I might get a little Flack for this one. We're gonna go over a few things that might be kind of against the rules in our industry. things that a lot of Pros might not say directly to the homeowner, but that's kind of what I'm known for and so here we go. We're going to talk about things that you should or could be buying online instead of from your contractor, Things that you might save money on, things that you might actually get a better product if you buy online.

but I'm also going to go over a few things that you should not be buying online, things that you know to stay away from, things that might appear like they're just as good or that you're saving a buck by buying it online and maybe you shouldn't So if you don't know me my name is Josh I Host the HVAC guide for homeowners YouTube channel. Give us a subscribe for more tips in the heating and air industry, Let's dive into this: Things you should be buying or could be buying online. The first one is pretty simple. It's air filters and the reason I put air filters on this this list is: I'm going to put a link down in the description some air filters that you might save money purchasing, but that's really the big reason that it's not that they're any better quality or less quality if you buy them online.

There's a few companies that are known for being able to sell directly to homeowners and help them save money, and they're actually at times getting just as good again or a better product for less money. So click those links down below: getting those air filters. Sometimes you might have to buy a few, maybe buy a year Supply to get a better price, but in the end, you're going to save so much more money by just buying it this way, have it come directly to your door. There's other programs out there.

there's subscription programs and things like that and lots of different ways that again, you can have it shipped directly to your door. You know it's getting done. It's not like, oh, you know I keep forgetting to get those air filters I Keep forgetting to buy them. They come directly to your front door and you can get those replaced, keeping your system running efficiently, clean, and so on just because you're buying them online.

Number Two Thermostats and this is kind of a controversial one. There are Brands out there that will say that if you buy them online or if you're buying the residential, the homeowner version, you're not getting quite as good of a version or as good of a thermostat. But I'll be honest with someone that's in this industry in the grand scheme of things. I Think in general, you can buy again, just as good of a thermostat and sometimes save a few dollars by buying them online.

In fact, I'll be honest and this is I'm Really Gonna Be controversial here and let you know that there's been a few times that I've even bought thermostats online that you know our suppliers supposed to be selling us stuff at wholesale prices and I'm being able to buy it at retail cheaper than I could get it from some of our wholesale suppliers. So I've even bought thermostats online before being able to purchase it online, but also compare them. You get a front row seat at times being able to pull up pictures What do I want to have hanging on my wall? Which ones have the functionality? which ones are best for my needs? You'll be able to do that and again purchase it online. Next would be air cleaners.

and I'm going to be more specific on the products that are Standalone air cleaners or air filtration, not ones that you're going to be dealing with opening up your heating and air system and things like that. I Think that's fine for some homeowners to be doing stuff like that if they do know what they're doing, but in some cases they don't and they're in there messing with stuff and there actually might cause more issues. I've actually had homeowners replace their thermostat, wishing later that they would have hired a pro because they create more of a mess at the end. They're not getting power anymore.

you know, they forgot to kill power and now they've done pop something in that system, a fuse or Worse the Transformer They've caused other low voltage issues wishing they would have just called a pro. but I Think with the these products that I'm going to again put links down in the description of this video. Some air cleaners, some air filtration systems. I'm going to put a few of my favorites down in the description, but just products that again, you just order them online.

they come to your home. You'll be able to just plug them right directly into the wall in most cases and they'll again be cleaning the air in your home doing it different ways. Some of them use UVC technology. Some of them might have some sort of filtration, possibly HEPA filtration.

You're not inhibiting the performance of your heating and air system. You're not restricting airflow by adding some filter that's messing up the static pressures and things like that. This is a standalone unit. It's separate.

You'll be able to clean the air in your home. Some of these systems are quite impressive. There's even some brands have gotten into this game. Some of the higher heating and air manufacturing brands have even started producing some of these products.

So again, I'm gonna put links down in the description of some of my favorites. but just buying some of these products online can help you. You clean the air in your home. Maybe you have someone in your home that you're concerned, Maybe they have breathing issues or some other challenge that you want to help alleviate.

And you can buy some of these products online, not have to deal with the contractor and be able to help your family member out just by buying it online. And then finally, I'm going to put a list of some of my favorite products. Sometimes they change and this is something that we usually will put in a lot of our videos. Just hey, check out the description below.

Here's some of my favorite products and again, some of them change from time to time. so that's why you know I Stayed vague about that, but at any given time you can click down in the description some of my favorite products that you can purchase yourself online and just check those out as well. So finally, before you go, let's talk real quick about some of the products that you should not be buying online. Some of these may surprise you, and some of them probably won't.

The first one is equipment. I Am a believer that homeowners should not be buying some of the stuff we we see online. It's not because you're taking money out of my pocket. I Get that comment From time to time they'll say oh, you hate that because homeowners are taking money out of your pocket unless you're in my coverage area in my little town.

Here in: Virginia you're not taking anything from me I did a whole video right here that you can watch where I go through some of the ins and outs. some of the problems that homeowners have faced when they bought online. when they purchase some of this equipment and it's not always the reasons you think it's not just because you're hurting the contractor and taking money out of their pockets. I've actually talked to homeowners who spent thousands of dollars only to find out later that they made a mistake and they wish they would not have gone down that road.

So watch that video If You haven't But ultimately I think it's a great idea to just avoid that headache altogether. Maybe you might spend a little bit more money buying it from a contractor, but you know it's going to be installed right as long as you pick a good contractor and you alleviate a lot of those headaches that'll lot of homeowners have gone through. When they did try to buy these products online, the only other products that I would just highly recommend you don't purchase online and that is some of these air cleaning type products that they do require you installing them in your heating and air system. So if you are a homeowner, you don't really know what you're doing.

Some of these products actually look like the same thing that your contractor is installing or selling and I will tell you in some cases they only appear to be and they're not. And so when you're buying some of these products, some of the UV lights and some of the other air cleaning products where you've got to get in there and install it in your ductwork or your air handler, furnace whatever in some way shape or form. I Would highly recommend staying away from that stuff if it is something that you want to get in your home. Maybe it is some sort of UV light or whole home air filter that needs to be fabricated to the ductwork.

Maybe you want to get some sort of humidifier or dehumidifier? Whatever that product is. I Would highly recommend. Just spend a little bit extra money to have it professionally installed and hopefully in the end, avoid those headaches. and in the end, avoid the money that you would spend on these products.

That might end up being a waste. so that's just my two cents. You may disagree with that. Maybe you have purchased some of these products online that fall in that category and had success.

and I Gotta say that's great. more power to you I've just been down this road a few times and had folks on here folks that we've helped with our new HVAC guide and customers that we've had at Griffin Air that eventually approached us and said man I made just such a huge mistake here So I wanted to touch on that in this video. Did I miss Any are there products that you do like to purchase for your heating and air system or for your home that you always get online? I'd love to hear about those. Please comment down below.

Thanks for watching Hit that subscribe button. We'll see you next time.