Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers
Skills & Knowledge
Most Important Skills for Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers
- Repairing—Repairing machines or systems using the needed tools.
- Troubleshooting—Determining causes of operating errors and deciding what to do about it.
- Installing Equipment or Programs—Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or programs to meet specifications.
- Maintaining Equipment—Performing routine maintenance on equipment and determining when and what kind of maintenance is needed.
- Controlling Quality—Conducting tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance.
- Reading—Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
- Listening—Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
- Thinking Critically—Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
- Coordinating with Others—Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
- Monitoring Equipment—Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
Most Important Knowledge Areas for Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers
- Mechanical—Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
- Building and Construction—Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
- Customer and Personal Service—Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- Physics—Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub- atomic structures and processes.
- Design—Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
- Engineering and Technology—Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
- Mathematics—Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- Chemistry—Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal m
- Computers and Electronics—Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- English Language—Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
Interests
Different careers may be a good fit for your personality or interests. This career is:
- Realistic—Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.
- Conventional—Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.
Learn more about your interests. Take the MnCareers Interest Assessment.
Describe Your Skills
People who have worked in this career typically perform the following tasks.
These statements can help a prospective employer understand what you can do, on a resume or during an interview.
- Repairing and maintaining mechanical equipment.
- Keeping up-to-date with new knowledge.
- Making decisions or solving problems.
- Collecting information from different sources.
- Handling and moving objects.
- Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to find or fix problems.
- Performing general physical abilities.
- Controlling machines and processes.
Careers that Use Similar Skills
The following careers use skills, knowledge, and abilities that are similar to those used for Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers.
View more careers in the Architecture and Construction cluster
View more careers in the Maintenance and Operations pathway

This page includes information from the O*NET 24.2 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Source: You can learn about our data sources in the About Us section.