WEST DES MOINES – As temperatures dip below zero across the state, heating companies working hard to keep customers warm.
With the cold, heating appliances start breaking down because they’re under more strain then normal. Local 5 tagged along with a technician Tuesday afternoon who had a very busy day at work responding to calls.
Bill Wilson, with Lozier Heating and Cooling has been on the job for over three decades. He says every year when the temperature drops, work picks up.
“This recent cold snap has kind of left us pretty busy.” said Wilson.
And it’s busy because the bitter climate makes heating appliances work extra hard.
“As a result any little problems it might be having are magnified and you end up having more trouble come about and it comes to your attention more because you are colder quicker,” said Wilson.
On Tuesday Bill stopped at several homes in West Des Moines with various issues. One had a leak in one of their water heaters. After he orders it, it’s onto the next call. This time it’s over to John Loughry’s house.
“Everything was working just fine until I reached to the control to turn the heat up and a very large static electric spark jumped,” said Loughry.
John thinks he may have fried the main board that controls his wall unit. After Bill scopes it out he orders a new part to replace on Wednesday.
Even after long days like this one, Bill says it’s the people he meets on the job that keep him coming back year after year.
“I love the mechanical part of it, it’s all fun and challenging,” said Wilson. “But the customers are my favorite, you never know what you are going to run into.”
But this time of year, it’s keeping customers warm call after call.
“There’s nothing more enjoyable than a customer that doesn’t have heat and they are all standing around shivering and they’ve got their quilts on ad everything,” said Wilson. “And you show up and are able to provide them with heat. It is very satisfying.”
If you are going out of town for New Years, Bill says to not turn your heater completely off while you are away. To avoid freezing your pipes and a big electric bill, he recommends you turn it down to around 60 degrees.
