the next city who would pass by to help me. We discovered the problem was a rusted component that we replaced. We also fixed the digital thermostat, which had been giving false readings.