Who Did It Best? Pro Secrets Revealed

We sat down with Josh Callahan, a born-to-do-it electrician turned energy expert working in South Jersey, to discover how he does his job and what you can learn from his experience. Because all customers should feel like “good customers.”

How long have you been doing the contractor thing, Josh?

I’ve been doing it for four years. I’m an electrician by trade. I’ve been doing electric work pretty much since I was old enough to know how to spell “electrician” because I come from a family of them. My wife would work for my brother-in-law, and every now and again they would need an electrician to come fix something or they’d ask a question. Well, finally, he had hounded me enough to come work for him about four years ago. And I’ve been doing it ever since.

^*Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

And what do you get out of your job?

The biggest thing is the satisfaction of helping people who feel like they’ve exhausted all their options in trying to make their home more efficient. Or people trying to fix a discomfort that they’ve been having. Being able to give them a solution or telling them, “Hey, you’re on the right path, keep doing what you’re doing and eventually you’ll have that problem solved. You just need to do more of what you’re doing.”

With the programs we participate in, the ones that are paid for by the utilities, it’s the simple things that actually make some of the customers happy.

Got any good examples of this happening?

One story is not mine, but it was a heartwarming story from one of the technicians that I work with.

About two years ago, we were in this guy’s house and his mom had just passed away. The house had kind of gotten destroyed in a way—people broke in, messed some things up. Well, the showerhead in the bathroom was completely clogged. It was barely just a drip when you would turn it on. We replaced the showerhead for the guy and he finally had water pressure. The guy broke down in tears because he could actually take a real shower again.

Are there any big things that you discover or is it more simple everyday stuff?

It’s a lot of little things. There are some big things that we discover. You know, I’ve discovered total disconnects of your ducting system. So, you’re paying hundreds of dollars a month to air condition your attic or your crawl space instead of the room that it was designed to cool. That usually relates to the discomfort that a customer is having.

When you hit something big like that, how does that feel?

That actually feels pretty good too, because it brings an immediate answer to a question. For years, this customer might be asking why. Well, I found the answer for you. They might not know they need to call an HVAC guy until I tell them. Or if it’s one of the programs where we do it, it’s an instant thing. We go up there, we see the problem, we reconnect it, and by the time we leave, they have air again.

It seems like you’re helping them out in two ways: with comfort and then helping them save energy and money. Is that how you feel it went down?

I think comfort and energy efficiency kind of go hand in hand in the customer’s eyes. Say drafty windows, for instance. You’re sitting in your living room and you feel the breeze. “Hold your hand right here and you can feel the wind pushing through.”

As an energy expert, I can look at your window and say, “Well, you know, you’re just missing a bead of caulk around the trim.” I can usually take a customer over to it and say, “Hold your hand right here and you can feel the wind pushing through.” The customer might think, “I need new windows and I know I can’t afford it.” Well, you might not necessarily need new windows. You just need to go buy a tube of caulk for a few dollars and seal around the edges.

When you show up, do you kind of go into detective mode to find clues?

Yeah, you listen to what the customer says, then you have to go find the reason why. Sometimes it’s not obvious. Sometimes we have to refer them to other programs where they bring out the blower door and do diagnostic testing. A lot of what we do is visual inspections to see what the obvious problems are. We always try to go in and play detective and try to locate the problem as fast as we can and give as many solutions as possible. Stage Two is where they do the diagnostic testing. They bring in the blower door, which depressurizes the home and will show you every air leak that that home has. You won’t be able to see it, but you will be able to feel it.

What are some other tests that you use?

We’ll test for carbon monoxide leaks and gas leaks in the home. This is all part of that Stage Two testing. Before you even run the blower door, you want to make sure there are no health hazards—no asbestos, biological growth or anything that could resemble mold.

How does it feel to show them an opportunity to improve their health versus just their comfort or their bill?

Health and safety are always something that we try to drive home. Certain things, health- and safety-wise, could coincide with energy efficiency. If we notice discoloration in a bathroom or basement, we could point to a higher level of moisture or lack of ventilation. It all kind of works together.

Is there any piece of advice you’d give to someone who’s considering bringing you out?

I would definitely say if there are any concerns you have about your home, it’s always worth having an expert take a look. We are trained to look for things that you might overlook as a homeowner. We might tell you information that you’ve never even thought was a real thing.

Get your own energy expert

You can schedule an appointment with your own “Josh” to find energy-saving opportunities in your home with a Whole Home Energy Assessment. Now, your Josh may be the real Josh or the most Josh-like equivalent available. Your energy expert will come to your home, check everything out and may even offer items like an advanced thermostat and smart power strips. And bonus: It’s all at no additional cost to you.

Visit atlanticcityelectric.com/WHEA26 to learn more.