Dave Yates: Contractor’s Corner

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Suppose I was to tell you there exists a tankless water heater you could install on the hardest of hard water that would never, ever have to be descaled and that its heat exchanger’s water pathways would look almost as clean as the day it was born. 

"All I ever do is staple-up."

That was my friend and competitor’s response after he asked me to determine why a recent radiant heating installation was not working satisfactorily because the owners were ticked off. 

Forty-eight years ago, I learned a valuable lesson as a plumbing apprentice.

For you younger tradesfolk who have entered into a mechanical career within the past 20 years, you may never have encountered PB (polybutylene) tubing and fittings.

Honesty is such a lonely word (from the song, “Honesty” by Billy Joel). It never ceases to amaze me when folks we deal with are not honest.

How to become a psychologist and therapist in one easy lesson: Open a mechanical contracting firm!

Mmanufacturer of air-to-water heat pumps called asking if I would be willing to visit a home to perform a heat loss/gain calculation where two of its heat pump systems had been installed and determine why the home was not heating and cooling to the homeowners satisfaction.

After being contacted by the general contractor, we met on site to go over the possibility of installing a snowmelt system for the more than 2,000-square-feet of sidewalks, which also included two ADA-sloped approaches to the grand entrance, a wide sweeping brick stairway and the landing pads outside the grand entrance.

An architect, insulation installers, door and window salespersons/installers, and a mechanical contractor are in a classroom together, and the instructor asks: “Should you upgrade the building envelope or replace the heating and air conditioning equipment?