Archives for July 2013

Texas House Bill 2294- Watch Out Contractors!

New Thermostat Law – Pro and Con

By Betty Stephens

The Law

Burglar and fire alarm technology has evolved towards an integrated system model, whereby a consumer can use a burglar or fire alarm panel to adjust not only an alarm but also thermostats, lighting, locks, and window treatments. The thermostat component of this new technology has caused problems for burglar and fire alarm professionals in Texas because of the state’s current air conditioning and refrigeration licensing requirements.

The bill allows a licensed burglar or fire alarm professional to sell, design, or offer to sell or design integrated alarm products without obtaining an air conditioning and refrigeration contractor license, as long as the sale, design, or offer to sell or design does not include air conditioning and refrigeration installation work.
House Bill 2294, authored by State Rep. John Kuempel, Republican of Seguin, states that a person licensed or registered under the Occupations Code is not required to obtain an air conditioning and refrigeration contractor license to perform the very limited work of the installation, repair, replacement or modification of a thermostat or other temperature control devices.
Bill Supporters
The bill was supported by several large home security companies, including AT&T, ADT, and Comverge. This bill goes into effect September 1, once it is signed by the governor. Though ACCA Texas and others fought the legislation, it passed in both the House and Senate in late May and is currently awaiting Gov. Rick Perry’s signature.
The Problem as the HVAC Industry Sees It
The thermostat component of this new law created a challenge for various companies and professionals in Texas because of the state’s current air conditioning and refrigeration licensing requirements. The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation has up to now required that anyone who installs or offers to install a thermostat must obtain an air conditioning and refrigeration contractor license.
The problem, defined by industry leaders, is that most of these alarm system installers don’t have the appropriate training or knowledge to properly install or replace a thermostat. They further state that this can lead to system inefficiency, HVAC equipment failure, and even fire hazards. There have been instances of fire damage in homes.

Dangerous to Customers
The biggest problem with the Texas legislation, Todd McAlister, executive director for ACCA Texas said, is that it puts consumers at risk. “This is bad for homeowners and this is not good for anybody,” he said. McAlister added that, should anything go wrong with the HVAC system because of the thermostat installation, an installer who is not HVAC certified may not notice right away, and if they do, they would be required to call in an HVAC technician to take care of it, anyway. “You would think that logic would win over, and if a telecom company wants to be in this industry, then they should go get an HVAC license so there’s at least some credibility in what they’re doing,” he said. “There are a number of companies that install thermostats that coordinate with the home security system package,” he said. “The alarm industry is sort of moving from putting in home alarms and building alarms to services that would encroach on energy use of the home.”

HB 2294
Thermostat installations have required a license in Texas since 1983. HVAC Contractor License Requirements are as follows:
• Licensing exam
• Annual criminal background check
• Annual continuing education
• Liability insurance
• Registered or certified technicians who also pass background check before entering a customer’s home.

HB 2294 reverses long-standing and sensible protections:

1. It allows ANYONE to replace a thermostat without a license and without a criminal background check.

2. An unlicensed fire alarm company improperly installed its home automation
thermostat in Longview, TX in April, 2013 causing a fire.

3. Installation of a third party thermostat renders the HVAC system manufacture’s
warranty voidable, even for future system failure.

4. Any work performed by an unlicensed contractor or technician also voids the
manufacturer’s warranty.
AT&T Pro the Law Responds
This bill was filed at the request of AT & T when they did not succeed in being exempted from SB 407.
Rossanna Salazar, spokesperson for AT&T Texas, said her company’s alarm system installers are more than capable of properly installing thermostats as part of AT&T’s new Digital Life wireless home management security system.
“Our authorized digital life technicians are licensed as Texas alarm system installers and must pass a state of Texas background check as a condition of receiving their license,” she said. Salazar said opponents of the legislation “have made many claims that have confused the policy debate,” especially when it comes to the manufacturer’s warranty on HVAC equipment.
The issue of licensing has nothing to do with the warranty issue. Just because a home owner or anyone installs a new thermostat does not mean that they will lose or even jeopardize the full warranty on their system. If there is something wrong with the indoor air handler or the outside compressor, it will still be under warranty.”
Salazar added that some manufacturers will not cover damage caused by a third-party component, including an after-market thermostat, regardless of who installed it. “If a person’s air conditioning system is under warranty, he or she should check to be sure that any new thermostat is compatible with that system,” she said.
Other Proponents
Some proponents of the bill think this law will help Texas modernize its licensing system to the benefit of consumers, giving them the advantages of smart home technology.
Now that Smart home technology has evolved several companies offer products that allow a consumer to use one panel and wireless technology to adjust a range of functions, like their burglar and fire alarms, thermostats, lighting, locks, and electrical outlet.

