1364 Nyc Energy Interviews

Rate this transcript (CTRL + click):
poor excellent
1364 NYC Energy Interviews

_1364_TRC_June28_930amET_MT
June 28, 2019 at 9:20 AM Eastern Time
Interviewer: [Pause] Good morning, Mark. How are you?
Respondent: How are you doing?
Interviewer: I’m doing well, thanks. I’m going to restart my webcam because at least, on my
end, it looks like it froze there for a minute. Alright, sounds like that should work.
I’m going to start us off by telling you a little bit about what we’re going to do in
our time together. As you can see on the screen there, my name is Ingrid and I’m a
professional moderator. This is what I do for a living. What that means is that I talk
to all kinds of different people about all sorts of different topics. You and I are
going to be talking about heating and cooling systems today. Next week, I could be
talking to people about how they purchase light bulbs or what they like about their
SUVs.
Respondent: That’s incredible.
Interviewer: It’s a lot of fun. I get to learn a lot and I get to talk to a lot of really cool people so
it’s fun. The reason I’m telling you this is because we’re going to talking about this
heating and cooling system and I want you to understand that I don’t work for a
company that makes manufacturer’s markets so this system. Next week, I could be
talking about a completely different topic so if you love this stuff we’re talking
about, that’s fabulous. I want to hear about that. If you don’t like anything, it’s
really important that I hear that as well. You’re not going to hurt my feelings.
You’re not going to get [Unintelligible], nothing like that.
Transcripts@civi.com | www.TranscriptionWing.com | 888-223-9488
The only transcription company with ListenLinkTM!

