The lack of raw materials and skilled labor has hit an industry badly needed in the Las Vegas summer heat: air conditioning.
With multiple heat waves this season, the problem can be hard to ignore, some HVAC contractors said.
“It’s very bad,” said Vern Rettig, owner of Windy City Air in Las Vegas. “At the moment I have a customer who wants to replace simple air conditioning systems in her apartment complex. I can’t do the job because I can’t get the material. “
Rettig, the president of the Southern Nevada Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Contractors Association, said it was an issue everywhere. According to specialist publications, raw material shortages in 2020 and 2021 have led suppliers to raise prices for everything from complete air conditioning systems to small parts.
Rettig’s suppliers increased various materials by more than 15 percent twice this summer, he said. Other suppliers could supply him with similar parts or systems – but at a premium of $ 1,000 per unit he would have to pass them on to his customer.
“(Customers) have to wait a long time to get equipment,” he said. “You have to pay a higher price because we have to pass these costs on or we are out of business. It’s a bad situation. Unfortunately it’s the same old story. “
In addition, there is a persistent labor shortage, especially for the skilled trades. Licensed contractors must be certified and often require several years of experience. The shortage has resulted in more overtime for the crews and longer waiting times for customers, business owners said.
“We don’t want to send someone home who doesn’t know what they’re doing,” said Kyra Pemberton, office manager at Black Mountain Air in Henderson. “But that requires a lot of knowledge. You need to be able to know exactly how the refrigerant reacts (will) to the system, you need to know the electrical work, the mechanical functioning of your system and often you need to troubleshoot control circuit boards – this becomes even more so in the computer, technical side of things. It takes a lot. “
The bottlenecks have led most contractors to recommend repairs instead of replacements and other deferred maintenance.
“Typically, where we would recommend replacement here, more repairs are pushed to consumers as equipment shrinks as there is no availability left,” Daniel Ibara, operations manager at Snow Frosty Heating and Air Conditioning Inc., told the review -Journal in July. “For the consumer, this means even higher costs, since these are these units that need to be replaced temporarily and then replaced as soon as they are back in stock.”
Building contractors encourage consumers to regularly service and maintain their air conditioners to fix some issues before starting and to keep them running efficiently.
“You wouldn’t believe how many people killed their air conditioners because they didn’t change their filters in a year,” Pemberton said. “Things like that are important. It can save you money, it can save you headaches, it can save your comfort and home. Maintenance is important. “
McKenna Ross is a corps member of Report for America, a national utility that places journalists in local newsrooms. Contact them at mross@reviewjournal.com. Follow @mckenna_ross_ on Twitter.
