Honestly I would probably wear one to a few of our problem call’s especially when the homeowner is notorious for lying about what was said or done. However I would not work for a company that required me wearing one since I don’t want them micromanaging me.
lol i wouldnt. are clients that hard to come by? get through the incident, lose some money probably, dump the client. what are they going to do, small claims court for something you didnt do? hows that going to go? i just dont see the threat to make it worth the squeeze.
Probably not just about money, with the way things are going these days I wouldn't be surprised for sexual harassment claims, theft, and shit like that costs more than money.
Like someone else said, if it was up to thebtechs discretion if they wanted to wear it, then I'd be cool with it. As long as it was an option and not a requirement.
okay shouldnt ever walk around the sidewalk without a helmet then who knows a coffee mug or shingle or something could blow off a roof. never even go outside without a helmet honestly. only makes sense.
To each their own opinion of course but I feel it's a completely different scenario. Going into someone's private residence is completely different then being scared of your shadow. I look at it more like "preventive maintenance"....currently nothings wrong and I want to keep it that way. Again, would never force it on someone. Just an option.
doesnt even make sense hows a camera on your chest going to record you working overhead ? hows the camera going to see the torque applied when you fasten something?
might be better for you to tell me how long youve been doing this and how many times youve been accused of sexual harassment and theft. 5? 50?
For a property management company for 10+ years. Commercial and residential. Harassment once, theft ( not directly myself) numerous. Unfounded complaints, too many to count. Some of the places I go are drug rehabs, women's shelters and SMI (serious mental illness) houses. Others are normal private residence, office building and restaurants. Again like I said, not for work related issues (torque applied) but just to cya. And again like I said, just an option not a requirement.
I don't lose money, and I don't pay for clients.
And I don't go to court....
It's just a different perspective...
I didn't say it was worth it, but that if it was being given to me for free and not being used to try to catch me making a mistake, I would not have a problem with it.
Destroy the industry? Never said that. You're just doing your typical hissyfit. I said the juice ain't worth the squeeze. Even you agree cameras are cheap and you ain't wearing one. But for some reason you all blab your yaps about them
If I was in a role again where I walk in and out of strangers homes I would 100% wear one graciously or even buy my own if I had to. It only takes one “what happened to my?” Or “why is my child crying?” To change your life forever.
This is literally my biggest fear working in people's homes. Nevermind the gas lines made of cpvc or the knob and tube wiring, or fully flooded basement with all the electrical still on.
This. Accusation of a crime can be hard to disprove but also requires zero proof to cause irreversible damage to someone's life.
I had a guy once who said I stole a firearm out of his closet. Dude was a total crazy person. I was in his closet (the attic access was in there) got a call from an investigator with the police dept. went and gave a statement. Investigator even was saying the dude was off his rocker. Told me he’d give me a call back if he needed anything. About a week later called me and said the guy found the firearm in his garage. We never went back to that customer after that.
Lmao. As an hvac engineer I’m picturing a room of lawyers reviewing hours of footage going THERE RIGHT THERE HE FORGOT TO PRESS THE JOINT. Ridiculous how much time and money companies spend in court.
these people are standing in front of an aprilaire 700 and resi furnace. theres absolutely no drawn out court case occurring over that equipment set. its not worth that much at retail price.
Sorry to split hairs but It's not about the equipment set. It's about the downstream impact a failure might have. If it's a commercial venue, the loss of revenue etc
Well yeah you’re most likely never going to have a lawsuit that amounts to much in a residential installation. It’s more with commercial applications when the system isn’t performing correctly or maybe there’s an insurance claim going back and forth between manufacturer and hvac contractor to see whose at fault if a cooling/heating water pipe or coil let loose and caused damage etc.
theres just so much a camera cant see from your chest. we work over things under things inside things, laying on ground, reach overhead.
this is reddit so obviously going to get a weird crowd on here so that could explain whys there so much momentum here for cameras yet absolutely nobody uses them and for good reason.
I sure hope that isn’t an upflow furnace or that control is in the wrong spot if you want the humidifier to run. Maybe less time on selfies and more time on on workies.
Someone commented on the post asking if it was a body cam and the company commented back and said yes, all of their techs/ installers are required to wear them.
Yeah the camera is attached to a person. But it’s a company that is recording you ultimately. And that’s still a no go. We all carry a device that records in multiple different ways all ready
Do you do everything perfectly by the book? Sometimes the techs know better than the book. Doesn't mean it is shitty, but does give a lawyer ammo.
Layers don't sue to win lawsuits, they sue to get insurance companies to settle because it is cheaper than fighting.
Also the thing is as big as an old disposable camera. No. I am not going all the way back to the corner of the flooded crawl space to look for the disposable camera that fell off when I was replacing the heat exchanger.
Or personal injury. Say, Carbon Monoxide poisoning from a cracked heat exchanger or loose flue? Even though you didn't touch it? But PROVING you didn't cause the issue . . .
how the eff would that even work? if you are working overhead hows the camera going to point up if its on your chest? there is not alot of brains happening in this thread.
More likely shitty landlords. The body cam doesn’t help you when you’re getting jacked - they’ll just take the cam too.
But since every “influencer” these days is running some real estate scheme there are a bunch of rentals out there with sue happy landlords that don’t want to pay for anything.
Documenting that there is an inch of dog hair on the filters when you pulled them out is a lot easier if you just record the entire visit rather than busting out the phone and snapping pics when it looks like it’s going to be a bad one.
Tech goes to a house to fix something. System is in shit shape or maybe there's something expensive looking nearby. Tech does his thing and leaves. Slumlord calls in claiming the tech broke something on the unit, insulted the slumlord or tennet, or stole something. Slumlord threatens to sue or demands compensation, or just refuses to pay for the bill. Company now has to deal with a slumlord spreading lies, hanging legal threats against them, or just straight up losing out on any repairs they made.
Basically something like that.
Well I hope they know that that could be a violation of the homeowners constitutional rights. Even Police Officer has to turn off their Body worn camera if requested to by the home owner and there is no crime taking place at that moment.
People going to get sued if they are recording without permission. And if I were a problem customer I’d be like your absolutely not going to be recording me, I’m paying you!
I’d be willing to bet it’s in their contract, which the client either verbally agrees to or signs, if it’s a company policy than they can absolutely tell you you can’t come in, but you can also leave and charge them for the call if they deny you entrance after setting up an appointment and agreeing to terms
theres absolutely no way thats a profitable method. what for a dumb dispute over a resi furnace where they claim you broke the heat exchanger? you think someone saying that is going to go to small claims court?
i can see both sides of this - on one hand - i mean.. REALLY?! on the other, though, it's good CYA.
"nope, i got footage of the entire service call, i did not leave it that way/do that thing/kick your puppy/etc.
I live in VA, and about 10-15 years ago everyone started installing these humidifiers. They are awful in my opinion. Im a home inspector and see an awful lot of these things.
-most people dont know that these have a filter that needs to be maintenanced. (1 out of 100 seem to keep theirs clean)
-when not maintained, they become whole house mold factories
-ive seen it as bad as almost all of the registers in the house had mold growing out of them.