Respondent: I’m very straightforward.
Interviewer: Awesome, that is absolutely perfect. All I want from you is honesty and there’s no
right and wrong answers to anything I’m going to ask you. It’s nothing difficult.
Everything you have to tell me is the right answer by default.
Respondent: There’s no math. I want to [Unintelligible]
Interviewer: Yes, no math. I promise. [Laughter]
Respondent: I’m joking around. [Laughter]
Interviewer: I’m going to be jotting some notes while we chat to keep track of things. Also,
recording this call helps me at the end when I need to pull together a report with
my findings.
Respondent: Absolutely.
Interviewer: I know that you participated in an online survey about this topic. Thank you so
much for doing that. We’re going to talk about some of the same things that you
talked about in the survey, just going over them with you in more depth and detail
and we’ll hopefully hit on some new areas as well, okay? That is my spiel so, now, I
want to learn all about you. Why don’t you start up by telling me a little bit about
your household, who are the people who make up your household, and who else is
there?
Respondent: It’s me and my wife. My mother is here on and off. That’s all. We’re about 1,500
square feet. We have very old –
Interviewer: A single family home or a town home?
Respondent: Yes.
Interviewer: Okay, single family.
Respondent: The AC system and the heating system are very old, maybe 20 years.
Interviewer: Got you. Do you know what kind of system you have?
Page 2 of 23
Respondent: We knew that one before. It’s natural gas and we have vents. We have central air
and a natural gas boiler.
Interviewer: Awesome, what do you do for –
Respondent: It factored into the price when we bought it. [Crosstalk]
Interviewer: Got you. How long have you been living in the house?
Respondent: Only about a year.
Interviewer: What drew you to the house? What made you choose that out of the other places
that you might have been looking at?
Respondent: It was the block I lived on when I was younger.
Interviewer: Nice.
Respondent: I think that was it. That was pretty much [Unintelligible] to it. I knew it already.
You go back home in the end.
Interviewer: That’s awesome. What do you do for a living?
Respondent: I do graphics in Manhattan at an investment bank.
Interviewer: That sounds interesting.
Respondent: Very interesting when you’re starting, then things get rote but it’s good.
Interviewer: I think that’s probably often the case, right? [Laughter]
Respondent: [Laughter] Yes.
Interviewer: What do you like to do for fun when you’re not working?
Respondent: What do I like to do for fun? I like to go out to a nice restaurant. I like to see
movies. I like the theatre. I like the opera. You’re not getting any of that
[Unintelligible]. I like the theatre. I like musicals. I like opera. I like movies. I’m a
little bit particular, film noir independent off-beat kind of things.
Page 3 of 23
Interviewer: Awesome.
Respondent: Yes, I exercise because the way they’ve gotten too much pounds [Unintelligible]
maybe four or five times a week and I used to gamble more than I do now but I go
to the casino every now and then.
Interviewer: Got you.
Respondent: [Crosstalk] work around the house. [Unintelligible] but I could put things together
for [Unintelligible].
Interviewer: That’s great.
Respondent: That’s about it.
Interviewer: What’s an example of a project you’ve done around the house recently?
Respondent: A dresser drawer and it was a nightmare. [Unintelligible] but it came from
[Crosstalk].
Interviewer: Sometimes, they get so, the ones that look like they’re going to be a piece of cake.
Yes, [Crosstalk]
Respondent: - charging $100.00. They charge $100.00 to put it together, $150.00, and I said
“Let me do it myself.” Next time, I’ll just pay the $150.00.
Interviewer: [Laughter] Yes, my next question is a big question but I am interested in your
personal values. What is most important in your life right now? What are they types
of things that you’re worrying about or working toward?
Respondent: The most important thing is always family. My nephew has a child coming on the
way. Health, [Unintelligible] which is good. That’s good and then, money. These
are things I worry about and are concerned about and just [taking built] around the
house. Get the mortgage, electricity, eat and the water bills and a million other
things. I had an ear infection last week. The ear drops were $200.00
[Unintelligible] so the things I’m concerned are your family, health, myself and my
family, money and friends.
Page 4 of 23
Interviewer: Family and friends and relationships.
Respondent: It would be great if money wasn’t in that list but, realistically, money is an
important thing. It is what it is.
Interviewer: What about challenges? What are some of your daily challenges and struggles?
Respondent: Challenges and struggles, keeping work interesting, keeping life interesting and
trying to keep it new. What else have I got? Eating right, because that’s my go-to
since I don’t really gamble that much anymore and I don’t really drink. That’s my
vice so keeping that under control even under stress. That’s a daily goal. Spending
some time with the wife and speaking to my mother everyday and family, emailing
them very often. These are my goals everyday just to stay on top of things and to
keep close with everyone.
Interviewer: That’s fabulous. We’re going to start talking about heat pumps. I have something
to show you on my screen here so this should [Crosstalk] for you. If the font is too
small for you to see or something like that, I’m happy to read it out loud if you
need me to. Why don’t you read this over to yourself and then, let me know when
you’re done and we can chat about it.
Respondent: [Activity] Okay, I didn’t know about the first one, removing heat from the air
outside and inside. I didn’t know that it cooled by moving heat from inside to
outside. That’s pretty fascinating.
Interviewer: What are your overall - [Crosstalk] Got you and talk to me about your thoughts.
What do you think about this system? Positive, negative impressions overall?
Respondent: Positive, I’m trying to not get a bias from what I’ve read already. Positive in that it
seems to save quite a bit of money on gas, et cetera. [Crosstalk]
Interviewer: [Audio Gap] – from what you’re seeing here. What is it telling you that it’s going to
save quite a bit of money?
Respondent: That’s why I’m trying not to be biased from what I’ve read. I’m just trying because
