What does a hvac apprentice do?
Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) apprentices are trainees who work under HVAC maintenance workers. They train under HVAC maintenance workers to gain actual, on-the-job experience. To be an apprentice, one should have a formal training background related to HVAC repair and maintenance. They may be enrolled in a technical-vocational school specializing in HVAC repair and maintenance. As such, apprenticeship is part of their curriculum or class requirements. During their apprenticeship, HVAC apprentices will experience installing, diagnosing, repair, and maintaining HVAC units firsthand.
Hvac apprentice responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real hvac apprentice resumes:
- Install HVAC systems in new and retrofit fashion for residential customers in the greater-Seattle area.
- Install and repair residential heating and air units, lift heavy equipment up ladders and in small crawl spaces.
- Perform maintenance, repair, modification, replacement and installation of centrifugal chillers and refrigeration equipment.
- Experience with copper, cpvc, or pvc pipe work.
- Run PVC for HVAC applications.
- Pump down and re-cover all refrigerant within EPA regulations.
- Work in outside conditions, in crawl spaces, and ladders.
- Assist technicians in installation of new furnaces and air conditioning condensers.
- Install Honeywell, Trane, Johnson controls, and Siemens thermostats.
- Assist journeymen with water/air cool chillers and help maintain cooling tower pumps and motors.
- Assist journeymen and foremen by any means necessary while acquiring knowledge of the trade.
- Skil in maintaining difficult balances of a variety of HVAC/R controls and complicate motor controls.
- Assist lead technician in maintaining/repairing heating ventilation & chillers commercially.
- Read blue prints that include plumbing, pipe, electrical, duck work, and sprinkler lines.
- Maintain the HVAC and building automation systems by regularly performing troubleshooting on the equipment and resolving any problems
Hvac apprentice skills and personality traits
We calculated that 15% of Hvac Apprentices are proficient in Customer Service, Customer Satisfaction, and Preventative Maintenance. They’re also known for soft skills such as Detail oriented, Math skills, and Mechanical skills.
We break down the percentage of Hvac Apprentices that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Customer Service, 15%
Provided customer service to ensure high customer satisfaction and resolution
- Customer Satisfaction, 14%
Maintained superior levels of customer satisfaction by ensuring the continuous delivery of top quality services and support.
- Preventative Maintenance, 14%
Recover refrigerant, install rooftop units, and preventative maintenance on residential units also worked in construction
- Ladders, 13%
Measure, cut and assemble duct work Safe use of electric, hydraulic, hand tools and ladders.
- Ventilation, 12%
Assist the Journeyman Technician in Building and installing heaving ventilation and air conditioning systems
- Air-Conditioning Systems, 8%
Diagnose a variety of large, complex commercial and industrial air-conditioning systems to quickly keep inoperative time to a minimum.
Common skills that a hvac apprentice uses to do their job include "customer service," "customer satisfaction," and "preventative maintenance." You can find details on the most important hvac apprentice responsibilities below.
