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Commercial HVAC Estimating

By Bryan Orr

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Matthew and Nick Wavra join the podcast to discuss everything that goes into job estimation in commercial HVAC. Nick has a lot of fieldwork and project management experience, and Matthew has marketing, software, and sales experience, which helps bring in and retain clients.

Commercial estimation begins when a mechanical contractor asks for a bid on a job. The estimators go through the spec books, bidding documents, and any addendums to come up with takeoffs and a price. The estimator seeks approval from manufacturers to build the materials, and they use software to come up with an estimate. The pricing updates weekly to stay current and accurate in an economy that’s currently facing inflation.

Estimators develop takeoffs for materials and labor; each material has some sort of labor attached to it, though the labor estimates may need to be adjusted as conditions change.

Commercial contractors may make mistakes when they miss equipment or elevation considerations (when estimating labor). On-screen takeoff options significantly reduce the risk of creating mistakes, so it may be unwise for contractors to do takeoffs by hand instead of using software to help.

Matthew, Nick, and Bryan also discuss:

Sheet metal price increases
Software vs. man-made takeoffs
DX piping vs. chilled water boilers
Estimation in HVAC vs. refrigeration
CRM (customer relationship management)
Developing a commercial HVAC estimation training course
Finding a niche in the HVAC estimation business

Look for Nick and Matthew at the AHR Expo 2022 in Las Vegas! They will be at booth N9142 in North Hall.

Learn more about Matthew and Nick’s business by visiting hvacestimation.com/ or by calling Nick directly at (238)-900-6330.

If you have an iPhone, subscribe to the podcast HERE, and if you have an Android phone, subscribe HERE.

Check out our handy calculators HERE.

Check out information on the 2022 HVACR Training Symposium at https://www.hvacrschool.com/symposium/.

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Comments

Justin Peacock @ifeanyi_nwaneri

Thanks for putting this episode together. I have and will continue to learn a lot from these talks.

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2/7/22 at 05:41 PM

Thanks for putting this episode together. I have and will continue to learn a lot from these talks.

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Questionable CO Alarms w/ Bill Spohn

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Author:

Bryan Orr

Company: Kalos Services

Position: Co-Founder and President

Check out our most recent video

How to Evacuate an AC system, Full Vacuum Procedure

Our latest Podcast

HVAC School – For Techs, By Techs

Real training for HVAC ( Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration) Technicians. Including recorded tech training, interviews, diagnostics and general conversations about the trade.

In this episode of the HVAC School Podcast, Bryan welcomes back Bill Spohn to talk about carbon monoxide and a troubling trend in the alarms being sold online. They start with the basics: the difference between a standard UL 2034 alarm and a true low-level CO monitor. UL 2034 alarms were designed to avoid nuisance calls, so they can stay silent through long exposures at relatively low concentrations. Low-level monitors are far more sensitive and can warn you that something is brewing before it becomes a life-threatening emergency.

Bill explains why that gap matters, walking through how carbon monoxide displaces oxygen on hemoglobin, why it lingers in the body, and why children, older adults, and people with heart or lung conditions are especially vulnerable. Bryan adds the troubleshooting angle: a UL 2034 alarm is the safety net that keeps people from dying, but low-level monitoring helps you find and fix a problem early, much like catching a refrigerant leak before the system is flat.

The conversation then turns to the main story. Bill bought a pair of inexpensive alarms advertised as both low-level and UL 2034 compliant, which is a contradiction, since the two cannot be the same device. They arrived with no instructions, no model number, and no visible certification control number, and they closely resembled a product tied to a Consumer Product Safety Commission warning covering roughly 375,000 units and 91 reported failures to alarm. Bill traces the marketing back to what appears to be a single factory selling under many brand names, backed by a virtual office address, a fake firefighter endorsement, and a flood of promotional emails.

Bryan and Bill close with lessons for technicians, consumers, and manufacturers alike. Be skeptical when price and performance seem too good to be true, verify who is behind a brand, and remember that claiming to meet a standard is not the same as being independently certified. They also urge established manufacturers to be humble, test claims thoroughly, and make sure published specifications reflect how their sensors actually perform.

Topics Covered

Low-level CO monitors versus UL 2034 alarms, and why they are not interchangeable
How the 1990s Chicago nuisance-alarm events led to the UL 2034 standard
Why standards built around healthy adult males leave gaps for vulnerable people
How carbon monoxide binds to hemoglobin and why it accumulates in the body
Why “CO leak” is the wrong phrase: carbon monoxide is created, not transported
Online alarms claiming to be both low-level and UL 2034 compliant
The Consumer Product Safety Commission alert and the 91 reported failures to alarm
Red flags: no instructions, no model number, no certification mark, a virtual-office address, and a fake endorser
What the alarm test button actually checks (the circuit and horn, not CO response)
The challenge of validating alarms without accessible CO test kits
How to vet unfamiliar brands, including using AI to research price, company history, and website age
Sensor signal smoothing and why muted low-end readings can mislead users
A call for manufacturers to test in the field and for honest specification claims
Why price alone should never drive the purchase of life-safety devices

This episode contains embedded sponsor messages from Refrigeration Technologies, Carrier, White-Rodgers by Copeland, Santa Fe Dehumidifiers, and TruTech Tools.

Resources

Purchase your tickets or learn more about the 8th Annual HVACR Training Symposium at https://hvacrschool.com/symposium.

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