I read that - [Crosstalk]
Page 5 of 23
Interviewer: Bring that in. Talk to me first about what resources have you turned to to find out
more information about heat pumps?
Respondent: I really just Google it. [Laughter] The whole world does that.
Interviewer: That’s great. There are no wrong answers here.
Respondent: If I’m correct, there are coils involved and not so much gas. Maybe a third or half
of the price and the way the coils work impress me. The way the air is sucked in
instead of blown out and the way that you have to boil it now to burn gas a lot to
create heat. The way it took cold air from the outside and heated it is such a
different way of doing things. It’s probably more environmentally friendly and
cheaper. I’m not an activist but if I can help out with the environment, I’m willing
to do it but money was interesting. The indoor is fascinating. I find that fascinating
that there’s an indoor system.
Interviewer: What do you find fascinating about the indoor system specifically?
Respondent: It looks sharp. It doesn’t look like it’s something that you don’t want. Nobody’s
seeing your [backyard] but it looks sharper than the thing in the [backyard]. Not
that that matters but I’m just impressed about the size and the appearance.
Interviewer: Great.
Respondent: I don’t understand completely how it works but I have an idea from what I’ve read
about the coils and a small grasp but not complete. Even if they’re not reading, it’s
not a complete grasp.
Interviewer: You mentioned earlier that you read that it’s a third or half of the price. Just so
I’m clear, a third or a half of the price of putting a new boiler in?
Respondent: My heating bill.
Interviewer: Okay, saving money on your bill every month.
Page 6 of 23
Respondent: In the long-term, that’s where the money savings is. The bills are brutal in New
York and I also didn’t know it could be used for cooling. I thought it was just for
heating.
Interviewer: Okay so that’s new information. What do you think about that, the idea that it can
be used for cooling?
Respondent: I think that’s great if I can save money over what I’m using now which is brutal. If
you can be more environmentally friendly and save money, you’re talking a
tremendous amount every year because bills out here are $200.00 and change,
even $300.00. They’re monstrous.
Interviewer: When you’re going to Google, just walk me through how you’re doing that
research. You wanted to find out more information about a system like this. You go
to Google and you’re doing a keyword search. What kind of keywords are you
putting in?
Respondent: I actually put in the words “air source heat pump” because the person that I spoke
to to invite me to this mentioned that and I jotted it down because I didn’t recall it
from the survey completely but I just jotted it down.
Interviewer: If you can imagine, you moved into your house about a year ago. You have this AC
and heating system on their last legs. You know you’re going to replace them
before too long anyway so this is in your mind. Imagine that you had not been
contacted for this research about the heat pump but you just knew that you had to
replace your heating and cooling system at some point. How would you approach
that decision about how to get information about what was out there and what
might work for you? Tell me a little bit about how you would get information?
Respondent: To be blunt, I would call friends and family, anyone who’s had it done recently
and, as always, they should have had it done recently that I know. They certainly
didn’t go this route thought they might have wanted to if they knew and then, I
would use that contractor and I’d spend a bundle on a new AC and heating system
and boiler and that would be it. I wouldn’t really think there were many different
options.
Page 7 of 23
Interviewer: Got you and where would online research fit to this, if at all? Say, you talked to
your friends and family and everyone’s like “I haven’t done this recently. I’m not
sure what’s out there?”
Respondent: I would check into prices first for an AC unit and heating unit. I would check out
what gasses are available to me that I can use. I’d be lying if I said I knew what I
could use and what I could do and I don’t based on heating vents and air vents and
not the old radiators. What are my options and what are my options? Then, I would
do research on the different brands that are offered, different kinds and different
sizes. Boilers, they all come in sizes and strengths. I do a lot of reading when I
purchase something. When I buy a car, I’d probably do upwards of 50-100 hours of
reading so I would - [Crosstalk]
Interviewer: When you’re trying to get information just on what your options are, do you think
you would do a Google search or do you think –
Respondent: Yes.
Interviewer: You would, okay. What kind of keywords would you do to find out what your
options were?
Respondent: I would put in “new heating systems, new air conditioning systems and boilers.” I’d
probably look at capacity and fuel alternatives. I would look at a lot and then, I
would go to these brands or these other sites and I would read those. I can’t tell
what the sites are because I would see them listed in Google and I would go to
them but I’d be spending a lot of time before I buy something. Something like this,
I would be on 10-20 hours online reading.
Respondent: Maybe 10.
Interviewer: Any other information that you would be looking for or that would make an impact
on you other than price, capacity, specs and things like that on these sites?
Respondent: I’d never thought about it in-house so I never thought about the look and what did
you mention? You mentioned price and –
Page 8 of 23
Interviewer: Yes, price, and just like the specs. You mentioned the BTUs and things like these.
Other than price, specs and you mentioned seeing pictures and what it’s going to
look like, any other information you’d be looking for online that would make a
difference in your decisions?
Respondent: I would be concerned about the environmental impact and the longevity of the
system because we’re talking 20 years. It’s just about the end of the life cycle and,
like I said, I’m not an activist but if I can help a little, I will and if I can save me a
few bucks, I will so I would look at what gas is cheap and what’s expected to stay
cheap and what’s not. Gas, oil - [Crosstalk]
Interviewer: What about customer reviews and testimonials and things like that? Is that
something you look at?