Detail oriented. The most essential soft skill for a hvac apprentice to carry out their responsibilities is detail oriented. This skill is important for the role because "hvacr technicians must carefully maintain records of all work performed." Additionally, a hvac apprentice resume shows how their duties depend on detail oriented: "be very customer service oriented. "
Math skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling hvac apprentice duties is math skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "hvacr technicians need to calculate the correct load requirements to ensure that the hvacr equipment properly heats or cools the space required." According to a hvac apprentice resume, here's how hvac apprentices can utilize math skills in their job responsibilities: "gained practical experience in electrical circuitry and electrical testing procedures, and networking mathematics. "
Mechanical skills. hvac apprentices are also known for mechanical skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to hvac apprentice responsibilities, because "hvacr technicians install and work on complicated climate-control systems, so they must understand the hvac components and be able to properly assemble, disassemble, and, if needed, program them." A hvac apprentice resume example shows how mechanical skills is used in the workplace: "install heating and cooling equipment and mechanical control systems. "
Time-management skills. For certain hvac apprentice responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "time-management skills." The day-to-day duties of a hvac apprentice rely on this skill, as "hvacr technicians frequently have a set number of daily maintenance calls." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what hvac apprentices do: "managed project site teams ensuring customer satisfaction while meeting project deadlines. "
Customer-service skills. Another common skill required for hvac apprentice responsibilities is "customer-service skills." This skill comes up in the duties of hvac apprentices all the time, as "hvacr technicians often work in customers’ homes or business offices, so it is important that they be friendly, polite, and punctual." An excerpt from a real hvac apprentice resume shows how this skill is central to what a hvac apprentice does: "install and remove pvc piping, install and remove thermostats , speak with new customers daily. "
Physical strength. While "physical strength" is last on this skills list, don't underestimate its importance to hvac apprentice responsibilities. Much of what a hvac apprentice does relies on this skill, seeing as "hvacr technicians may have to lift and support heavy equipment and components, often without help." Here is a resume example of how this skill is used in the everyday duties of hvac apprentices: "perform all duties involving heavy physical effort which requires the use of common hand tools and some power tools. "
The three companies that hire the most hvac apprentices are:
- Lennox International142 hvac apprentices jobs
- F.H. Furr23 hvac apprentices jobs
- Trane19 hvac apprentices jobs
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Compare different hvac apprentices
Hvac apprentice vs. Air conditioning service technician
A refrigeration technician is responsible for managing refrigeration and cooling systems for private households and commercial establishments. Refrigeration technicians install refrigeration components, requiring them to have an excellent analysis of blueprints and schematics. They inspect the system components and inform the household owners and management for preventive maintenance and troubleshooting for minor defects and inconsistencies, as well as calculating costs and materials for repairs. A refrigeration technician must be well-equipped with mechanical knowledge to identify failures and upgrade units as necessary.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a hvac apprentice are more likely to require skills like "customer service," "customer satisfaction," "ladders," and "work ethic." On the other hand, a job as an air conditioning service technician requires skills like "emergency repairs," "air-conditioning equipment," "residential air," and "system compliance." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
Air conditioning service technicians earn the highest salaries when working in the technology industry, with an average yearly salary of $53,197. On the other hand, hvac apprentices are paid more in the health care industry with an average salary of $41,468.The education levels that air conditioning service technicians earn slightly differ from hvac apprentices. In particular, air conditioning service technicians are 1.5% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a hvac apprentice. Additionally, they're 0.2% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Hvac apprentice vs. Refrigeration technician
Installation helpers are skilled employees who are responsible for observing equipment and machinery to verify their efficient and safe operations. These helpers are required to assist in troubleshooting equipment after the installation while identifying defects to ensure a timely repair or return of the equipment. They must be skillful in using a variety of hand tools and power tools so that they can install equipment and repair broken parts. Installation helpers must also operate company vehicles such as trucks, forklifts, and construction vehicles.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that hvac apprentice responsibilities requires skills like "air-conditioning systems," "strong work ethic," "duct systems," and "install equipment." But a refrigeration technician might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "osha," "industrial maintenance," "hazmat," and "psm."
On average, refrigeration technicians earn a higher salary than hvac apprentices. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, refrigeration technicians earn the most pay in the manufacturing industry with an average salary of $56,136. Whereas hvac apprentices have higher pay in the health care industry, with an average salary of $41,468.refrigeration technicians earn similar levels of education than hvac apprentices in general. They're 0.1% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.2% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Hvac apprentice vs. Installation helper
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, hvac apprentices are more likely to have skills like "customer satisfaction," "preventative maintenance," "ladders," and "air-conditioning systems." But a installation helper is more likely to have skills like "hvac," "furnaces," "install windows," and "tape measure."
Installation helpers earn the best pay in the health care industry, where they command an average salary of $35,367. Hvac apprentices earn the highest pay from the health care industry, with an average salary of $41,468.installation helpers typically earn similar educational levels compared to hvac apprentices. Specifically, they're 0.2% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Hvac apprentice vs. Commercial technician
Types of hvac apprentice
Updated January 8, 2025
