In one instance, he was aware the product purchased required three-phase electric, but the buyer lived in the country where such power specifications were not available. A buyer often has no clue what he wants and he is dealing with somebody who has no clue what he has.” They just don’t know what they are selling or getting. Joseph, Mich., said, “Most people who buy and sell on eBay are honest. Then when they call in a contractor, the contractor has got to tell them that it won’t work.”Ĭontractor Keith Kramp of Double K Enterprises of St. “They may have a freezer, yet buy a condensing unit and coils for a cooler. The refrigeration business is an applied science.” He said that’s one reason nearly all wholesalers won’t sell to nonlicensed individuals.īut often, he said, customers buy units or components for units online that don’t match. “We contractors have a good idea what a customer needs.
He said he preferred contractors - not customers - buy equipment through reputable supply sources. But that system is hardly fail-safe say HVACR industry contractors and manufacturers.ĬONTRACTOR'S PERSPECTIVE “On eBay you don’t know what the hell you are getting,” said Dean Slowik of Slowik Refrigeration of Benton Harbor, Mich. After every transaction, both buyer and seller have the option of rating each other.
The major fraud prevention mechanism for users is a feedback system. As with many mail order services, where you can’t literally “kick the tires,” purchases on sites such as eBay have a buyer beware aspect. THE E-BAY REVOLUTION The concept of eBay itself arrived in 1995 as an online auction and shopping Website on which bids are placed on products being offered for sale. Nevertheless, the idea of surfing the Internet from the comfort of home, the excitement of bidding online, and the thrill of being the successful bidder is capturing the attention of those seeking big-ticket refrigeration equipment just as much as it attracts those looking for some rare antique or an actual bottle of Elvis’ sweat. Even then, if a product is damaged in shipping, it can be returned - usually with no questions asked. And they point out that the manufacturing process involves state-of-the-art packaging at the factory and use of reputable carriers for transport. They will tell you that newer refrigeration equipment coming from manufacturers through conventional ordering and delivery channels have warranties that are honored without question. The store owners, none with an extensive refrigeration background, had simply surfed the Web, found a piece of equipment that seemed like it could provide cooling and freezing, put in a more than likely pretty low-ball bid - and ended up getting what they paid for.Īlmost to a person, those actively involved in the HVACR industry can point to the pitfalls of online third-party buying - the biggest one being no guarantees and no warranties. Or perhaps it was an older unit that had a good price and the buyer was hoping to get a few more years out of it.īut in these three cases, there is one fairly new twist: All the units were ordered on eBay. The problem can often be traced to damage in shipping.
These true stories have been repeated over and over again in the HVACR industry. “She didn’t know what she was buying,” was the opinion of a local licensed contractor called in to take a look at the machine. What she didn’t know was that the unit was running on R-12 and R-502, and their days as easy-to-get and cost-effective refrigerants were numbered. Story 3: The owner of a bakery needed a self-contained refrigerator-freezer and the folks she ordered it from were kind enough to bring it all the way from Iowa to Michigan and get it going.
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