Respondent: Excellent point, I always read customer reviews and I read a lot of them. I make
sure I read the worst and the best. I think I read the worst and the best more than
the two, three or four stars. I don’t read as much as the fives and ones.
Interviewer: Why is that?
Respondent: Because you get the extremes and then, you balance out after reading dozens of
each, what’s really going on? Are the one stars grouchy people and what was the
reason that they gave it a star? Was it delivered on time? That’s not a good enough
reason. The delivery reason wasn’t nice. Is that a good enough reason but the
system was faulty after a year. Is it a good reason? The five stars, the delivery man
was nice. That doesn’t matter or the [Crosstalk], that doesn’t matter. The thing it
lasted me 15 years and it’s still going great. The bills with this kind of system or
that kind of system are better. If there are hundreds of reviews and, sometimes,
there are, if I’ve got to choose, I’ll choose the one star and the five stars. I always
read one star. Even on movie reviews, I read the one stars. I read the best and the
worst and then, I read some of the in-betweens.
Interviewer: Okay.
Page 9 of 23
Respondent: The wording is important. Not just the stars but what the people said and what
counted. Like I said, what matters to me, not if someone’s late or someone’s
grouchy or nasty, I don’t care about that.
Interviewer: Right, I’ve got another fun activity for you here. Bring something new up on the
screen and I will orient you to what’s going on here. Now, at the bottom, you see
all those little text boxes. Those are different potential benefits of this air source
heat pump unit that we’ve been looking at and what I’m going to ask you to do is
sort them into the buckets that they belong in for you in terms of how important
these would be in your decision making. The green bucket over there in one corner
is for the things that are super important and highly motivating. The middle with
red, we’ve got our things that are not important, not going to factor in, don’t care
and not going to motivate me to look into this and then, our yellow bucket is for
the middle ground, stuff that’s maybe nice to have but not going to make or break
the decision. I will drag and drop them. We’re going through these one by one and
we’ll talk about them, okay? The first one here is the idea that you might have an
incentive program from a utility company or other organizations that purchase a
system like this. What bucket would this be in for you?
Respondent: I have read about this from utility companies. We get this when we got mail and
when we send the bills online, we get it and it has interested very much. I’m
surprised that I left this completely out of the equation when we started talking
about it but that’s the way it always is. I guess you’re a little nervous when you
talk and you forget things [Crosstalk] and remember as soon as you had enough.
Interviewer: No worries.
Respondent: You remember [Unintelligible] mentioned at all. Yes, it seems like there are
incentives for installing certain products that’s even past ongoing incentives and
from reading them, that sounds highly important. It seemed like there was
substantial savings involved especially in New York City where they’re really on this
environmental kick. You get something that really falls into what they want you to
have. You can save a lot of money.
Interviewer: Great, how about the idea that you can have control over your home’s comfort?
Page 10 of 23
Respondent: Control over my home’s comfort, I guess they’re talking about the heating and the
temperature. It’s just something I expect. Any unit I expect, if I put it on 68, it
should be 68 or if I put it on 72, it should be 72.
Respondent: That’s the only comfort I esteem that I can derive from a heating and cooling
system. I don’t know where it falls because it’s expected.
Interviewer: Is that highly important because you expect to do its job or is that somewhat
important because it’s table stakes so it’s not going to really impress you?
Respondent: A car goes forward if you step on the pedal. I don’t consider that highly important
in 2019 because I expect it, somewhat important.
Interviewer: I’ll put it in “somewhat important” for you then. That sounds good. How about the
idea that it’s safer than other heating and cooling systems because it doesn’t
produce carbon monoxide?
Respondent: They would boo me all over the world for this. There are detectors in the house
and I’m not just the kind of person to worry about if I don’t wake up one morning
because but I won’t know because I’ll be dead.
Interviewer: [Laughter]
Respondent: I won’t say “Oh, my God! I died from carbon monoxide poisoning. This is awful. I’m
dead!” I don’t know. Honestly, I’ve got a couple of things in the house so not
important.
Interviewer: That’s funny. That’s the best laugh I’ve had on this project. Thank you for that.
[Laughter]
Respondent: Okay, [Unintelligible]. Thanks so much. I expect these things to work. I expect it to
be able to get it out, not important.
Interviewer: Awesome, how about the idea that you’re going to avoid window blockage with this
system?
Page 11 of 23
Respondent: If it’s in the back window, I’m trying to think that it’d have to be pretty damned
tall to block my windows and they just never are that big. I would say “not
important.”
Interviewer: Not important, okay, and it sounds like you have big windows and it would have to
be a big –
Respondent: They’re just high off the ground and my unit doesn’t come close to the windows. I
can’t imagine any system being big enough.
Interviewer: I think, for most people, they’re using window ACs but you have central air so, for
you, you don’t have a system that is currently blocking your windows.
Respondent: Those are awful. I had the portables and then, it will be highly motivating. I’ve had
portables in the old place and then, it’s sticking in the window and it’s unsightly
and the hole is going out. It will be highly important if I had portable air
conditioning like we did at the old place when we were towards the end and the AC
went, [the extension], and we didn’t want to repair it. There was no reason to.
Interviewer: Not important for you, you’ve got central air but if you had ACs, that would be a
different story.
Respondent: Sure, and [Crosstalk] in the window. We had the portable ones that stayed indoors.
The [Unintelligible] in the window are awful. That would be highly important.