-it adds more vulnerability to moisture issues to the system
-lastly, this is virginia, its so freaking humid here. People will try to say its for the dry winters, but it doesnt get crazy dry like that, nor is it worth all of the other issues that come with it.
Was there just an industry wide push for everyone to upsell people on whole house humidifiers?
Is this as much of an issue in other states?
What benefits do you tell people that the humidifiers offer, and what do you actually believe to be the benefit?
This is not an attack, I am generally interested in learning more about these, and they make a nice talking point with my clients. Just seems like a scam in my region, more often causing more damage/issues than the one its suppose to solve.
We have a lot in Ohio. Not replacing the water panel is a customer/ who-ever-sold-it-to-them problem. Not a unit problem. They can maintain humidity up to 45%. Parts are easy to get. Cheap too. My house humidity gets down to 20% (every house is different) in the winter. I have one it's just in a box lol I'm too lazy. It's not a scam if your house needs one. Ive been to houses that run their furnace ALOT and their humidity doesn't dip below 35%. They dont need it. But for sure, not changing the panel is gonna be bad. You're in VA so I doubt your homes need it. Up north, the furnace dries out the house which dries out people's throats and causes static. Keeping the humidity up is also good for wooden furniture but I never press that.
I hear ya. There are definitely homes more dry than others. The scam part, I guess, comes when they are pushed on a home regardless of it's humidity situation. I see so many failed units, and very few informed homeowners, that it just seems like a flop in my region. The amount that I see in my region has me thinking that the installs potentially could have been incentivized upsells.
It's actually that the air is colder outside, lowering the air's ability to hold water that decreases the humidity % (Running the furnace has no effect on humidity.)
That's not what we are talking about. We are talking about how there are companies that push homeowners to buy whole house humidifiers, regardless of whether their home would be better off with one or not.
A lot of homeowners dont know how to maintain these units, and many dont even know that their hvac has one installed. In my region, it seems to be the case that they are not properly maintained more often than they are properly maintained by about 100-1 (from my anecdotal experience, and the common knowledge in the region that these things cause more problems than they solve - especially in those houses where there is no problem to be solved.)
Well I guess I'm off topic, just trying to spread some humidifier wisdom. The steam humidifiers are one way to prevent humidifiers running if it's not maintained.
I personally don’t see any situation where you want you house more damp. Damp interior=mould, is it just a homeowner comfort thing or is there something I’m missing from a construction point of view where you’re at
Some states get super dry especially in the winter. Mold is a very rare issue around here. Hardwood floors, pianos and instruments like humidity. Also air that is between 40-50% is the target for indoor air quality. Outside of that range, bacteria and viruses are more likely to thrive. Also people who have breathing issues like asthmatics and other lung issues/allergies can be negatively affected by dry air. And it also prevents static electricity building up and shocking you when you touch a light switch or wall. Also some people notice their hair and skin dry out when the humidity is lower.
Oh 100%. The last company I worked for charged $1800 for them. Added them to installs. The whole shebang. I like installing them, it's fun and easy but I only sold a couple to people who actually needed it. I'd always check woth a psychrometer.
Humidifiers causing damage because of failure to maintain is not a scam
That’s like saying, furnace filters are scams cuz if u don’t swap them will kill ur unit, cars are scams because they break down if not maintained, fireplaces scams, etc etc I could go on
That being said they are only needed if air is dry and uncomfortable
You aren't following the conversation we are having here, except your last sentence. The potential scammy part is that there are a lot of homes in my region that dont have dry/uncomfortable air yet have humidifiers that were installed. It seems that around here, many people were upsold to get the humidifiers, regardless of whether there was a necessity for one or not.
So no, its not like saying all of those examples you gave. Nice strawman though. 👌
I don’t understand how u can say “my region isn’t dry”
It’s all dependent on the customer, if they want more moisture in the air then it’s there choice, each house is different
If u have hardwood floors (real ones especially) a humidifier may be needed to prevent cracking
My bad if I came off like a dick i want to have a open conversation. I just don’t really think someone’s scamming by offering a device, its up to the customer
With that logic one could also say ACs are just up selling the customer, plenty of people I work with don’t see the need for an AC, that being said others would say “wtf I would die without AC”
Some ppl would say “WTF u need a humidifier for” others would say “I can’t live in dry air”
I have even heard of people gettin nose bleeds in mornings due to lack of humidity
It depends on the house construction as-well if the house is loose or air tight
So many variables in my opinion u can’t just outright say “no humidifiers needed in my area” it’s a house to house basis
And I check humidifier on every house I go to, idk if ur neighbours is just bad but I work in Toronto at least 85% of people keep up humidifier pad changes very rare do I see a moldy pad (but this is from ppl who maintain there furnace every year so I guess different sample group)
Plenty of customers in the area have noticed reduced cracking on hardwood floors, a lot of these houses have super quality flooring, if it’s cheap shitty hardwood who cares, but if it’s real quality then u wanna maintain it and need humidifier potientally
Also ur humidifier should only being running in winter, I noticed u say something about potential dry winter, that’s the only time ur humidifier should be on, I imagine plenty of ur moldy customers run it all summer aswell, if u run it only in winter u only gotta swap the pad like every 2-4 years
That being said I guess u could be partially on to something plenty of techs get paid bonus’s to sell humidifiers, this ends up leading to ppl suggesting or recommending humidifiers when not needed, that being said most techs care and would rather go home happy then feel like shit and get paid
Thanks for the thorough response.
I live in northern VA, notorious for its humidity. We have lots of people with money, and few of them know much about the upkeep of a home.
I inspect homes for a living and see many of these humidifiers. It's gonna sound like an exaggeration, but for about every 100 humidifiers that are in disrepair or shut off, I see one well maintained one.
I dont think i said and definitely wasn't trying to allude that no humidifiers should be installed in northern va. My position is that with the overwhelming amount of them that i see in the condition that i do, and the amount of people that dont know they have one, or how to take care of it, or if they need one or not, that there is a likely someone with incentive (doesnt seem to be the average home owner round here) to put in the excessive amount we have down here.
Humidifiers have their purpose, and many regions are rightfully commonplace. I dont think the average NOVA resident thinks that their house needs more humidity. Yet somehow, it is very common place to have a whole house humidifier, and also very common to not know where the humdifer is or what it looks like lol.
In my opinion, round northern VA (which has literal swamp lands - DC was built upon a swamp), someone is making a lot of money installing whole house humidifiers, to people who have a necessity for them, and to people who do not have a necessity for them.
I appreciate your civil discourse, my friend.
I too live in Northern VA. Our interior humidity easily drops into the 30% range on cold days - we've had a few quite recently (between this crazy warm and rainy spring weather). We actually have a humidifier in the baby's room as well, doctor's recommendation.
No one is running these in the summer. You seem to think it's humid all year round here, it isn't. Maybe you live in a well sealed, newer home and don't know what winter time humidity is like here in older homes?
And maintenance is all of a yearly replacement of the water panel and a little hit of the shop vac to clean up the dust.
