If you’ve got an appointment to have the furnace repairman come clean your furnace, you may be wondering about not only if you should tip them for their services, but if so, how much the appropriate amount is. Don’t worry; you’re not alone!
Tipping a furnace cleaner isn’t required or expected. Because furnace maintenance specialists have a job with lots of inherent risks, their employers usually pay them quite reasonably, so they don’t rely on client tips for their livelihood. People who do tip, usually tip between $5 - 30.
However, at the end of the day, whether or not you tip your furnace cleaner is a personal choice. Let’s look at what drives some people to tip their furnace cleaner and how much is commonly given.
Most people who choose to tip their furnace cleaner do so for a variety of reasons, including:
Source: TipWho
However, you do not have to tip your furnace cleaner. Usually, in the US, tipping is only required for occupations where the service provider primarily relies on tips as their main source of income, such as waitresses and bartenders, who are often paid mostly by customer tips rather than per hour.
Furnace repairmen (who are responsible for furnace cleaning services), provided they work for a decent company, will be paid a reasonable salary, to begin with. When they come to complete the cleaning job, most furnace repairmen will not expect a tip from you. In fact, it would be inappropriate for them to ask you for one.
Not only that, but furnace repairmen especially low-risk jobs, whereas people may be more inclined to tip if the repairmen had to do something strenuous or dangerous.
So rest easy—your furnace cleaner is not going to think you’re a bad person if you don’t give them a tip upon completion of their job. That said, many people consider it good form to tip when they receive any kind of service—even when it’s not customary or required. If that sounds like you, let’s examine what kind of tip would be considered appropriate in this scenario.
If you’re looking to tip your furnace cleaner even though it’s not required,m ost people hover around $20 dollars. This is more than enough. With the costs of furnace cleaning and repairs, if you followed the restaurant rule of 15-20%, you’d be in for a pretty hefty tipping fee.
If you want to tip your furnace cleaner but are concerned about the financial burden of a more expensive one, consider giving them around $5 over and telling them to keep the change. Or, if you’d like to be especially generous, you could give a $30 tip.
If you want to do something nice for your furnace cleaner but you’re low on funds with which to do so, offering them a cold beverage, snack, or lunch instead is a great way to show your kindness and appreciation without the extra financial burden. In fact, some furnace technicians even say this is preferable to a cash tip.
Source: ACHR News.
However, even if you’re someone who tips habitually, there may be cases in which doing so isn’t such a good idea. Let’s examine some situations in which this might be the case.
There are times where tipping your furnace cleaner is not appropriate or warranted. This can depend on factors such as quality of service and company rules surrounding tipping. Some of those times you may not want to tip your furnace cleaner may include when:
Essentially, you don’t want to reinforce bad service with a tip that’s unnecessary in the first place. And don’t be offended if the repairman refuses the tip—it’s likely because their company doesn’t let them accept tips in the first place.
In most cases, it is unnecessary to tip your furnace cleaner, and they will not expect one from you. That said, if you would still like to give your furnace cleaner a tip, you could consider giving them around $20 as an extra thank you (if their company lets them accept tips) or even just a cool beverage or snack. And of course, if you’re provided with poor service, there is even less need to tip.