Interviewer: How about the idea that a system like this could increase the value of your home?
Respondent: That’s somewhat important. I don’t think it would be –
Interviewer: Okay.
Respondent: I would have to know more to say “highly important,” how much it would increase
and that’s something I can’t know right here and right now so it’s, at the least,
somewhat important and possibly highly important.
Interviewer: How about the idea that this is new or smart technology?
Page 12 of 23
Respondent: It’s either between “somewhat” or “highly.” I’m trying to decide. I know I would
be dealing with the [Crosstalk].
Interviewer: Talk me through it. What are your thoughts about new smart technology? What’s
the benefit to you, if any, and maybe we’ll figure out which one it belongs in for
you?
Respondent: We have a cat and I’d like him to be comfortable. He’s a creature but we’re not
going have the same temperature in cooling or heating if I’m out and not that I’d
let him freeze to death or [Unintelligible] steam but maybe if it was the winter
instead of if my wife wanted 70, I’d have it on 68 for the cat and 67 in the summer
instead of having it. I like it cool like 56 or something. I’d put it on 72 for the day
and - [Crosstalk]
Interviewer: Do you get the impression that you can control this remotely from your
smartphone? Is that your assumption? Is that what I’m hearing?
Respondent: Absolutely, in 2019, I would expect that.
Interviewer: Okay, if you couldn’t, would that be “What kind of a system is this but I can’t do
that?”
Respondent: I would think it is what it is but if it’s something 20 years down the road, it’s going
to be a staple. It’s going to be like the car or the washing machine and you don’t
have and people buying people places that got me thinking if they don’t
[Unintelligible] just doesn’t have that. It’s so common now. Down the line, I would
say highly important. Maybe not now but instead in 40 years, if you’re selling
[Unintelligible] not going to be an innovation like it is now. Obviously, for that
reason –
Interviewer: Highly or –
Respondent: For the fact that I can save money adjusting the temperature from the outside and
the fact that I think it’s going to be expected in the future, I’m going to say it’s
highly important.
Page 13 of 23
Interviewer: Alright, we got that one sorted. How about the idea that it cools your home? I know
earlier you were saying when you were initially looking at things, you only were
reading about the heating so the idea that it could also cool your home was new
information. What bucket does this belong in for you?
Respondent: This all pertains to the system we are talking about, that it’s highly important.
Interviewer: Yes, the air storage and heat pumps.
Respondent: It’s highly important.
Interviewer: Tell me about that. Why is the idea that it cannot only heat but also cool so
important to you?
Respondent: Because the monthly cost is tremendous and, again, if it saves on the heating side,
it must be able to save on the cooling side. It can’t be that much different of a
system being used and I would imagine it would save me. Even if it saved me a
third or 25%, that’s a fortune over the years living in New York City.
Interviewer: How about the idea that it provides uniform heating and cooling for a consistent
temperature?
Respondent: This is another one that should be expected but it’s not. For some reason, it just
doesn’t work that way.
Interviewer: In your experience, your system is not providing this correctly.
Respondent: No, the bottom floor is always freezing. The higher floors are always warmer.
Everywhere I’d lived it’s been that way so if this is going to be actually efficient at
doing that, that would be highly important. It seems like it would save a lot of
money because one place is just being over-exerted. If upstairs is comfortable and
downstairs is freezing, then we’re wasting money downstairs.
Interviewer: Got you. How about the idea that this is quieter than other heating and cooling
systems?
Page 14 of 23
Respondent: That used to annoy me at my old home and not so much at the new one. I don’t
know why it’s not as loud here.
Interviewer: Do you think that’s the difference with central air versus ACs or does it depend on
the –
Respondent: I had central at the last place. We had radiators and we had central.
Interviewer: You thought it was really noisy?
Respondent: Yes, but I don’t have to go about the place. I’m going to go by where I live now and
put it at “somewhat.” In the old place, it would be “highly.” I would go with where
I am now.
Interviewer: It sounds like that’s in “somewhat” for you because your current system isn’t
driving you crazy and isn’t as noisy as your last one was?
Respondent: Yes.
Interviewer: Okay.
Respondent: Also, there was a renter at the last place so we couldn’t keep it. That was the
issue. I couldn’t last my [Crosstalk] because we [Crosstalk] the daughter so I
couldn’t just blast the [Crosstalk] and not [Crosstalk].
Interviewer: Okay, how about the idea that this is better for people who live in a flood plain
because they can be placed higher off the ground than other heating and cooling
systems?
Respondent: This area was built on a swamp. They actually filled the swamp and it’s not as
terrible as you [might down] but, sometimes, the curb is in the water and I called
the city and asked what’s going on. You fix this so around here, it hasn’t affected
the yards yet really so I can’t say “highly” based on experience but definitely
somewhat because we do get hit with basement floods and the curb has
[Unintelligible] so I can imagine it can happen in the back there.
Interviewer: How about the idea that you can provide substantial savings on energy costs?
Page 15 of 23
Respondent: That’s the top of the highest.
Interviewer: Tell me about that. Why is that the top of the highest?
Respondent: It’s in everything when it comes to money. Quality is, of course, important. The
incentive program from utility is money. Smart technology is really money that it’s
about. Cool the home is about money because it’s going to be cheaper I think than
other things. The only one that’s a luxury here that isn’t directly related with
money is uniform and even that is because it’s we’re so cold downstairs, it’s
costing me more. These are all about the money on the “highly important” and,
from what I’ve read, even if I save 25% on heating and cooling, that’s a fortune
every year.
Interviewer: Great.
Respondent: That’s every month. That’s for good.