Home Advisor Service

Home Advisors
By Betty Stephens of Quest Media

Home Advisor was formerly known as Service Magic. Service Magic a 13-year-old company with $205 million in annual revenue officially relaunched as HomeAdvisor. Home Advisors connects service professionals with consumers seeking help with home improvement and repair projects. They help home owners find trusted home improvement contractors.
Home Advisor is the one of the most powerful lead generation tools around. Home Advisors offers customers with expertise and resources from the Home Advisor’s industry-leading service marketing department. Over 80,000 contractors count on Home Advisor. Since 1998, Home Advisor has been helping home improvement professionals generate new business by delivering highly targeted, real-time leads. Home Advisor maximizes marketing efforts by giving businesses total control of their customer experience.
They advertise that over 25 million home owners use their services. They offer homeowners the following features:
1. Free to use – never have to pay a membership fee.
2. Service pros pass a criminal and background check.
3. They can offer over 2 million ratings and reviews from home owners.
4. They have 24/7 emergency home owner support.
How Does It Work?
Steps: The customer tells about their project.
1. The customer selects a category for their repair or project.
2. The customer is then matched to the right pro for the job.
3. The customer receives four pre-screened pro reviews.
4. The customer selects a service pro.
5. Home Advisors sends the customer information to the service pro.
6. The service pro contacts the customer.

Link to their Web site: http://www.homeadvisor.com/how-it-works/
Their Web site is very informative and customer friendly. Its Suite of Tools allows you to review their Cost Guide, Resource Center, and Home 911 feature.
The Cost Guide feature allows you to review typical costs for project under these categories: Home Spaces, Home Features, Home Professional, and Home Solutions.
The Resource Center provides a list of articles and advice on projects.
The Home 911 section provides you with a Download Feature for your iPhone that allows you instant access to their service pros…
Cons: There have been complaints that customers have received calls from more than FOUR contractors. Some contractors just showed up at homeowner’s door without even calling, and some contractors were overly aggressive.
Note: Remember not all contractors give free estimate on things like repairs. Replacements and remodel projects, yes. But if you are expecting a technician to spend time diagnosing a problem, you will be expected to pay for his knowledge, expertise and time. Technicians don’t usually work on commission, salesman do. Keep that in mind.

Energy Savings Tips

Energy Savings Tips

By Betty Stephens of Quest Media

Whether you own or rent your home, you typically need lighting, heating, air conditioning, power for equipment, and other services. Here are some tips to help you to maximize energy efficiency and save you money all the while helping the environment.
Energy Saving Tips
Here are some Heating and Air Conditioning suggestions to save you on your energy costs.
1. Maintenance – Tune-up the heating, ventilating and air-conditioning (HVAC) system with annual maintenance. Even a new system declines in performance without regular maintenance. Having a contract automatically ensures that your HVAC contractor will provide pre-season tune-ups before each cooling and heating season. You can save energy and money, and your system should last longer with minimal costs for yearly maintenance fees.
2. Cleaning – Changing (or cleaning if reusable) HVAC filters every month during peak cooling or heating seasons. New filters usually only cost a few dollars. Dirty filters cost more to use, overwork the equipment and result in lower indoor air quality.
3. Sun Light – Control direct sun through windows, depending on the season and local climate. During cooling season, block direct heat gain from the sun shining through glass on the East and especially West sides of the house. You may choose solar screens, solar films, awnings, and vegetation can help keep homes cooler. Trees shade the house and help clean the air. Interior curtains or drapes can help, but it’s best to prevent the summer heat from getting past the glass and inside. During heating season, with the sun low in the South, unobstructed southern windows can contribute solar heat gained during the day.

4. Fans – Use fans to maintain comfortable temperature, humidity and air movement, and save energy year round. Moving air can make a somewhat higher temperature and/or humidity feel comfortable. Fans can help delay or reduce the need for air conditioning, and a temperature setting of only three to five degrees higher can feel as comfortable with fans. Each degree of higher temperature can save about 3 percent on home cooling costs. When the temperature outside is more comfortable than inside, a box fan in the window, or large whole house fan in the attic can push air out and pull in comfortable air.

