Before It Breaks

HVAC Answers in Plain English – A Homeowner’s Toolkit

Coming June 9th, 2025

This site is an ongoing work in progress. Thank you for your patience and understanding.

Easy answers to homeowners questions

I’ve been a residential HVAC service technician for over a decade.
Every week, I meet homeowners who are smart, capable people—but completely lost when something goes wrong with their heating or cooling system.

And it’s not their fault.
When you buy a home, no one gives you a book explaining everything that might go wrong.

So I started writing the guide I wish every homeowner had.
This book isn’t filled with fluff, jargon, or scare tactics. It’s straight answers from someone who’s been in the attic, under the crawlspace, and on the phone with the manufacturer at 5 p.m. on a Friday.

You don’t have to know everything about HVAC.
But a little knowledge can save you money, stress, and bad decisions.

This book is here to give you that.

Whats Inside THe Book

Before It Breaks is a homeowner’s guide to understanding your HVAC system—without needing a degree, toolbox, or YouTube spiral.

This isn’t a contractor sales pitch.
I’m not standing in front of you in a house that’s too hot or too cold, with you only having a one minute explanation of the problem to authorize a several hundred dollar repair.
This is your chance to learn it before it breaks—on your terms, without pressure.

It’s written by a tech who’s spent over 12 years in the field, walking into overheated attics, flooded basements, and “it was working fine yesterday” calls.

What’s inside:

  • What to check before you call for service—so you don’t pay for a five-minute fix

  • How to choose the right filter (and avoid airflow disasters)

  • What your thermostat is really doing when it says “Delay”

  • Why your upstairs is hotter—and what you can actually do about it

  • A breakdown of repairs: what’s urgent, what’s optional, and what’s BS

  • Sections on furnaces, boilers, water heaters, and air conditioners—with plain-language explanations and visuals

  • How to handle a service call like someone who’s been through this before

  • Stories from the field (with pictures)—like the time I found a snake in an air filter

We break down how your system works in plain, easy-to-understand explanations—the same ones I give to my clients every day.
No jargon. No condescension. Just useful answers.

You don’t have to know everything.
But you deserve to know enough to make good choices Before It Breaks.