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RV Refrigeration: A Strategic Key to Impact Your Bottom Line

Originally published
Originally published: 1/13/2015

Incorporating RV Refrigeration Reconditioning into Your HVACR Business

 

HVACR companies and technicians should be searching for a niche that will give them an edge over their competitors. This strategic key will greatly impact their bottom line.

Take a look at the qualifications of your HVACR technicians versus an RV appliance technician: Both install, maintain and repair heating, air conditioning and refrigeration systems.

But, there is one key difference: Your HVACR technicians are already acquainted with how to diagnose, discharge, repair and recharge cooling units. The RV technicians do not receive a comprehensive training, which in turn leads to improper diagnostics and the replacement approach.

Gary Bunzer, one of the most recognized educators in the RV industry, wrote an article promoting refrigeration training in the May 2011 issue of Family Motor Coach magazine. In the article he stated: "It is a fact that many cooling units are misdiagnosed and simply thrown away".

Absorption RV refrigeration is a unique service and a huge draw for new customers. It has been overlooked for decades and is a perfect marriage with the HVACR industry. If there are RVs, pull trailers, motor homes, horse trailers, 5th wheels, pop ups, coaches, campgrounds, resorts or off-the-grid applications in your area, the choice to offer this in-demand repair service should be simple.

RV owners are desperately searching for technicians who offer this unique RV refrigeration reconditioning service because it saves them money and it is environmentally friendly.

This service brings in local customers as well as the many RV owners who are traveling. Another benefit is that these new customers will also have an RV Air conditioner, furnace, water heater, cook stove, etc. Many of these same customers will have local homes and businesses with HVACR needs. By simply offering a single in-demand unique refrigeration repair service, you create a positive impact by greatly increasing your customer base.

Most service calls can be completed in the field at the resort. The reconditioning service can be performed out of a single car garage. As the demand grows the HVACR parts distributors will see a need for handling RV HVACR products.

Having a large selection of reconditioned cooling units is not a requirement, some are universal. Having just a few of the most common units is sufficient simply because everything is done on an exchange basis. In other words, for a quick turnaround, install one of your reconditioned cooling units, keep theirs and recondition it at your convenience for a future customer.

Today in the USA, there are more than 10 million RVs and that number grows exponentially every day. According to the RV Industry Association (RVIA), new RV shipments in 2014 reached 349,400 units. The 2015 projection is 360,100 units. This will be the sixth consecutive year there has been a growth in new RV sales.

In addition, there are hundreds of thousands of refrigerators and cooling units manufactured each year for the purpose of replacement, as well as for installation by motels, preppers and off-the-grid.

We've spent years of research and development, and finally developed the diagnostic procedures, the repair procedures, the customized tools required to recharge the cooling units and the correct chemical formulas.

This is a great way to increase your income. Reconditioning just a few of the most common refrigerator cooling units is all it takes to establish the return on investment for the training and customized tools from FRVTC. The most common SRP for a recon is $900 each. This is much less than the cost of a new replacement.

The service sells itself. Since very small quantities of the environmentally friendly chemicals are required to charge the cooling unit, the cost for each recon is approximately $100.

 


Roger Ford is the owner of Ford's RV Refrigeration. Founded in 1984, Ford's began training their procedures to others across the USA and other countries in 1990. In 1994, they wrote the first book that covered reconditioning RV refrigeration cooling units which is used in their training program. In later years they provided training on all of the RV appliances and serviced everything on the RV. In 2014, FRVTC became America's only licensed School in the field of RV refrigeration repair and reconditioning. For additional information, visit http://rvrefrigeration.com.

 

 

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RV Refrigeration: A Strategic Key to Impact Your Bottom Line

HVACR companies and technicians should be searching for a niche that will give them an edge over their competitors.