Interviewer: What about the idea that this is healthier for people with allergies and asthma
compared with other heating and cooling systems?
Respondent: No, we’re good.
Interviewer: Not important to you at all?
Respondent: No.
Interviewer: Is that because you don’t have allergies?
Respondent: My wife and I don’t have allergies.
Interviewer: Got you so it’s not relevant to you.
Respondent: No, we have good lungs. Even the cat has good lungs.
Interviewer: [Laughter] What about the idea that this system is more eco-friendly or green
compared with other heating and cooling systems?
Respondent: I’m not going to lie and say that’s highly motivating. It’s somewhat motivating.
Page 16 of 23
Interviewer: Okay, I know we’ve talked about this a little bit but just tell me, in your own words
now, but why is that in your “somewhat” bucket?
Respondent: It’s because we’ve got a lot of issues with the environment and pollution and I do
like to contribute to helping but if someone told me “Guess what? This new gas can
save you 75%,” I’d be like “Goodbye, eco-friendly. I’ll take the 75% savings.” We’re
being honest here so I’ll be honest.
Interviewer: I’ll appreciate the honesty.
Respondent: If I can do active eco-friendly and spend the same or less, Amen. More? No.
Interviewer: How about the idea of convenience compared to the hassle of removing and storing
an AC?
Respondent: Since we don’t have the ACs and the window ACs and I was very clear about that to
the lady who called me to do this interview –
Interviewer: That’s no problem.
Respondent: I actually spoke to her in-depth and emailed her because I wanted to make sure I
was right for this interview. That’s the way I do things.
Interviewer: You are perfect. Don’t you worry.
Respondent: I just follow through with everything like that in life. I’m very exact and I guess the
word is “anal” or worse words [Unintelligible]. That’s not important to us.
Interviewer: Not important, okay, so - [Crosstalk]
Respondent: You said it’s smaller and not as ugly in the laundry rooms and stuffed dolls.
[Unintelligible] story. It’s not a hassle. It’s just ugly.
Interviewer: Right.
Respondent: It’s a big and bulky thing. If this can be smaller, then it would be somewhat
important but I don’t know what this new things look like really. I saw pictures but
not really yet.
Page 17 of 23
Interviewer: I’m going to bring up our webcam again. A couple more questions about the eco-
friendly thing, are you doing any other eco-friendly stuff around the house? Are you
recycling? Do you have programmable thermostats right now? Anything like that?
Respondent: I have come so far in recycling to maybe 10-15 years ago. I was throwing everything
in the same bag and [Unintelligible] so I do recycle now because it’s not that much
of an effort to sort paper and cans and plastics and I started to feel guilty about it.
I got [Unintelligible] and now they’re having kids so I did start to recycle. We have
a smart thermostat that was installed that I do not use to be honest with you. I
don’t use it that much and I don’t know why.
Interviewer: Why is that, that I haven’t gotten into the habit sort of a thing or something else?
Do you not like the idea?
Respondent: I don’t have a good answer to that. There are other things in life that why do you
this and I don’t have a good answer for it. Like recycling, why didn’t I do it for so
long? There’s no good answer. I’m lazy and then, one day, I’ll decide “Hey, this is
important.” I’ve got a car outside, a Dodge Challenger, that has 14,000 pages
about what it can do and I know how to do about six things with it. One day, I’ll go
through it and learn it and one day, I’ll realize –
Interviewer: Is that the issue with the programmable thermostat? Is it one of these things that
are like “I’m going to have to devote however much time sitting down and figuring
out how to operate this thing” and “I don’t have much time for that today?” Is that
what’s going on?
Respondent: Is it fear? I know I’m only 51 but a 30-year old probably knows how to use these
things and the younger kids probably know how to use this faster than I do. Maybe,
there’s a bit of here and there. I know they have these remote locks and a million
things we need. Videos in the house and there are smart appliances and everything
else and I want to learn it all but I’m always a step behind. I’m just beginning to
learn about stuff. Even though we have it, I’m just beginning to understand smart
technology when it’s been around five to 10 years.
Interviewer: Right.
Page 18 of 23
Respondent: It was offered on a bargain and for someone I know. We did it and I need to tackle
it.
Interviewer: How about LEDs? Are you using LEDs at home?
Respondent: No.
Interviewer: How about Energy Star appliances? Do you have any of those around?
Respondent: I would be lying if I said you didn’t have to talk to my wife about that.
Interviewer: [Laughter] No worries, we’d been looking at this heat pump idea.
Respondent: Honestly, a lot needs to be replaced in this house so I’m going to go with no. We’ve
got a good price because things were old.
Interviewer: As you go about replacing your appliances, are you going out thinking like “I am
going to get an Energy Star appliance when I need to replace my washer?” Are
there other considerations that are more important to you when you’re making
these decisions?
Respondent: Now that you’ve mentioned it, I would have stumbled across it in research for
dishwashers, washing machines and dryers. It would have become important
because of saving energy, helping the environment and saving money and the funny
thing is even though I’m still afraid of a smart technology, it would really almost
have to be a part of any new appliance I bought. Just because I don’t use it or
understand it now, I’m going to have to one day and I’m going to want to
incorporate it into what I buy.
Interviewer: Right, if you are looking for a washer and it said “This is an eco-friendly washer.
It’s more efficient and it will save water. It’s good for the environment. You should
see cost savings on your electricity bill,” then - [Crosstalk]
Respondent: Primarily, cost savings, secondarily, environment. I was going to say I definitely
would lean towards environmentally friendly because if it was the same price or
less, I would also look into city rebates because I know New York City is really into
all of this and environmentally friendly usually means cheaper in the long run even
Page 19 of 23
if it was a little more expensive and I did the math down the line when I was going
