Questions to Ask Your Refrigerator Repair Professional
Getting your refrigerator fixed may seem like an easy task, but like most things, refrigerator repair isn’t as simple as it sounds. There are many things that can go wrong with refrigerator repair – whether it’s a simple problem with the door, a power issue or malfunctioning parts. There are many repair companies out there, so how can you choose the best one? Before you even take out your checkbook to pay for your refrigerator repair, make sure you ask the repair company these important questions:
1) Are you licensed and insured to do refrigerator repair?
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requires that refrigerator repair professionals obtain special licenses to handle refrigerants. Refrigerants are chemicals in the refrigerator which absorb the heat from the inside. These chemicals are non-reactive, but still, proper care should be used when performing any type or refrigerator repair, to ensure that the chemicals will not be spilled and harm humans or pets. The technician who wants to be certified to perform refrigerator repair needs to take a test (usually done by a private company) to be get certified.
In addition, a company should have the necessary insurance policies to cover on-site accidents for their people and the customer’s home. Refrigeration repair can be dangerous; after all, a refrigerator is a large machine with many moving parts. The repair professional should have the experience to perform the refrigerator repair, but still, accidents can occur. If the refrigerator repair company is a good one, they’ll have their workers fully insured against any accident that could occur on the job. Also, while doing the necessary refrigerator repair, accidents may happen to you or it can damage your home. Your homeowner’s insurance, of course, should cover this, but it’s always good to know that the refrigerator repair company you’re giving your hard-earned cash to cares for their customers as well.
2) Do you have the proper training and experience in refrigerator repair?
Refrigerator repair is a real skill. Refrigerators have a lot of sensitive parts that require understanding to make the necessary repairs. Experience, of course, is the best teacher. Someone who has years or even decades of experience with refrigerator repair will know what they’re doing. Aside from looking in the phone book for a refrigerator repair company, ask around fro recommendations from friends and acquaintances. Often, the best and most experienced refrigerator repair pros are also the best-kept secrets in the neighborhood.
Of course, many schools today offer a lot of 2-year courses and technical courses that teach refrigerator repair, so check your technician’s background. Where did he get his certification or diploma? Is it a good school? Did he particularly study refrigerator repair or just a general repair course? The National Appliance Service Technician Certificate and Master Certified Appliance Professional are some additional certifications that technicians can obtain to ensure they have all the necessary knowledge to make repairs.
3) Are you registered with the Better Business Bureau?
While being registered with the BBB isn’t a guarantee that the refrigerator repair company is reliable, it will give you a recourse should things go wrong.
Needless to say, with proper care and maintenance, you won’t have to resort to calling a refrigerator repair professional, but some problems do need the help of a professional. As soon as you see something is wrong, try to call a refrigerator repair company early on, to prevent aggravating the problem and save you the cost of major repairs or having the buy a replacement.