Install and fix furnaces, air conditioners, heat pumps and refrigeration. Busy in every heat wave and cold snap.
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Pay, the path, pros and cons and the facts on one printable page. Good for a wall or a guidance counsellor.
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What you earn and what it costs to get there.
Journeyperson
$72,000
1st-year apprentice
$45,000
Senior or union
$100,000
Commercial refrigeration and union work through UA (the plumbers and pipefitters union) Local 787 in Ontario pay the top of this range. Residential service pays less but often adds commission on sales.
$22 to $26 an hour
First-year apprentice
Climbs each year as a percentage of the journeyperson rate. Big service companies pay more than small shops but expect sales targets.
$35 to $48 an hour
About $70,000 to $100,000 a year full time
On-call and overtime in July and January add real money. Technicians who own a service company can earn more, with more risk.
Tuition, fees, exams and kit. Not rent, food or travel
An apprenticeship is paid work, so there is no tuition bill of the usual kind. The low end is three in school blocks at the cheaper provincial rate, the ODP (ozone depletion prevention) card, a starter tool set, and an employer who covers the gas licence course. The high end is paying for the gas licence course and the TSSA (Technical Standards and Safety Authority) exams yourself, on top of dearer school blocks and a fuller set of gauges. The Canada Apprentice Loan is interest free and EI (Employment Insurance) can cover you during school blocks, so cash flow during class is usually the problem rather than the total.
The federal Apprenticeship Incentive Grant was wound down in 2025, so check what your province offers now.
Company van, phone and tools
Standard for service technicians.
Union pension and benefits
UA (the plumbers and pipefitters union) Local 787 covers commercial and industrial refrigeration in Ontario.
Overtime and on-call premiums
Summer and winter peaks.
Sales commission
Residential companies pay a cut on new furnaces and heat pumps you sell. Some technicians like it, some hate it.
The exact path from high school to qualified.
The Red Seal trade is called Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Mechanic. In Ontario it is a 9,000 hour apprenticeship.
High school diploma
Grade 12
Grade 12 with math and physics.
Find a sponsor
Weeks to months
A mechanical contractor, a home service company or a union hall. A college pre-apprenticeship in HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) makes this much easier.
Register the apprenticeship
Days
With Skilled Trades Ontario or your provincial trades authority. Get your ODP (ozone depletion prevention) card early so you can handle refrigerant.
Work and study
4 to 5 years
9,000 hours in Ontario (8,280 on the job plus 720 in class over three blocks) on refrigeration, electrical controls, airflow and codes. Most other provinces run 4 periods.
Certificate of Qualification, Red Seal and gas licence
After your hours
Pass the provincial exam and the interprovincial Red Seal. Most residential techs also get a G2 gas licence from the TSSA (Technical Standards and Safety Authority) in Ontario.
Physics
Refrigeration is heat transfer and pressure. You will live inside these ideas.
Math
Load calculations, airflow and electrical formulas.
Electrical or technology classes
Half of modern HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) repair is troubleshooting circuit boards and wiring.
Chemistry
Refrigerants and combustion.
In Ontario, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Systems Mechanic is a compulsory trade: you must be a registered apprentice or licensed to do the work. Alberta and BC require certification too. On top of that, anyone who handles refrigerant in Ontario and most other provinces needs an ODP (ozone depletion prevention) card or the provincial equivalent, and anyone touching a gas furnace in Ontario needs a TSSA (Technical Standards and Safety Authority) gas certificate. Three cards, one job. The Red Seal endorsement lets you move between provinces.
Things you don't need, but that help.
Gas licence (G2 then G1 in Ontario, Class B and A elsewhere)
Almost required for residential work. Without it you cannot touch the furnace side of the job.
Commercial refrigeration
Supermarkets, cold storage, ice rinks and food plants. More complex systems, higher pay, less seasonal.
Heat pump and controls training
Heat pump sales are booming with rebates. Manufacturer courses on cold-climate heat pumps and smart controls are short and in demand.
Building automation
Programming the controls in office towers. A desk-and-laptop side of the trade that pays well.
Pre-apprenticeship or HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) college certificate
One or two semesters. Employers sponsor these graduates first.
Driver's licence
Service techs drive all day.
Sheet metal basics
Ductwork is a separate trade, but knowing it makes you more useful on installs.
People skills
You explain a $12,000 furnace decision to a stressed homeowner.
Day to day, pros and cons, where you'd work.
Service season: a van, 5 to 8 calls a day. A furnace that will not start, an air conditioner that froze up, a heat pump throwing an error code. Diagnose with gauges and a meter, replace the part, test, explain the bill. In a heat wave the day runs to 8pm. Install work is calmer: a two-person crew swaps a furnace or fits a heat pump in a day. Commercial refrigeration techs are on-call because a supermarket cannot let its freezers thaw.
The good
The hard parts
Things people don't tell you.
Ontario's Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Systems Mechanic apprenticeship is 9,000 hours, about 5 years, the same as electrician and plumber and longer than most other trades. The payoff is a licence that covers heating, cooling and refrigeration all at once.
Federal and provincial rebates have pushed cold-climate heat pump sales up sharply, and many new homes skip the furnace entirely. Every one of them needs a licensed refrigeration mechanic to install and service it.
Refrigerants damage the ozone layer and warm the climate, so Ontario and most provinces require an ODP (ozone depletion prevention) card or equivalent before you can open a system. Venting refrigerant on purpose is a federal offence.
Every arena in Canada sits on a refrigeration plant, and many older ones run on ammonia. In October 2017 an ammonia leak at the Fernie Memorial Arena in BC killed three workers, and arena inspection and training rules were tightened afterward. Rink plant operators are a niche of this trade.
Last checked September 2026. Pay figures are typical full-time annual amounts in Canadian dollars, based on Government of Canada Job Bank wage data and published salary grids. They vary by province, employer and experience. Tuition is for domestic students.