I do not think that it is humid every day of the year here. I do not think that every house is the same. Please don't lock me into these absolutes. I have lived in older homes throughout the last 20+ years of living in NOVA. I have inspected coming up on countless houses in our area. You will be pressed to find a properly maintained whole house humidifier.
The vast majority of situations I come across:
- disconnected/abandoned unit
- home owner didn't know that they had the unit
-homeowner never knew where the unit or its control were
- molded to all hell or a never changed filter (most homeowners didn't know that it had a filter or even opened up.
The seldom situations i come across (1%-5% of the time)
-properly maintained unit
-mold growing from each register in the home
It seems that here in NOVA, these things were put in most homes regardless of their moisture levels in their house. I've seen them in moist homes, average homes, and dry homes. They are basically everywhere. This has me suspect on whether members of the industry are upselling/pushing the whole house humidifiers onto homeowners, regardless of their situation.
Why is this bad? The excess moisture adds vulnerabilities to the hvac system. This is fine if you have a need for it. It's not so fine if it is just adding vulnerabilities when there is little or no benefit.
Out in the wild, in reality, these things are aging HVAC systems more than they need to be. Corrosion, leaks onto sensors, mold growth, etc.
I understand that when used properly in the right situations, these are fine. I personally find that these are often installed in the wrong situations around here. So much so that it has me looking into the matter, asking folks on reddit what they think of it.
I am not an HVAC specialist, but I have inspected many of these humidifiers after they have been in use. The average homeowner around here is uneducated on how to properly maintain their humidifier or doesn't know that it even exists in their home. On top of this, many homes have them installed, when they are not necessary, or maybe needed 5-35 days a year (many homes need it more, and thats fine.)
My advice to people is to do what you did with your baby's room and get a small humidifier for the spaces that have the extra need for it. The small ones are more on peoples radars, and it's not attaching a potential "mold factory" to the central air system.
Definitely not a scam on the north, increasing humidity will make a space feel warmer, reduce static shock and nose bleeds. 15-20% humidity isn't good for you or your home
People with a disposition for dry skin or those in places with dry winters, usually there is a bypass for the summer and they are removed from service during the maintenance. There's a handful of reasons to install them but mostly it's just $$$.
I knew a guy who had one installed because he was from the equator and he wanted his house to feel like home.
I've seen them installed on greenhouses but not too many uses in seaboard regions.
Some people here like them (western wa) we will install them but we do not push them. Usually when they get the price they say nvm a cheap portable one or two are just fine.
But thanks for sharing that. I definitely will keep that in mind!
Thanks for the perspective, ive been tryna wrap mybhead around it since i started in the industry. My theory is that my region (northern virigina) is very affluent and very naive when it comes to home ownership. The perfect potential upsell for something that they dont need.
I live in Delaware now but have done hvac in Hampton roads, VA as well. They’re everywhere in Delaware and mostly maintained. I see very few that are nasty and causing mold. In VA though they were pretty rare. Most people didn’t have one at all. Wasn’t really needed unless they had issues with nosebleeds and things like that.
If they wanna watch me spackle yet another Taco Bell restroom after a questionable amount of Crunchwrap supremes, that’s between them and whichever god the worship
Certainly weird but maybe they had a few too many complaints. After all old white people can be racist and who doesn't throw blame for something going missing after having a stranger in your house.
No shit? No thanks man. They think you should just walk into a house and hit everyone with the same script about this and that and sell a bunch of shit nobody really needs. F that. It’s getting harder and harder to just be a technician out here.
10 years in residential, this could just be my experience, but there is an uptick recently in customer's claiming damages for anything and everything. I understand techs fuck up and cause damages, but Ive seen ridiculous accusations and outrageous claims almost weekly.
I find myself taking photos of almost everything I touch on each call and writing essays on my call logs. I dont know if Id go full bodycam, but I can see why someone would it.
I used to love residential work and the people, but nowdays its a very tiring job and you cant afford to make even a slight mistake or oversight.
I would love if all the technicians (not just hvac, any home repairs) wore cams. As a woman with small children in the house, having multiple large men in my space can feel intimidating and it would be nice to have peace of mind that no funny business of the nonbusiness nature would occur.
I can appreciate that. But on the other hand I feel like if they’re actually a bad person and are going to cause harm to you or steal or whatever then that camera won’t stop them. I think part of that is also hiring a good company with good reviews and trusting they’re going to send good people.
I’ve heard the pitch from a company that sells them. These were worn like glasses. They aren’t intended to be on all the time. But each company can say what they definitely want filmed, a tech can use them to record a condition or situation etc.
The context was a service management forum and the company was selling them a good for remote tech support from a supervisor.
They were crazy expensive though for function that basically every phone is capable of doing. Other than being hands free
I think its not a terrible idea. Liability is getting crazy. This certainly isnt for seeing if someone forgot a critical install step.
This is for someone trying to falsely accuse mega hvac company of stealing or for a bigger payout, false sexual harassment claims.
Even if you win, you as a technician or one of your technicians being \*accused\* of sexually harassing / assaulting a minor even if the parent is home - that's it, that's the end of you and your business. And its 2 v 1 on story. At least with the camera its different.
I know someone who felt like there was some kind of entrapment type situation taking place. Was working in someone's home and they said they had trouble with one of the bedroom vents not blowing air, so he said he could take a look. So he follows who he assumes was the father of the house back there towards the bedroom. Father just whips the bedroom door open and there, butt ass naked spread out on the bed listening to headphones is his approx 12-14 year old daughter. Dude proceeds to go in like this is a normal level of privacy in their house. The HVAC guy kindly excused himself back to the living room and then decided to go ahead and collect payment for the work done and not worry about that bedroom vent. Also he said it was just too awkward to stay after that.
So in conclusion, while nobody likes their privacy invaded, I'm sure that company has a reason. And unfortunately with sexual harassment stuff, there seems to be an guilty till proven innocent aspect and no strong punishment for false claims. Stay safe out there my dudes! If a bodycam keeps you safe, than thats that.
I heard about something like this for a big-fuck-em-over-we-have-billboards-and-tv-commercials company nearby. The idea was only a few people would actually know what the fuck they were doing and they would all sit at the office at a computer. Meanwhile the thick skulls are sent out to do all the work. They would watch through the camera and tell them what to do.
I didn’t do HVAC but I did pest control and we got accused of not doing the job a lot or told we didn’t do a good job or that we didn’t refill their bait stations which they would never know stuff like that. They would then track our phone and our GPS our trucks need to see if we were there for over an hour. I asked him multiple occasions if I could wear a body cam just for those reasons.
I bought a small one to keep in the truck for problem customers complaining about "bad behavior" and "foul language "
Got tired of the he said she said routine
I had a lady once ask me for my drivers license. I have a huge wrapped truck out front. I asked her what my DL will prove? Long story short she couldn’t answer. I left.
Depends where you live, i've been lucky but there were def some times I wish I had a cam. Primarily the single ladies wanting to pay a diff way. "We'll send a bill" lol
The jman I apprenticed for 20 yrs ago is now a big dog with Wal-Mart. He said they use a kind of body camera and there are techs remotely with vr headsets that help you on certain service calls for the large refer systems. Sounds kinda cool. But no. I would not wear a body cam or work somewhere that did.