5. Caulking – Plug leaks with weather stripping and caulking. Caulking and weather stripping let you manage your ventilation, which is the deliberate controlled exchange of stuffy inside air for fresher outdoor air.
No matter the season your home is competing with the weather outside to make sure the inside temperature remains comfortable. As outside temperatures cool off in the winter and heat up in the summer, your heating and cooling equipment requires more energy to keep your home at the desired comfort level.
Home heating and cooling accounts for approximately 50 percent of the average home owner’s energy costs. You can get control of your home’s comfort level and your heating and cooling costs by following the above simple tips.

Angie’s List

Angie’s List
By Betty Stephens of Quest Media

Angie’s List is a US-based website that aggregates verified consumer reviews of service companies as a way to “capture word-of-mouth wisdom.” Angie’s List has about 1.5 million subscribers throughout the United States and Canada who post an average of about 40,000 reviews each month. The concept behind the website is to certify their data collection process by only allowing paid and registered subscribers to access the website to prevent anonymous or biased reviews.

History
Formerly headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, Angie’s List was co-founded by William “Bill” Oesterle and Angie Hicks in 1995. It was inspired by Hicks’ search for a reliable contractor in suburban Columbus on behalf of Oesterle, a venture capitalist and her former supervisor. She relocated to Columbus to join him in creating Angie’s List, which started as a call-in service and publication for reviews about home and lawn care. Hicks went door-to-door, signing up members and collecting ratings on local contractors. For a year, it was called “Columbus Neighbors”, the name and idea being patterned after the Indianapolis, Indiana-based community publication, Unified Neighbors. After solely recruiting more than 1,000 members in Columbus within one year, Hicks turned to Oesterle to raise money from investors in order to develop the business at a steady pace.
In 1996, Angie’s List purchased Unified Neighbors, from creator Bill Corbin and relocated its headquarters to Indianapolis. By 1999, the database of local services and reviews was moved to the internet. During the ensuing years, their customer base and business relationships grew throughout North America, while also expanding to include additional service industries such as health care and auto care.
CNN Money featured Angie’s List as one of the 100 fastest-growing inner city businesses in the nation, with their 2009 revenues reaching $45.6 million in 2011. According to their 10k, Angie’s List’s revenue last fiscal year was $90M.

Methodology
Angie’s List grades companies using a report-card-style scale, which ranges from A to F; these ratings are based on the following criteria: price, quality, responsiveness, punctuality and professionalism. Each company has its own page, which is composed of a description of its business along with the customer reviews. The aggregate grade is drawn from the combined reviews and grades given to the businesses from the consumers. Angie’s List employees are trained to identify any reviews that seem biased or sabotaged, so the overall rating will only reflect legitimate customer reviews. This process was reviewed and approved by BPA Worldwide during a 2009 audit Revenue for Angie’s List comes from member subscription fees, as well as advertising from businesses that have an overall grade of B or higher on the website.
Angie’s List is reputed to have a unique company culture, in that it encourages a laid-back yet innovative atmosphere. Communication is extremely open between management and staff, and ideas are encouraged from all employees, regardless of their positions. Angie’s List was named one of the Best Places to Work in Indiana in 2007 and 2008 by the Indiana Chamber of Commerce. The rankings for the list are based on the feedback of randomly selected employees at eligible Indiana businesses.
Angie’s List was also a finalist for the Nation’s Healthiest Employers of 2010. They have had a comprehensive employee wellness program for over 5 years, which includes about 30 different programs and events throughout the year. Employees are offered health, life and dental insurance, as well as access to the fitness programs and the on-site fitness center. They are encouraged to participate in various events created to foster a team environment and boost company spirit.
Financial information
Angie’s List estimated that its annual revenue in 2008 was $58 million, generated primarily through advertising in its newsletter and membership fees. Angie’s List has not published its annual expenses or net income.
Membership fees are based on volume of service providers at a given location. For example, Angie’s List reported the following annual membership fees as of 4 December 2009:
• Charlottesville, Virginia — $10
• Stamford, Connecticut — $32
• Beverly Hills, California — $36.25
• Pompano Beach, Florida — $47
In 2010, Angie’s List raised a total of $25 million in capital from investors. In September 2010, Wasatch Funds and Battery Ventures invested $22 million. In November 2010, Saints Capital led an additional funding of $2.5 million.

