List of troubleshooting/ customer questions

[fourteen/two]

Had a troubleshooting issue today and the way he explained the problem and the way I hear the problem had me spend way more time than was warranted.

After an hour of fruitless searching I regrouped and tried another series of questions to try to bring some more info out of him. After finally understanding his terminology for electrical work, I was quickly able to diagnose the real problem and fix.

He was telling me that the power kept going off and on. Which I assumed was bad breaker, loose connection, and etc.
What he meant was power=breaker and going off and on=tripping.

It was frustrating and I feel like if i had just ask better worded questions I would have been able to identify the problem quicker.

My question to everyone is do you have a list of standard questions you have developed in dealing with customers in troubleshooting situations?

Techniques for bringing out info that the customer and you can be on the same page about?

Funny anecdotes would be appreciated to.

 

[formula1]

i think u can ask 6oo questions and still the average person does not know what they are talking about it is not their job to, i think one of the best questions to ask is have you had any work done in the house recently often there is some relationship to the problem

 

[Rewire]

First question "did you try and fix it"

actually one of the first things I say is "can you show me what it is doing?" Then "when was the last time it happened?"

 

[charlietuna]

You will learn from experience that your questions to customers must be a very basic step by step proceedure. Our trade vocabulary makes little sense to the average customer, and remember they are trying to remember the sequence of issues along with wording which might mislead you! Many times while troubleshooting machinery we need the input from the operator to determine"just how the thing is supposed to run in the first place"??? In the case you discribed--i would say you messed up by not asking certain basic questions to conclude the actual problem. Information on the problem allows an electrician to save money by cutting corners which saves labor. So the first ten minutes can easily cut the service call costs in half. Don't be afraid to take that time before you jump into the middle of the problem. You might ask if the breaker was on or off---and not realize the customer calls a breaker a "thingamajig" !!!

 

[SEO]

I instuct my electricians to ask what doesn't work, did you try to fix it yourself (reset circuit breaker etc.) then troubleshoot the job from the beginning disregarding what they say they may have checked or repaired. So many times we find fuses blown wires loose etc. that the owner says that they checked.

 

[bauler]

How much is in your checking account? Yea, I've had customers lead me in the wrong direction. I think they are sometimes ashamed they couldn't fix it. First thing to ask is what did you try? Some customers are helpful, some are not. Another thing that bugs me is a customer that acts as though you should know your way around their house, you should know the attic access is the bedroom closet. Just some of the fun being an electrician.

 

[Cow]

My biggest one seems to be lighting. I push our office guy to get as much info from the customers as he can in regards to what kind of light is it, how many lamps does it take, do they have any spares, etc.

There's too many different types for me to take a few of everything...

 

[Fulthrotl]

My biggest one seems to be lighting. I push our office guy to get as much info from the customers as he can in regards to what kind of light is it, how many lamps does it take, do they have any spares, etc.

There's too many different types for me to take a few of everything...

it doesn't matter.... i had someone have me go out to "replace a bad ballast".
i called the customer, and asked what type of fixture was not working, for a
clue. customer assured me it was a "bad ballast" in the light fixture in her
office.

turned out to be a 6" can light with a 65 watt par 30 lamp. it was burned out.

 

[LarryFine]

i called the customer, and asked what type of fixture was not working, for a
clue. customer assured me it was a "bad ballast" in the light fixture in her
office.

"But, don't all office lights have ballasts?"