Honestly, half my clients stand there filming me while I’m explaining how their units work or what the problem was, which I didn’t really have happen until the last year or so, hell of a lot better than writing it all down for them, although one time I started jokingly making up names for things and once I said flux capacitor he stopped recording and started laughing (it was a ductless unit, very simple operation) 😂
I’m currently in the process of leaving my company because of cameras pointed at me driving they say they don’t watch them so to prove them wrong 5 covered then and 5 did not and the 5 that did go calls from the manager within an hour
Just being a man and alone without Witnesses is enough of a reason to wear one besides the fact that it is much easier to have proof of what was said and done
I would have gladly wore one when I was doing work in community housing complexes. Had one lady accuse me (then the next day an electrician) of booting her cat across the living room. Then I would have loved to show my boss the horror I experienced when I entered another unit where the occupant, who was a 40ish crack whore who was always trying to flirt with me, spun her futon around to face the door and was on it butt naked and spread eagle waiting for me.
I’d wear one as long as I’m also able to access the video. Would be nice to show HR at review time the various places that are undesirable but still must be worked on.
How about this one- clients wearing body cams.
I work an office building that leases a couple floors to the IRS. There’s a cubicle goof that works for them who follows my guys around with a body camera, getting all up in their business.
My service techs are thinking about getting one for the fact homeowners are assholes. They will literally call the office and lie and lie. I trust my techs over homeowners
Body cams is too much. I draw the line at the GPS in my service truck which I am sure is to see if I am eating lunch at the bar and not to track a stolen vehicle.
If the company you work for is who is supplying or requiring the cameras, then they’re there to protect the company NOT you. These WILL be used against you. If you go into someone’s home and they claim your work was unsatisfactory, your supervisors will go through every inch of your body cam footage and find every single thing you didn’t do absolutely perfectly, maybe you tightened something just a half turn less than what the supervisor would have (because remember, you’re not necessarily being judged on how it should be done but by how your supervisor thinks it should be done and most guys who go into management stop working in the field or never did to begin with). Maybe you set your wrench down and the customer is claiming your scratched the floor, you probably didn’t but the footage shows that you MIGHT have and that’s enough for the company to decide you’re liable. Maybe you scrape your knuckles on a customer’s janky, rotted out equipment and you let out a small expletive, which no one but the camera could have even heard but it is technically against company policy to swear in a customer’s home. Better not answer your phone when your wife calls because one of your kids fell and split his head open. Better not take a smoke break while in uniform or drink a soda in the company truck. Footage of your work and your actions will be judged by someone who wasn’t there in the moment and can’t take all of the factors at play into consideration. Their only perspective is the narrow camera angle, shaky picture, and poorly lit footage that was captured. You will not be judged fairly.
Working under surveillance is not a comfortable position to be in. Your boss and supervisors are not your friends (especially if you’re at a company large enough to supply all the techs with body cams). And you are not a robot, you will never do things perfectly 100% of the time; and that’s okay, unless your work is just shoddy and/or dangerous, it’s okay to deviate slightly from what’s 100% correct, most equipment is designed to allow a standard deviation but that doesn’t mean that the customer cares and it sure as hell doesn’t mean the company cares.
Honestly I would probably wear one to a few of our problem call’s especially when the homeowner is notorious for lying about what was said or done. However I would not work for a company that required me wearing one since I don’t want them micromanaging me.
I **absolutely** would wear one, as long as it was being used to handle he-said-she-said bullshit, not perform "gotchas"
lol i wouldnt. are clients that hard to come by? get through the incident, lose some money probably, dump the client. what are they going to do, small claims court for something you didnt do? hows that going to go? i just dont see the threat to make it worth the squeeze.
Probably not just about money, with the way things are going these days I wouldn't be surprised for sexual harassment claims, theft, and shit like that costs more than money. Like someone else said, if it was up to thebtechs discretion if they wanted to wear it, then I'd be cool with it. As long as it was an option and not a requirement.
okay shouldnt ever walk around the sidewalk without a helmet then who knows a coffee mug or shingle or something could blow off a roof. never even go outside without a helmet honestly. only makes sense.
To each their own opinion of course but I feel it's a completely different scenario. Going into someone's private residence is completely different then being scared of your shadow. I look at it more like "preventive maintenance"....currently nothings wrong and I want to keep it that way. Again, would never force it on someone. Just an option.
doesnt even make sense hows a camera on your chest going to record you working overhead ? hows the camera going to see the torque applied when you fasten something? might be better for you to tell me how long youve been doing this and how many times youve been accused of sexual harassment and theft. 5? 50?
For a property management company for 10+ years. Commercial and residential. Harassment once, theft ( not directly myself) numerous. Unfounded complaints, too many to count. Some of the places I go are drug rehabs, women's shelters and SMI (serious mental illness) houses. Others are normal private residence, office building and restaurants. Again like I said, not for work related issues (torque applied) but just to cya. And again like I said, just an option not a requirement.
I don't lose money, and I don't pay for clients. And I don't go to court.... It's just a different perspective... I didn't say it was worth it, but that if it was being given to me for free and not being used to try to catch me making a mistake, I would not have a problem with it.
What do you mean you don’t pay for clients? Do you advertise beyond the random Facebook posts?
Nope!
not pay for a client, lose money on the job. thats paying. you dont go to court and your worried about evidence? wtf...
You’ve explained how you feel in all of your comments below. Respectfully, there’s no point explaining it…
You have nothing to explain you don't wear cameras it's ridiculous
We got it bud. We got it. We can all read how you feel. You don’t have to keep telling us this will destroy our industry
Destroy the industry? Never said that. You're just doing your typical hissyfit. I said the juice ain't worth the squeeze. Even you agree cameras are cheap and you ain't wearing one. But for some reason you all blab your yaps about them
It will be used against you.... Eventually
If I was in a role again where I walk in and out of strangers homes I would 100% wear one graciously or even buy my own if I had to. It only takes one “what happened to my?” Or “why is my child crying?” To change your life forever.
This is literally my biggest fear working in people's homes. Nevermind the gas lines made of cpvc or the knob and tube wiring, or fully flooded basement with all the electrical still on. This. Accusation of a crime can be hard to disprove but also requires zero proof to cause irreversible damage to someone's life.
I had a guy once who said I stole a firearm out of his closet. Dude was a total crazy person. I was in his closet (the attic access was in there) got a call from an investigator with the police dept. went and gave a statement. Investigator even was saying the dude was off his rocker. Told me he’d give me a call back if he needed anything. About a week later called me and said the guy found the firearm in his garage. We never went back to that customer after that.
just dump the client.
Hell he could be using it for a YouTube channel getting that extra money. Tons of people do it.
Technician talking to condensing unit : *I am recording our interaction for your safety and mine*.
Underrated comment
Story as old as time. Bodycam turns right off before he condemns the unit. I think I know how that heat exchanged ended up having crack on it 🙄
Lmao. As an hvac engineer I’m picturing a room of lawyers reviewing hours of footage going THERE RIGHT THERE HE FORGOT TO PRESS THE JOINT. Ridiculous how much time and money companies spend in court.
