Commercial HVAC Technician — Chicago.
Sick of working for companies that treat technicians like a number? Tired of being pushed to sell memberships on every call, running six stops a day across three counties, and driving a truck held together with zip ties? This is a different kind of shop — and a different kind of owner.
What this job actually is.
You’ll join an established Chicagoland commercial HVAC service company owned and operated by Homestead Service Partners. The work is real: rooftop units, chillers, boilers, VRF systems, make-up air, refrigeration, building automation. Commercial customers who depend on their equipment running year-round and need techs who can find the actual problem — not just the symptom.
This isn’t a revolving-door shop. Homestead buys companies and keeps them. The team stays. The brand stays. The culture stays. What changes is that we invest in better trucks, better dispatch software, better training, and leadership that showed up from the trades — not from a spreadsheet.
Take-home truck. Fair dispatch. Real benefits. A boss who worked his way up from laborer, doesn’t pretend to be someone he’s not, and answers his own phone.
What a real Tuesday looks like.
Instead of a generic list, here’s what your actual day tends to look like. We built this schedule around doing good work — not cramming in as many calls as possible to hit a metric.
The stuff you won’t deal with here.
A lot of HVAC jobs look good on paper and then punish you the minute you show up. Here’s what’s off the table from day one:
- Push you to sell maintenance agreements or memberships on every call
- Dispatch you to 6 stops a day with 45-minute drives between each
- Make you buy your own hand tools to start
- Charge you for truck damage or small mistakes
- Treat PTO requests like a personal favor
- Hide behind a recruiter or HR portal
- Paid overtime at time-and-a-half, every hour over 40
- Stocked take-home truck with modern diagnostics
- A dispatch system that respects drive time and call complexity
- Direct access to leadership — no recruiter chain
- Health, dental, and vision coverage
- Paid time off, paid holidays, and real sick days
What you’ll actually do.
- Diagnose and repair: Troubleshoot and repair commercial HVAC systems including RTUs, split systems, chillers, boilers, and refrigeration equipment. Find the root cause, not just the symptom.
- Preventive maintenance: Complete scheduled PM visits, document findings, and flag issues before they become 2 AM emergencies.
- Customer communication: Speak clearly with facility managers and building owners about what you found, what it needs, and what it’ll cost. No upsell pressure.
- Documentation: Complete work orders accurately and quickly — labor, parts, equipment notes, photos. Do it right the first time.
- On-call rotation: Share the emergency rotation with the rest of the team. Paid call-out plus hourly time.
- Safety and compliance: Work within OSHA guidelines, refrigerant rules, and company safety protocols every day.
- Keep learning: Stay current on new equipment, refrigerant regulations, controls, and diagnostics. Training is paid.
What you’ll touch.
You don’t need to have worked on every one of these — but hands-on experience across several makes you a stronger fit.
Who we’re looking for.
- 2+ years of hands-on experience servicing commercial HVAC equipment
- EPA Universal Certification (required)
- Strong troubleshooting skills across electrical, mechanical, and refrigerant systems
- Comfortable reading schematics and wiring diagrams
- Professional on job sites and with customers
- Reliable, self-directed, good follow-through
- Valid driver’s license with a clean driving record
- Willing to participate in an on-call rotation (paid)
Nice to have, not required
- Experience with building automation (Tridium, Honeywell, Johnson Controls)
- NATE certification or manufacturer-specific training
- Experience with commercial refrigeration or process cooling
- Familiarity with ServiceTitan, BuildOps, or ServiceTrade
- OSHA 10 or OSHA 30
- Trade school diploma or completed apprenticeship
How the pay actually works.
Base pay depends on experience, certifications, and how well you diagnose. No games. Here’s the real breakdown:
Plus overtime at 1.5×, paid on-call, company truck, health/dental/vision, PTO, paid holidays, boot and tool allowance, and paid continuing education. The bigger point: this is a shop that invests in technicians instead of burning through them.
Questions techs actually ask.
Do I have to sell memberships or upsells?
No. You’re a technician, not a salesperson. Do good work, document it honestly, let the service manager handle the membership program separately.
How many calls per day?
Typically 3–4 thorough calls, not 6 rushed ones. We’d rather you do one job right than three jobs wrong.
Do you provide tools?
Major diagnostic and specialty tools are provided and stocked on your truck. You bring your own hand tools. Boot and tool allowance paid annually.
What’s the on-call rotation?
Typically one week out of every four, rotated across the service team. On-call is paid as a stipend plus hourly time for any calls taken.
What truck will I get?
Late-model service van — Ford Transit or equivalent — fully wrapped with the shop’s branding, stocked with common parts and specialty tools.
How fast can I hear back?
Email goes straight to Michael. If there’s a potential fit, you’ll hear back within 48 hours — often same day. No black hole.
Two ways to get started.
Every application goes directly to Michael Mayes, the CEO. No recruiter chain, no junior screener, no applicant tracking system eating your resume.
Email goes straight to the owner.
If there’s a potential fit, you’ll hear back from Michael personally — usually within a day or two.
Email Your Resume →Who you’d be working for.
Homestead Service Partners is a Chicago-based company that buys and operates commercial HVAC service businesses across Chicagoland. Not private equity. Not a roll-up. We buy companies to keep them — protect the teams, preserve the brand, and invest in tools that help the business grow.
Michael Mayes, the CEO, started his career as a stone mason — laborer to owner — before building businesses in regulated industries. He knows what field work actually looks like, and what it feels like to work for someone who treats you like a number. Homestead exists because he’s trying to build something better.
What to expect
Direct communication, stable ownership, clean operations, and leadership that understands what a bad day on a rooftop in February actually feels like.
What we value
Craftsmanship, accountability, professionalism, and technicians who take pride in solving hard problems the right way — even when nobody’s watching.
A shop that respects the craft.
Email your resume directly to the CEO. Or schedule a confidential call first. No pressure, no obligation — just a better job than the one you’ve got now.