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Hvac specialist vs hvac technician

The differences between hvac specialists and hvac technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a hvac specialist and a hvac technician. Additionally, a hvac technician has an average salary of $54,496, which is higher than the $50,358 average annual salary of a hvac specialist.

The top three skills for a hvac specialist include ventilation, plumbing and troubleshoot. The most important skills for a hvac technician are HVAC, customer service, and preventative maintenance.

Hvac specialist vs hvac technician overview

Hvac SpecialistHvac Technician
Yearly salary$50,358$54,496
Hourly rate$24.21$26.20
Growth rate5%5%
Number of jobs14,29986,709
Job satisfaction-4.5
Most common degreeAssociate Degree, 30%Associate Degree, 29%
Average age4040
Years of experience44

Hvac specialist vs hvac technician salary

Hvac specialists and hvac technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

Hvac SpecialistHvac Technician
Average salary$50,358$54,496
Salary rangeBetween $35,000 And $70,000Between $36,000 And $81,000
Highest paying CityWest Sacramento, CAWashington, DC
Highest paying stateAlaskaConnecticut
Best paying companyJacobs Engineering GroupBP America Inc
Best paying industryConstructionTechnology

Differences between hvac specialist and hvac technician education

There are a few differences between a hvac specialist and a hvac technician in terms of educational background:

Hvac SpecialistHvac Technician
Most common degreeAssociate Degree, 30%Associate Degree, 29%
Most common majorHeating And Air ConditioningHeating And Air Conditioning
Most common collegeDunwoody College of TechnologyDunwoody College of Technology

Hvac specialist vs hvac technician demographics

Here are the differences between hvac specialists' and hvac technicians' demographics:

Hvac SpecialistHvac Technician
Average age4040
Gender ratioMale, 95.2% Female, 4.8%Male, 97.4% Female, 2.6%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 6.9% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 24.5% Asian, 2.5% White, 61.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%Black or African American, 8.3% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 19.9% Asian, 2.7% White, 64.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage2%2%

Differences between hvac specialist and hvac technician duties and responsibilities

Hvac specialist example responsibilities.

  • Meet all state requirements and manage annual inspections regarding mechanical, electrical, plumbing, fire and elevator systems.
  • Install 2 to 10 ton Rheem, Ruud and Bryan condensers.
  • Develop experience with DDC controls.
  • Perform light plumbing duties such as cleaning stoppages, replace fittings and change water heater elements.
  • Repair and maintain air conditioning, heating, and ventilation systems where regulate temperatures are a necessity.
  • Trouble shoot heating, ventilation and air conditioning, motor, pump and compressor, and compressor problems in buildings.
  • Show more

Hvac technician example responsibilities.

  • Service and maintain HVAC systems by diagnosing and repairing/replacing motors temperatures controls control panels fans switches capacitors gas valves and filters.
  • Calibrate and adjust combustion efficiency on boilers and furnaces under supervision of manager.
  • Key responsibilities include repair, maintenance and installation-including electrical wiring- of various HVAC equipment, including low pressure boilers.
  • Process work orders to repair HVAC systems and restore functionality to malfunctioning systems; perform preventative maintenance and routine servicing.
  • Inject correct amount of freon need to properly cool.
  • Debug and troubleshoot GE PLC hardware and software issues.
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Hvac specialist vs hvac technician skills

Common hvac specialist skills
  • Ventilation, 12%
  • Plumbing, 10%
  • Troubleshoot, 9%
  • Control Systems, 8%
  • Exhaust Fans, 6%
  • Cooling Towers, 5%
Common hvac technician skills
  • HVAC, 15%
  • Customer Service, 9%
  • Preventative Maintenance, 7%
  • Ventilation, 6%
  • Hand Tools, 5%
  • Boilers, 4%

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