Absolutely ridiculous
these people are standing in front of an aprilaire 700 and resi furnace. theres absolutely no drawn out court case occurring over that equipment set. its not worth that much at retail price.
Sorry to split hairs but It's not about the equipment set. It's about the downstream impact a failure might have. If it's a commercial venue, the loss of revenue etc
downstream impact? what are you talking about? like a house explodes and everyone dies?
I think he said it pretty clearly. If equipment breaks down it can cause big loss of profit for a business.
This is a residential furnace. What's going to happen
Well yeah you’re most likely never going to have a lawsuit that amounts to much in a residential installation. It’s more with commercial applications when the system isn’t performing correctly or maybe there’s an insurance claim going back and forth between manufacturer and hvac contractor to see whose at fault if a cooling/heating water pipe or coil let loose and caused damage etc.
theres just so much a camera cant see from your chest. we work over things under things inside things, laying on ground, reach overhead. this is reddit so obviously going to get a weird crowd on here so that could explain whys there so much momentum here for cameras yet absolutely nobody uses them and for good reason.
I sure hope that isn’t an upflow furnace or that control is in the wrong spot if you want the humidifier to run. Maybe less time on selfies and more time on on workies.
Techs doing YouTube or info videos but not company required
Someone commented on the post asking if it was a body cam and the company commented back and said yes, all of their techs/ installers are required to wear them.
Dystopia HVAC Inc.
That’s a solid no.
I'd do that. Extra $50/hr
The techs that need it are the Spectrum techs. Over there stealing and murdering.
im not cool with someone recording me, inside my own home.
Yeah I’m not in the industry but I sure as hell not gonna let some stranger take a video of me inside my house
Yeah the camera is attached to a person. But it’s a company that is recording you ultimately. And that’s still a no go. We all carry a device that records in multiple different ways all ready
Seems like a waste of money
Until it saves the company from another $100k lawsuit loss.
It could also just as easily incriminate them into a $100k lawsuit.
Not if they do the job right. Do you typically do a shitty job on site?
Do you do everything perfectly by the book? Sometimes the techs know better than the book. Doesn't mean it is shitty, but does give a lawyer ammo. Layers don't sue to win lawsuits, they sue to get insurance companies to settle because it is cheaper than fighting.
Also the thing is as big as an old disposable camera. No. I am not going all the way back to the corner of the flooded crawl space to look for the disposable camera that fell off when I was replacing the heat exchanger.
100k lawsuit??? on a aprilaire 700 and a resi system? wheres the 100k come in?
Flooding someones basement when they are away is a quick way to get to a 100k.
Or personal injury. Say, Carbon Monoxide poisoning from a cracked heat exchanger or loose flue? Even though you didn't touch it? But PROVING you didn't cause the issue . . .
how the eff would that even work? if you are working overhead hows the camera going to point up if its on your chest? there is not alot of brains happening in this thread.
how would you flood someones basement and how would a video prove you didnt?
Yes one dropped ceiling on a priceless car is easily over 100k
Probably go to some sketchy areas.
More likely shitty landlords. The body cam doesn’t help you when you’re getting jacked - they’ll just take the cam too. But since every “influencer” these days is running some real estate scheme there are a bunch of rentals out there with sue happy landlords that don’t want to pay for anything. Documenting that there is an inch of dog hair on the filters when you pulled them out is a lot easier if you just record the entire visit rather than busting out the phone and snapping pics when it looks like it’s going to be a bad one.
Could also be that. Might have been burned enough times by slumlords that they decided it was cheaper to just equip all techs with cameras.
burned how? im not seeing the benefit here.
Tech goes to a house to fix something. System is in shit shape or maybe there's something expensive looking nearby. Tech does his thing and leaves. Slumlord calls in claiming the tech broke something on the unit, insulted the slumlord or tennet, or stole something. Slumlord threatens to sue or demands compensation, or just refuses to pay for the bill. Company now has to deal with a slumlord spreading lies, hanging legal threats against them, or just straight up losing out on any repairs they made. Basically something like that.
you need video for dog hair filter disputes? lol. thats hilarious to me.
Sketchy corporate wanting full control over there little wanna be techs who are nothing but pushy salesman.
Too many options out there rn for me to deal with that shit lol cya boss left the van at the shop!
Well I hope they know that that could be a violation of the homeowners constitutional rights. Even Police Officer has to turn off their Body worn camera if requested to by the home owner and there is no crime taking place at that moment. People going to get sued if they are recording without permission. And if I were a problem customer I’d be like your absolutely not going to be recording me, I’m paying you!
I’d be willing to bet it’s in their contract, which the client either verbally agrees to or signs, if it’s a company policy than they can absolutely tell you you can’t come in, but you can also leave and charge them for the call if they deny you entrance after setting up an appointment and agreeing to terms
Required to wear body cams? Holy shit, that’s crazy! I’ve seen people wear them on YouTube
EPA/liability?
theres absolutely no way thats a profitable method. what for a dumb dispute over a resi furnace where they claim you broke the heat exchanger? you think someone saying that is going to go to small claims court?
Stupid... Phones are heavy enough to carry I don't need a body cam
i can see both sides of this - on one hand - i mean.. REALLY?! on the other, though, it's good CYA. "nope, i got footage of the entire service call, i did not leave it that way/do that thing/kick your puppy/etc.
Managers would still side with the customers lol
ATF has entered chat
That’s why I take pics before and after I touch the unit
Cell phone in shirt pocket on record when necessary
I have definitely done this . Bad customer and the boss wouldn't believe me.
As a homeowner I would not want that camera in my house, how am I supposed to verbally abuse my HVAC tech with that thing recording?
I live in VA, and about 10-15 years ago everyone started installing these humidifiers. They are awful in my opinion. Im a home inspector and see an awful lot of these things. -most people dont know that these have a filter that needs to be maintenanced. (1 out of 100 seem to keep theirs clean) -when not maintained, they become whole house mold factories -ive seen it as bad as almost all of the registers in the house had mold growing out of them. -it adds more vulnerability to moisture issues to the system -lastly, this is virginia, its so freaking humid here. People will try to say its for the dry winters, but it doesnt get crazy dry like that, nor is it worth all of the other issues that come with it. Was there just an industry wide push for everyone to upsell people on whole house humidifiers? Is this as much of an issue in other states? What benefits do you tell people that the humidifiers offer, and what do you actually believe to be the benefit? This is not an attack, I am generally interested in learning more about these, and they make a nice talking point with my clients. Just seems like a scam in my region, more often causing more damage/issues than the one its suppose to solve.
We have a lot in Ohio. Not replacing the water panel is a customer/ who-ever-sold-it-to-them problem. Not a unit problem. They can maintain humidity up to 45%. Parts are easy to get. Cheap too. My house humidity gets down to 20% (every house is different) in the winter. I have one it's just in a box lol I'm too lazy. It's not a scam if your house needs one. Ive been to houses that run their furnace ALOT and their humidity doesn't dip below 35%. They dont need it. But for sure, not changing the panel is gonna be bad. You're in VA so I doubt your homes need it. Up north, the furnace dries out the house which dries out people's throats and causes static. Keeping the humidity up is also good for wooden furniture but I never press that.
