For heating & cooling shops
Heating & cooling: the no-heat call gets a text back, and tune-ups get rebooked.
I build small tools for heating and cooling shops: a text back when nobody can answer, a membership signup that doesn't tie up the phone, and tune-up reminders nobody has to call around for. It works next to the software you already use. You approve every message.
(641) 530-2599 · chrispoulos@praxisaisolutions.io
Copied from the heating & cooling demo. Made-up shop, real workflow. Try it yourself →
The real problem
Your busiest night is the coldest one.
When a furnace quits in January, the homeowner calls until somebody answers. Your techs are already out, nobody is free to pick up, and the call goes to voicemail. So they try the next name on Google.
The slow months have the opposite problem. Last year's tune-up customers won't call you first. Someone has to work down a list and call them. A membership plan can even out the year, but signing people up takes phone time too.
And the bills pile on. Many shops pay for a review or texting tool, an answering service whose per-minute charges climb in winter, and a website rented from their job software.
Try it on your phone
What the heating & cooling demo shows
It's a made-up shop called Example Heating & Air. Open it on your phone and tap through it the way your customer would. Nothing in it is live, so poke around.
No heat on a January night
Megan calls at 9:47 p.m. and nobody can pick up. She gets a text within a minute, and your on-call tech gets her address, her number and a note that the house is at 58 with small kids. While she waits, she gets two safe things to check.
Comfort Club signup
Members sign up online and pay on a schedule. That's steady money between the rushes, and nobody has to take the signup over the phone.
Fall tune-up reminders
Anyone due or overdue gets a friendly text with a way to book, instead of someone working down a call list.
The monthly bills
What heating and cooling shops often pay each month
These are tools heating and cooling shops often pay a monthly bill for, at published or reported prices. Each price links to where it came from.
| Tool | What it does | Price | My take | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PodiumCore plan | Texting and review requests | $399/mo | Worth a hard lookIf you mostly use it for review asks and texting, that's the part I can build for you to own. | softwarefinder.com |
| BirdeyeStarter | Review requests | $299/mostarting price | Worth a hard lookWorth a hard look if reviews are most of what you use it for. | contractortoolstack.com |
| Website from your job softwareServiceTitan or Housecall Pro | A marketing website rented from the job software company | $300–$600/moall in | Worth a hard lookYou're renting it. The site and its search ranking stay with them if you leave. | projectcostestimator.com |
Podium Core alone comes to $4,788 a year at that price.
What usually stays: your job software, your accounting and your phone service. What I build takes over the texting, reminders, review asks and after-hours replies.
Prices are what each linked page showed when I checked on October 23, 2026. Vendors change prices, and several sources are reviews or comparison sites rather than the vendor's own page, so check your own bill. I don't list my prices here. You get one written price after the free walkthrough.
How it works
How working with me goes
Every shop is different, so I don't guess from the outside. The first look is free, and nothing gets built until you've said yes to one written price.
Free walkthrough
A 20-minute call, or a free 2-minute video built for your shop. You tell me what eats your time. I tell you straight if I can fix it.
One price, in writing
A short write-up and one price before you pay anything. No hourly meter. If I can't build it, no charge.
Built around what you use
Your job software, accounting and phone service stay. The new tool works next to them, so your techs don't learn a new system.
You approve every message
You read and okay the wording before the tool sends anything, and you can change it any time.
You own it
It's yours outright. It keeps working whether or not we ever talk again.
Up and running
Most tools are working in 2 to 4 weeks from your yes. I'm a phone call away if something needs a change.
Remote or in person, same price. I'm based in Mason City, Iowa. If your shop is in North Iowa, I'll come sit at your desk. Anywhere else, we do it over a screen share: you see what I see, and you're talking to me the whole time, not a team you never meet.
Straight answers
Questions heating and cooling shops ask
Can it tell a no-heat call from a thermostat question?
That's what the first text is for. The caller answers one question, and only a real no-heat call (or no-cool, in summer) goes to your on-call phone with the address. You decide what counts.
Does this replace my answering service?
It can cover the after-hours calls an answering service catches now: the caller gets a text within a minute and you get the details. Some owners still want a live person for some calls. We'll go over what yours handles on the walkthrough.
Do I have to leave ServiceTitan or Housecall Pro?
No. Your job software stays. If you rent your website from it, we can talk about a site you own, but you don't have to change anything to start.
Do you only work with heating and cooling shops in Iowa?
No. If you're in North Iowa, I'll come to you. Everywhere else, we work over a screen share, which is how most software gets built anyway. Your zip code doesn't change the price.
What does it cost?
It depends on what your shop needs, so I don't post prices. The walkthrough is free and ends with one price in writing. A one-time tool is a one-time price, and if I can't build it, there's no charge. Texting and hosting have a small monthly bill in your own name, and I'll show you that number up front too.
Let's talk
Tell me what's eating your time.
One free call, or a free 2-minute video of what this would look like in your heating & cooling shop. If there's nothing worth building, I'll tell you that too.
You'll be talking to Chris Poulos — 20 years selling to real people face to face, now I make AI work for them. No agency, no handoffs: the person you call is the person who builds it.
Or email chrispoulos@praxisaisolutions.io