to say it’s possible so what I said before that I wouldn’t buy anything if it was more
expensive and eco-friendly, it’s not true if down the line it was going to save me so
much. What was it that you said, Energy Star?
Interviewer: Yes, Energy Star appliance.
Respondent: Environmentally friendly, yes, because, first, the money and, second, because the
environment. I grew up 50 years ago when everything was just big and bulky and
took a ton of energy but it’s time to come into the 21 st century, even me.
Interviewer: Is there anything that you have seen today or read about in your own research that
would prevent you from installing the heat pump? Any worries or concerns about it?
Respondent: I wouldn’t even be afraid of installing it inside because it didn’t look incredibly
unattractive and neither my wife nor myself are one of those people where “Oh,
my God! It would ruin the ambiance of our rustic look.” I don’t even know what
that means so they couldn’t ruin the rustic look if I don’t know what that looks
like. As long as it’s presentable and it’s going to be inside and if that saves money
in any way and it made it last longer in any kind of way, great, put it inside. That
was impressive.
Interviewer: On a 1-10 scale, where 1 is not at all and 10 is extremely likely, based on all of
your research and what you’ve seen today, how likely do you think you are to
purchase and install a heat pump when your current system finally gives out?
Respondent: If everything I’ve read and have been told and seen is true, 10.
Interviewer: Okay, I know we’ve covered this kind of ground a little bit before but if you could
sum it up for me, what are the main benefits to you for getting this air source heat
pump? What’s the most important thing it could offer you?
Respondent: It seems like tremendous savings over the years even if a third isn’t right as the
monthly price a quarter, it’s tremendous. In New York, it’s having $1,000.00 a year
or $20,000.00 over 20 years, maybe more in the colder or hotter months. Eco-
friendly, of course, is important. If I would call a contractor, I would say “You know
Page 20 of 23
those things are garbage. I’ve got this system and you got to go with the old stuff.
It’s good. This stuff was bad,” and I would know why I would say that because I
know the people are like so. I would do my own investigating and the hard part
would be calling someone who has it so I would have to rely on reviews. I love
reviews but I usually also speak to a person who actually has it.
Interviewer: So that’s important. You want to talk to someone firsthand who has them and hear
what their experience is.
Respondent: Yes, or a trustworthy site like a real name brand company that has reviews from
people that have them, a site that I can really trust and verify the reviews that the
people actually own it.
Interviewer: You mentioned earlier that the city is doing a lot of this kind of work. If the city
put out a website about these kinds of heat pumps and said “We recommend this
because it’s eco-friendly and will save you money and read all about it,” if they
had a special website like that, would that be a credible source? Would you think
like –
Respondent: I don’t trust a word that comes out of any government or any city but it would have
an impact because New York City takes this seriously and they do run their
agencies and departments professionally. I have to say that. Whatever corruption
goes on in construction on the streets and anywhere else, there is integrity in the
agencies in what they put online and in what they put out and in what they want to
accomplish. That’s because they hire people who hearts are really in eco-
friendliness and working on that. I do trust the city websites when it comes to that.
It would have an impact. New York City, particularly because it’s so focused on it
and there are so many phones in New York City but this is different. This is
something they really care about. I think they would have experts and it certainly
would help if their site had it and New York City backing was being solved saying
“This is good.” It’s not some company, “Joe’s Air Source and Heat Pumps.” It’s the
city of New York air source heat pumps. Coming from New York City is a lot better
than an old brand company offering.
Page 21 of 23
Interviewer: Fantastic, those are all of my questions. You have done an amazing job. Before I
wrap up, is there anything that we have not yet talked about or covered that’s
important for me to know before we part ways?
Respondent: This [Unintelligible] is the same union? It’s such basic questions. I don’t even know
if you would know it. Are boilers still involved? Are they heated the same? They still
use gas. The boilers will be involved, just not as much gas. The boilers will still be
involved. It’s just not as much as gas. They use less gas. They use [Crosstalk].
Interviewer: I don’t know the answer to that but I will put it down as a question. I do have one
other question I just remembered I wanted to ask you. You’re probably going to be
replacing your current system whenever it finally gives out. Would you be looking
at the air source heat pumps as the cooling or heating system for your whole house
or would you be looking to heat and cool a specific room or area?
Respondent: The whole house.
Interviewer: Okay.
Respondent: Absolutely, with the laundry room, you could never get a really good temperature
but that’s about it. I saw the size of the units but that would be another thing I
would look at but that’s nothing tremendous. The inside unit interested me very
much and it also entails things like it still needs gas. I’m still going to have to
pump. I’m still going to have a boiler and the AC system and I’d like to see what
else goes with it but it’s going to save me a lot of money, it’s backed by the city
and reputable companies. It’s used by people who are certified. If that company is
certified, they owned it and those reviews matter. [Crosstalk] company certified
that the reviewer owns that product.
Interviewer: Fantastic, that’s it. Thank you so much for spending part of your morning talking
through all of this with me. I really appreciate.
Respondent: You were great.
Interviewer: Keep an eye out. Awesome, thank you so much and your incentive should reach you
in just a couple of weeks, okay?
Page 22 of 23
Respondent: Thank you so much. It was great meeting you. Have a great day.
Interviewer: You too, bye bye now.
Respondent: Bye. [Pause]
- End of Recording -
Page 23 of 23