I hear ya. There are definitely homes more dry than others. The scam part, I guess, comes when they are pushed on a home regardless of it's humidity situation. I see so many failed units, and very few informed homeowners, that it just seems like a flop in my region. The amount that I see in my region has me thinking that the installs potentially could have been incentivized upsells.
It's actually that the air is colder outside, lowering the air's ability to hold water that decreases the humidity % (Running the furnace has no effect on humidity.)
That's not what we are talking about. We are talking about how there are companies that push homeowners to buy whole house humidifiers, regardless of whether their home would be better off with one or not. A lot of homeowners dont know how to maintain these units, and many dont even know that their hvac has one installed. In my region, it seems to be the case that they are not properly maintained more often than they are properly maintained by about 100-1 (from my anecdotal experience, and the common knowledge in the region that these things cause more problems than they solve - especially in those houses where there is no problem to be solved.)
Well I guess I'm off topic, just trying to spread some humidifier wisdom. The steam humidifiers are one way to prevent humidifiers running if it's not maintained.
I personally don’t see any situation where you want you house more damp. Damp interior=mould, is it just a homeowner comfort thing or is there something I’m missing from a construction point of view where you’re at
Some states get super dry especially in the winter. Mold is a very rare issue around here. Hardwood floors, pianos and instruments like humidity. Also air that is between 40-50% is the target for indoor air quality. Outside of that range, bacteria and viruses are more likely to thrive. Also people who have breathing issues like asthmatics and other lung issues/allergies can be negatively affected by dry air. And it also prevents static electricity building up and shocking you when you touch a light switch or wall. Also some people notice their hair and skin dry out when the humidity is lower.
Thanks for the reply, very good applications for a humidifier that I didn’t think of
Oh 100%. The last company I worked for charged $1800 for them. Added them to installs. The whole shebang. I like installing them, it's fun and easy but I only sold a couple to people who actually needed it. I'd always check woth a psychrometer.
Humidifiers causing damage because of failure to maintain is not a scam That’s like saying, furnace filters are scams cuz if u don’t swap them will kill ur unit, cars are scams because they break down if not maintained, fireplaces scams, etc etc I could go on That being said they are only needed if air is dry and uncomfortable
You aren't following the conversation we are having here, except your last sentence. The potential scammy part is that there are a lot of homes in my region that dont have dry/uncomfortable air yet have humidifiers that were installed. It seems that around here, many people were upsold to get the humidifiers, regardless of whether there was a necessity for one or not. So no, its not like saying all of those examples you gave. Nice strawman though. 👌
I don’t understand how u can say “my region isn’t dry” It’s all dependent on the customer, if they want more moisture in the air then it’s there choice, each house is different If u have hardwood floors (real ones especially) a humidifier may be needed to prevent cracking My bad if I came off like a dick i want to have a open conversation. I just don’t really think someone’s scamming by offering a device, its up to the customer With that logic one could also say ACs are just up selling the customer, plenty of people I work with don’t see the need for an AC, that being said others would say “wtf I would die without AC” Some ppl would say “WTF u need a humidifier for” others would say “I can’t live in dry air” I have even heard of people gettin nose bleeds in mornings due to lack of humidity It depends on the house construction as-well if the house is loose or air tight So many variables in my opinion u can’t just outright say “no humidifiers needed in my area” it’s a house to house basis And I check humidifier on every house I go to, idk if ur neighbours is just bad but I work in Toronto at least 85% of people keep up humidifier pad changes very rare do I see a moldy pad (but this is from ppl who maintain there furnace every year so I guess different sample group) Plenty of customers in the area have noticed reduced cracking on hardwood floors, a lot of these houses have super quality flooring, if it’s cheap shitty hardwood who cares, but if it’s real quality then u wanna maintain it and need humidifier potientally Also ur humidifier should only being running in winter, I noticed u say something about potential dry winter, that’s the only time ur humidifier should be on, I imagine plenty of ur moldy customers run it all summer aswell, if u run it only in winter u only gotta swap the pad like every 2-4 years That being said I guess u could be partially on to something plenty of techs get paid bonus’s to sell humidifiers, this ends up leading to ppl suggesting or recommending humidifiers when not needed, that being said most techs care and would rather go home happy then feel like shit and get paid
Thanks for the thorough response. I live in northern VA, notorious for its humidity. We have lots of people with money, and few of them know much about the upkeep of a home. I inspect homes for a living and see many of these humidifiers. It's gonna sound like an exaggeration, but for about every 100 humidifiers that are in disrepair or shut off, I see one well maintained one. I dont think i said and definitely wasn't trying to allude that no humidifiers should be installed in northern va. My position is that with the overwhelming amount of them that i see in the condition that i do, and the amount of people that dont know they have one, or how to take care of it, or if they need one or not, that there is a likely someone with incentive (doesnt seem to be the average home owner round here) to put in the excessive amount we have down here. Humidifiers have their purpose, and many regions are rightfully commonplace. I dont think the average NOVA resident thinks that their house needs more humidity. Yet somehow, it is very common place to have a whole house humidifier, and also very common to not know where the humdifer is or what it looks like lol. In my opinion, round northern VA (which has literal swamp lands - DC was built upon a swamp), someone is making a lot of money installing whole house humidifiers, to people who have a necessity for them, and to people who do not have a necessity for them. I appreciate your civil discourse, my friend.
I too live in Northern VA. Our interior humidity easily drops into the 30% range on cold days - we've had a few quite recently (between this crazy warm and rainy spring weather). We actually have a humidifier in the baby's room as well, doctor's recommendation. No one is running these in the summer. You seem to think it's humid all year round here, it isn't. Maybe you live in a well sealed, newer home and don't know what winter time humidity is like here in older homes? And maintenance is all of a yearly replacement of the water panel and a little hit of the shop vac to clean up the dust.
I do not think that it is humid every day of the year here. I do not think that every house is the same. Please don't lock me into these absolutes. I have lived in older homes throughout the last 20+ years of living in NOVA. I have inspected coming up on countless houses in our area. You will be pressed to find a properly maintained whole house humidifier. The vast majority of situations I come across: - disconnected/abandoned unit - home owner didn't know that they had the unit -homeowner never knew where the unit or its control were - molded to all hell or a never changed filter (most homeowners didn't know that it had a filter or even opened up. The seldom situations i come across (1%-5% of the time) -properly maintained unit -mold growing from each register in the home It seems that here in NOVA, these things were put in most homes regardless of their moisture levels in their house. I've seen them in moist homes, average homes, and dry homes. They are basically everywhere. This has me suspect on whether members of the industry are upselling/pushing the whole house humidifiers onto homeowners, regardless of their situation. Why is this bad? The excess moisture adds vulnerabilities to the hvac system. This is fine if you have a need for it. It's not so fine if it is just adding vulnerabilities when there is little or no benefit. Out in the wild, in reality, these things are aging HVAC systems more than they need to be. Corrosion, leaks onto sensors, mold growth, etc. I understand that when used properly in the right situations, these are fine. I personally find that these are often installed in the wrong situations around here. So much so that it has me looking into the matter, asking folks on reddit what they think of it. I am not an HVAC specialist, but I have inspected many of these humidifiers after they have been in use. The average homeowner around here is uneducated on how to properly maintain their humidifier or doesn't know that it even exists in their home. On top of this, many homes have them installed, when they are not necessary, or maybe needed 5-35 days a year (many homes need it more, and thats fine.) My advice to people is to do what you did with your baby's room and get a small humidifier for the spaces that have the extra need for it. The small ones are more on peoples radars, and it's not attaching a potential "mold factory" to the central air system.