On November 17, 2011, Angie’s List began trading on the NASDAQ exchange under the ticker symbol ANGI. It priced 8.8M shares at $13 and opened for trading at $18, a 33% premium.
Membership Fees
Consumers pay a small membership fee to join Angie’s List. They offer different membership options though, so pricing varies depending on your needs and where you are located in the country. In certain grassroots chapters where we’re still building the List, consumers can join for free for at least one year. The price can vary depending on the part of the country you’re interested in and how long you plan to use the service. The Angie’s List membership fee ensures that you get certified, reliable data on the services you need, provides for live staff support and enables the delivery of our award-winning magazine straight to your door.
See the example of a monthly plan for the lowest upfront cost in the Houston area.

Angie’s List Bundle: Member favorite! The most services at the best price

Plan Dues Signup Fee Total Discount
Monthly $4.40 $10.00 $14.40 0%
1 year $39.00 $0.00 $39.00 26%
2 years $70.00 $0.00 $70.00 34%
3 years $99.00 $0.00 $99.00 38%
4 years $125.00 $0.00 $125.00 41%

Getting On the List as a Service Provider
Most providers on the List were added when a member submitted feedback on them. At that time, Angie’s List sets up a complete profile for the business to go along with the member’s review. If someone wants to add a new company that they used to the List, follow these steps:
First, click Write a Review in the banner. Search for the company by name to confirm that they’re not already on the List and then click the small link for “Can’t find the provider you need? Add them to the list.”

Next, select type of work the provider did for you. Businesses that take care of work around your home, auto and yard are on our Classic List. We have our medical categories broken in to sub-categories to cover doctors, health insurance companies, medical retail stores, and hospitals. Classic Car (vehicles 25 years or older) specialists are also separated from our regular Auto category.
Then, enter the provider’s contact information so we can set up a business profile.
On the following page select the specific service that describes the work the company performed for you. Enter the service category and click Apply Category. Add as many as you need and then select Continue to begin writing you review.
Add Your Business
A company or health care professional may set up a free profile so that their contact information will appear on the List. However, they will not be rated and will be listed after businesses with reviews. Providers use their profiles to check their reviews and maintain their reputation in the Angie’s List community. However, companies can also create a free account and appear without a rating on the List. Once your company is registered, you may log in at any time to review and update your company’s profile, check your ratings, and read and respond to new reviews. Registration is quick and easy. On the first step, just enter your company’s name and zip code. They will check to see if they already have any information on your business.
See example login on the next page.

If you don’t see your company in the potential matches, just select Add Company.

A company or health care professional may also set up a free profile to check their reviews, keep their contact information up-to-date, and maintain their reputation in the Angie’s List community. However, providers that don’t have reviews yet will be listed after businesses that have earned ratings from our members. If you are a provider and want to appear on the List, see how to get started!

Providers Can Advertise
Angie’s List does allow providers that earn an average of an “A”- or “B”-rating to advertise in the form of discounts available to our members. Only companies that maintain their positive ratings are offered this privilege. If a company’s rating falls below a “B” or if they fail to respond to a Complaint Resolution case, we remove their coupons from our magazine and website.
Companies and health professionals are not obligated to offer coupons, nor does their decision to advertise affect their rating on Angie’s List.
If they choose they can sort search results to see providers offering discount first, but they can also choose not to display these results. This search option doesn’t change the provider’s grades and companies can’t pay to show up at the top of the List for every search under any setting.

Sample Report
Plumbing

Report Date: 1/12/2008
Was Work Done?: YES
* More weight is given to a report where work has been completed.
Hire Again?: YES
App. Cost: $400
Home Build Year: 1957
*Build Year date helps you locate companies that work on homes that are similar in age to your own.
Overall A
Price A
Quality A
Responsiveness A
Punctuality A
Professionalism A

Description of Work: Replaced a burst outdoor faucet, which required digging a roughly 4 x 2 foot hole.

Member Comments: The faucet burst on Christmas Eve, so this was messy work in very cold weather. They were hampered a bit when my dog jumped in their hole to try to bury a chicken leg. They were prompt, cheerful & courteous (they even disposed of the chicken leg for me). They kept the dirt on a tarp and completely and tidily replaced it afterward. I’ve used this company repeatedly, which happens when you have a 50-year-old house, and they’ve always gone above and beyond. They warranty their work and nothing has ever gone wrong. On previous jobs, I’ve pulled the “while you’re here, could you look at this, too?” bit. They’ve done so if their schedule allows, but sometimes said they couldn’t, which shows me they respect the customers who are after me.

Visit Angie’s List Web Site link: Click Here.

Angie’s List
1030 E. Washington St.
Indianapolis, IN 46202
1-888-944-5478