1364 Nyc Energy Interviews - 1364 - TRC - June28 - 930amet - MT: June 28, 2019 at 9:20 Am Eastern Time

Загружено:

Сведения о документе

Оригинальное название

Авторское право

Доступные форматы

Поделиться этим документом

Поделиться или встроить документ

Параметры публикации

Этот документ был вам полезен?

Это неприемлемый материал?

Авторское право:

Доступные форматы

1364 Nyc Energy Interviews - 1364 - TRC - June28 - 930amet - MT: June 28, 2019 at 9:20 Am Eastern Time

Загружено:

Авторское право:

Доступные форматы

Rate this transcript (CTRL + click):

Interviewer: [Pause] Good morning, Mark. How are you?

Respondent: How are you doing?

Respondent: That’s incredible.

Transcripts@civi.com | www.TranscriptionWing.com | 888-223-9488

The only transcription company with ListenLinkTM!

Respondent: There’s no math. I want to [Unintelligible]

Interviewer: Yes, no math. I promise. [Laughter]

Respondent: I’m joking around. [Laughter]

Interviewer: A single family home or a town home?

Interviewer: Okay, single family.

Transcripts@civi.com | www.TranscriptionWing.com | 888-223-9488

Interviewer: Awesome, what do you do for –

Respondent: It factored into the price when we bought it. [Crosstalk]

Respondent: Only about a year.

Respondent: It was the block I lived on when I was younger.

Interviewer: That’s awesome. What do you do for a living?

Respondent: I do graphics in Manhattan at an investment bank.

Interviewer: That sounds interesting.

Interviewer: I think that’s probably often the case, right? [Laughter]

Respondent: [Laughter] Yes.

Transcripts@civi.com | www.TranscriptionWing.com | 888-223-9488

Interviewer: Got you.

Interviewer: That’s great.

Respondent: That’s about it.

Transcripts@civi.com | www.TranscriptionWing.com | 888-223-9488

Transcripts@civi.com | www.TranscriptionWing.com | 888-223-9488

Interviewer: That’s great. There are no wrong answers here.

Respondent: My heating bill.

Interviewer: Okay, saving money on your bill every month.

Transcripts@civi.com | www.TranscriptionWing.com | 888-223-9488

Transcripts@civi.com | www.TranscriptionWing.com | 888-223-9488

Interviewer: Got you.

Respondent: Maybe 10.

Transcripts@civi.com | www.TranscriptionWing.com | 888-223-9488

Interviewer: Why is that?

Transcripts@civi.com | www.TranscriptionWing.com | 888-223-9488

Transcripts@civi.com | www.TranscriptionWing.com | 888-223-9488

Interviewer: Got you.

Transcripts@civi.com | www.TranscriptionWing.com | 888-223-9488

Respondent: That’s somewhat important. I don’t think it would be –

Transcripts@civi.com | www.TranscriptionWing.com | 888-223-9488

Respondent: Absolutely, in 2019, I would expect that.

Transcripts@civi.com | www.TranscriptionWing.com | 888-223-9488

Interviewer: Yes, the air storage and heat pumps.

Respondent: It’s highly important.

Interviewer: In your experience, your system is not providing this correctly.

Transcripts@civi.com | www.TranscriptionWing.com | 888-223-9488

Interviewer: You thought it was really noisy?

Transcripts@civi.com | www.TranscriptionWing.com | 888-223-9488

Respondent: That’s every month. That’s for good.

Respondent: No, we’re good.

Interviewer: Not important to you at all?

Interviewer: Is that because you don’t have allergies?

Respondent: My wife and I don’t have allergies.

Interviewer: Got you so it’s not relevant to you.

Transcripts@civi.com | www.TranscriptionWing.com | 888-223-9488

Interviewer: I’ll appreciate the honesty.

Interviewer: That’s no problem.

Interviewer: You are perfect. Don’t you worry.

Interviewer: Not important, okay, so - [Crosstalk]

Transcripts@civi.com | www.TranscriptionWing.com | 888-223-9488