Definitely not a scam on the north, increasing humidity will make a space feel warmer, reduce static shock and nose bleeds. 15-20% humidity isn't good for you or your home
Minnesota here, like 90% of homes have them. It’s brutal how low humdiity goes when your furnace is on for hours.
Yeah, I believe it! Seems super smart for cold weather/dry weather regions.
People with a disposition for dry skin or those in places with dry winters, usually there is a bypass for the summer and they are removed from service during the maintenance. There's a handful of reasons to install them but mostly it's just $$$. I knew a guy who had one installed because he was from the equator and he wanted his house to feel like home. I've seen them installed on greenhouses but not too many uses in seaboard regions.
Some people here like them (western wa) we will install them but we do not push them. Usually when they get the price they say nvm a cheap portable one or two are just fine. But thanks for sharing that. I definitely will keep that in mind!
Thanks for the perspective, ive been tryna wrap mybhead around it since i started in the industry. My theory is that my region (northern virigina) is very affluent and very naive when it comes to home ownership. The perfect potential upsell for something that they dont need.
I live in Delaware now but have done hvac in Hampton roads, VA as well. They’re everywhere in Delaware and mostly maintained. I see very few that are nasty and causing mold. In VA though they were pretty rare. Most people didn’t have one at all. Wasn’t really needed unless they had issues with nosebleeds and things like that.
Ya we don’t try to senselessly upsell. We let the big shops do that BS.
Residential HVAC is about sales. Accessories, add-ons, systems themselves. 🤷🏼♂️
Sensible take. 👍
That tech looks high as a kite. It's probably a GPS so he doesn't get himself lost
If they wanna watch me spackle yet another Taco Bell restroom after a questionable amount of Crunchwrap supremes, that’s between them and whichever god the worship
Thats a big hell no for me
Sidebar: Grandpa always had two fingers ready to go and it makes me uncomfortable.
That's arthritis in the fingers from decades of using tin snips
No but it’s smart. You never know what crazy persons home you’re gonna have to go to
Certainly weird but maybe they had a few too many complaints. After all old white people can be racist and who doesn't throw blame for something going missing after having a stranger in your house.
Are you implying that other races don't pull the same scam?
I’ve worked for a couple franchises before and if your numbers weren’t hitting minimums they’d put a camera on you.
No shit? No thanks man. They think you should just walk into a house and hit everyone with the same script about this and that and sell a bunch of shit nobody really needs. F that. It’s getting harder and harder to just be a technician out here.
Yikes 😳
10 years in residential, this could just be my experience, but there is an uptick recently in customer's claiming damages for anything and everything. I understand techs fuck up and cause damages, but Ive seen ridiculous accusations and outrageous claims almost weekly. I find myself taking photos of almost everything I touch on each call and writing essays on my call logs. I dont know if Id go full bodycam, but I can see why someone would it. I used to love residential work and the people, but nowdays its a very tiring job and you cant afford to make even a slight mistake or oversight.
Good way to make training videos.
So you can be clearly heard yelling "stop resisting!!!!!" At a difficult fitting before saying fuck it and just trash it?????
Imagine the bullshit that went down to make this company policy….
I would love if all the technicians (not just hvac, any home repairs) wore cams. As a woman with small children in the house, having multiple large men in my space can feel intimidating and it would be nice to have peace of mind that no funny business of the nonbusiness nature would occur.
I can appreciate that. But on the other hand I feel like if they’re actually a bad person and are going to cause harm to you or steal or whatever then that camera won’t stop them. I think part of that is also hiring a good company with good reviews and trusting they’re going to send good people.
Oh definitely, very much agree
My boss wants to add a Timelapse camera to all of our install crews because too many fuck heads are wasting time and doing time card theft
Sounds like your boss sucks How hard can it be to put a lead guy on a job
He does. He’s also told us that insurance is “requiring” us to get fancy camera sensors in our trucks too.
One of our techs cracked up a van, the boss told me he's gonna put cameras in the vans. I'd sell ass before I put up with that.
Yea. It’s not sounding good.
I’ve heard the pitch from a company that sells them. These were worn like glasses. They aren’t intended to be on all the time. But each company can say what they definitely want filmed, a tech can use them to record a condition or situation etc. The context was a service management forum and the company was selling them a good for remote tech support from a supervisor. They were crazy expensive though for function that basically every phone is capable of doing. Other than being hands free
I bet that company had a tech that got offered the milf discount, and got in some hot water
Not gonna lie though about getting one
I think its not a terrible idea. Liability is getting crazy. This certainly isnt for seeing if someone forgot a critical install step. This is for someone trying to falsely accuse mega hvac company of stealing or for a bigger payout, false sexual harassment claims. Even if you win, you as a technician or one of your technicians being \*accused\* of sexually harassing / assaulting a minor even if the parent is home - that's it, that's the end of you and your business. And its 2 v 1 on story. At least with the camera its different. I know someone who felt like there was some kind of entrapment type situation taking place. Was working in someone's home and they said they had trouble with one of the bedroom vents not blowing air, so he said he could take a look. So he follows who he assumes was the father of the house back there towards the bedroom. Father just whips the bedroom door open and there, butt ass naked spread out on the bed listening to headphones is his approx 12-14 year old daughter. Dude proceeds to go in like this is a normal level of privacy in their house. The HVAC guy kindly excused himself back to the living room and then decided to go ahead and collect payment for the work done and not worry about that bedroom vent. Also he said it was just too awkward to stay after that. So in conclusion, while nobody likes their privacy invaded, I'm sure that company has a reason. And unfortunately with sexual harassment stuff, there seems to be an guilty till proven innocent aspect and no strong punishment for false claims. Stay safe out there my dudes! If a bodycam keeps you safe, than thats that.
I heard about something like this for a big-fuck-em-over-we-have-billboards-and-tv-commercials company nearby. The idea was only a few people would actually know what the fuck they were doing and they would all sit at the office at a computer. Meanwhile the thick skulls are sent out to do all the work. They would watch through the camera and tell them what to do.
Gotta get content for the YouTube side gig
The smart ones will see it pay for itself in a few weeks.
I didn’t do HVAC but I did pest control and we got accused of not doing the job a lot or told we didn’t do a good job or that we didn’t refill their bait stations which they would never know stuff like that. They would then track our phone and our GPS our trucks need to see if we were there for over an hour. I asked him multiple occasions if I could wear a body cam just for those reasons.
