Every guide on the site, newest first. Each one comes from real jobs — read what you need, use what works. This was created from a field persons perspective and is not comprehensive but meant to be informative.
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HVAC Career Pros and Cons: An Honest Look From the Field
If you’re weighing the HVAC career pros and cons, here is how it looked from inside the trade. Installing duct, furnaces, air conditioning systems, and controls is a rewarding skill. What you learn, you will never forget. Sharing what you learn and bringing others up is a rewarding part of the work too. The work…
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Getting Paid for Field Extras With Subcontractor Change Orders
Subcontractor change orders are how field extras turn into money, and the ones that don’t get paid usually come up short on paper, not on the work. I know because I read them. I worked the tinner trade for about four years. I’ve been in construction more than twenty years, and now I manage projects…
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HVAC Apprentice Tools: What to Buy Your First Year
As an Amazon Associate, I earn a commission on qualifying purchases. Short answer: on your first day you need a duct board knife and a good attitude. Not even a tool belt. What to buy your first year is not day one. As you work along, the impact driver, a few offset snips, an 11-1.…
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Impact Driver for Ductwork: What to Buy and Why
As an Amazon Associate, I may earn a commission for qualifying purchases. The short answer: get an impact driver for ductwork. The brand matters less than you would think. Buy into the battery platform you already own (or want to own). Why an Impact Driver for Ductwork Ductwork takes hundreds of screws and a lot…
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HVAC Change Order Template a GC Can Approve Fast
An HVAC change order template doesn’t need to be fancy. It needs to answer what I check, in the order I check it. When it does, your change moves. When it doesn’t, it sits on my desk until I push back. I worked the tinner trade for about four years, and I’ve been in construction…
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Subcontractor Change Order Log a GC Can Track
A subcontractor change order log is the one list that tells you, and me, where every extra stands. I don’t keep a change log for my subs. I use theirs. So when yours is clear, I can tell you the status of a change fast. When it isn’t, we both lose time. I worked the…
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Time and Material Tickets a GC Can Check and Sign
A time and material ticket is the piece of paper that turns “just do it and we’ll figure it out” into money. I’ve rejected so many of them that I lost count. Most of those subs did the work. They just couldn’t show it. I worked the tinner trade for about four years, and I’ve…