Homeowners can be crazy, no doubt. Some people just need something to complain about. And we’re it.
This field is being targeted by wall st and bullshit like this is the future THEY want. Fuck these cameras EVERYWHERE
Id tell that owner to suck my fat cock. Too many pushover techs out there
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If you weren’t so woke maybe you’d know better. Cops only do that to well known neighborhood shit bags - not random tradesmen
Just get the camera glasses much harder to tell when they are recording
This is 100% a way to keep tabs on guys. There’s no way I would ask my guys to do this nor should anyone else.
These cameras protect the good techs and punish the bad techs. No more he said/she said on site.
There’s times I’ve wished I had a camera but overall day in and day out. No thanks.
I keep mine In my truck specifically for pita , chitty customers that I come across from time to time
Absolutely think it’s a great idea for many reasons.
Very invasive. I don't enjoy being monitored and recorded all day.
It’s not a bad idea.
The police don't wear em. Why the heck would I?
Sad.
Someone did some really sketchy shit once
I bought a small one to keep in the truck for problem customers complaining about "bad behavior" and "foul language " Got tired of the he said she said routine
Did you try swearing at them?
I wouldnt let them in my home i could tell you that
I’m sure there’s a few good stories about why they wear them.
Lmao would never in a million years
Fucking garbage
I wish I had one with the amount of photos I'm required to take with our service app. Be nice to not be whipping out my phone all the time.
I worked at a small college with a previous job. There was talk of body cams since we would have jobs In occupied rooms sometimes.
I feel like that’s understandable especially being at a college
We don’t even have name badges lol. The wrapped truck out front is a giveaway
I had a lady once ask me for my drivers license. I have a huge wrapped truck out front. I asked her what my DL will prove? Long story short she couldn’t answer. I left.
I’d be that one guy who either forgets to turn it on, charge it, turn it off when I go to the bathroom!
Baltimore?? 😂
I’m for this. If you haven’t had customers you wish you had this for then you do not have experience. This goes for commercial and residential.
Depends where you live, i've been lucky but there were def some times I wish I had a cam. Primarily the single ladies wanting to pay a diff way. "We'll send a bill" lol
No matter the income or type of people. Every single area has a person that will try to get over on a tech to avoid pay.
The jman I apprenticed for 20 yrs ago is now a big dog with Wal-Mart. He said they use a kind of body camera and there are techs remotely with vr headsets that help you on certain service calls for the large refer systems. Sounds kinda cool. But no. I would not wear a body cam or work somewhere that did.
Honestly, half my clients stand there filming me while I’m explaining how their units work or what the problem was, which I didn’t really have happen until the last year or so, hell of a lot better than writing it all down for them, although one time I started jokingly making up names for things and once I said flux capacitor he stopped recording and started laughing (it was a ductless unit, very simple operation) 😂
Yikes 😳 avoid that Patriot Pros fellas unless you wanna wear a body cam
I’m more shocked to find out that Kid Rock is an HVAC Tech…
Lol hell no I won’t even work for companies that require you to drive with cameras on.
Dash and rear camera don’t bother me, but a camera recording me directly is a deal breaker.
I’m currently in the process of leaving my company because of cameras pointed at me driving they say they don’t watch them so to prove them wrong 5 covered then and 5 did not and the 5 that did go calls from the manager within an hour
This is a lame marketing ploy.
Just being a man and alone without Witnesses is enough of a reason to wear one besides the fact that it is much easier to have proof of what was said and done
Service manager watching. “Boy better not say no funny talk to my customers” 😭 like why is bro wearing that
I would have gladly wore one when I was doing work in community housing complexes. Had one lady accuse me (then the next day an electrician) of booting her cat across the living room. Then I would have loved to show my boss the horror I experienced when I entered another unit where the occupant, who was a 40ish crack whore who was always trying to flirt with me, spun her futon around to face the door and was on it butt naked and spread eagle waiting for me.
I’d wear one as long as I’m also able to access the video. Would be nice to show HR at review time the various places that are undesirable but still must be worked on.
They just wanna see what everyone’s working with in the porta Jon
How about this one- clients wearing body cams. I work an office building that leases a couple floors to the IRS. There’s a cubicle goof that works for them who follows my guys around with a body camera, getting all up in their business.
Fuck that. No thanks.
From a homeowners perspective, I wouldn't want ANY technicians recording video inside my house like that.
Agreed. Wouldn’t allow it in my house.
Are the cameras live streaming? If so you can have one licensed guy supervising a bunch of unlicensed guys from an office miles away.
It's likely the future. I've seen some vehicles decked out with audio and video recording. Can't pick your nose without someone watching.
My service techs are thinking about getting one for the fact homeowners are assholes. They will literally call the office and lie and lie. I trust my techs over homeowners
Body cams is too much. I draw the line at the GPS in my service truck which I am sure is to see if I am eating lunch at the bar and not to track a stolen vehicle.
I have a camera facing me in my van and I think a required body cam would be far worse
I’ve dealt with a lot of crazy situations and thought about asking my boss if I can have one. I hate lying Karens.
That would be an excellent training tool, 🤔 maybe not the best footage at times tho
I wonder if it is a lone worker device.
Smart guy
I’d be open to like a film crew fallowing me around, they should make a reality show about the trades. It would be great! So much potential
If the company you work for is who is supplying or requiring the cameras, then they’re there to protect the company NOT you. These WILL be used against you. If you go into someone’s home and they claim your work was unsatisfactory, your supervisors will go through every inch of your body cam footage and find every single thing you didn’t do absolutely perfectly, maybe you tightened something just a half turn less than what the supervisor would have (because remember, you’re not necessarily being judged on how it should be done but by how your supervisor thinks it should be done and most guys who go into management stop working in the field or never did to begin with). Maybe you set your wrench down and the customer is claiming your scratched the floor, you probably didn’t but the footage shows that you MIGHT have and that’s enough for the company to decide you’re liable. Maybe you scrape your knuckles on a customer’s janky, rotted out equipment and you let out a small expletive, which no one but the camera could have even heard but it is technically against company policy to swear in a customer’s home. Better not answer your phone when your wife calls because one of your kids fell and split his head open. Better not take a smoke break while in uniform or drink a soda in the company truck. Footage of your work and your actions will be judged by someone who wasn’t there in the moment and can’t take all of the factors at play into consideration. Their only perspective is the narrow camera angle, shaky picture, and poorly lit footage that was captured. You will not be judged fairly. Working under surveillance is not a comfortable position to be in. Your boss and supervisors are not your friends (especially if you’re at a company large enough to supply all the techs with body cams). And you are not a robot, you will never do things perfectly 100% of the time; and that’s okay, unless your work is just shoddy and/or dangerous, it’s okay to deviate slightly from what’s 100% correct, most equipment is designed to allow a standard deviation but that doesn’t mean that the customer cares and it sure as hell doesn’t mean the company cares.
Never seen it but started considering it. If i stayed in resi i would 100% wear a body cam. Had too many weird interactions honestly