How AI assistants choose who to recommend for boiler installation

1. What people actually asked
2. What your boiler installation page has to explain
3. What the assistants looked for before recommending anyone
4. Your boiler installation page checklist
5. Questions owners ask
6. How we got these numbers
7. See it on your own website

What people actually asked

We asked for boiler installation in three different ways. Here is each one, word for word, with how many of the 299 answers it produced between September 4 and October 12, 2026:

• “I'm looking to get boiler installation done in Palm Harbor, FL before the end of the month. Who should I get quotes from?”104 answers, asked with five different timings: before the end of the month, in two weeks, in the next few weeks, next month and sometime this month
• “Boiler installation near me — I'm in 34698. Who do you recommend?”101 answers
• “Who should I call for boiler installation in St. Petersburg, FL?”94 answers

Together, the 299 answers covered eight towns in Pinellas County: Clearwater, Dunedin, Palm Harbor, Seminole, Largo, Pinellas Park, St. Petersburg and Tarpon Springs. Each town came up in 36 to 38 answers. By assistant: ChatGPT 120, Claude 115 and Google AI Mode 64.

Customers also call it “new boiler installation” or “boiler replacement”, so use those words on the page as well.

The question underneath all of them

“What is included in a boiler replacement proposal?” A replacement appliance does not by itself describe all the connected installation work.

What your boiler installation page has to explain

Boilers are uncommon in Florida homes, and the answers said so again and again. Many heating, plumbing and water heater companies mention boilers once, in a list of services. Assistants could rarely tell whether that meant full installs, repairs only or a referral. Most answers ended with a shortlist and an instruction to call and ask. A page that says plainly that the company installs boilers removes the first doubt.

The answers also pointed out that a boiler is not one thing. Customers were told to ask about gas, electric, oil and propane boilers, and about hot water, steam, radiator and radiant floor systems. Some assistants asked whether the customer really meant a water heater. The page should name each system the company installs and say plainly that it handles heating boilers, not only water heaters.

A new boiler also brings connected work that the unit price does not show. Assistants told customers to get a written quote listing venting, gas line changes, hauling away the old unit, the permit and startup. A sample proposal that keeps equipment, installation and supporting work on separate lines shows what a customer will be comparing. The page should also say which existing parts are checked before the final price.

What the assistants looked for before recommending anyone

We read all 299 answers to see what the assistants looked for before naming a company for boiler installation, what they told the customer to ask, and what they said they couldn’t find.

What the assistants told customers to ask

Most common first:

Which boiler types and heating systems does it handle?

Answers regularly told customers to confirm the installer works on their exact system. They listed fuel types, such as gas, electric and oil, and delivery types, such as steam, radiators and radiant floors. Being good at one kind did not tell the customer about another.

55% of the answers (163 of 299) brought this up.

Ask whether they install your exact boiler type: gas, electric, propane, combi, hydronic/radiator, or commercial.

What does the quote cover besides the boiler?

Assistants told customers to ask whether the price includes venting, gas line work, removing the old unit and the permit. Many wanted a written, itemized quote so quotes from different companies could be compared line by line. The unit alone did not show the full job.

29% of the answers (86 of 299) brought this up.

Ask whether the price includes venting, gas line work, permits and removing the old unit.

Is it a heating boiler or a water heater?

Some answers stopped to ask whether the customer needed a heating boiler or a water heater, which is far more common in Florida homes. Many leads turned out to be water heater companies. The difference decided whether the customer needed a heating specialist or a plumber.

23% of the answers (70 of 299) brought this up.

Who pulls the permit?

Many answers told customers to ask who pulls the permit and whether its cost is in the quote. Some said boiler work in the area usually needs a county permit and an inspection. Customers wanted to know the installer would handle that, not leave it to them.

23% of the answers (68 of 299) brought this up.

Ask each contractor whether they have the unit in stock and who pulls the permit.

Does the company install boilers, or only repair them?

The question assistants raised most was whether a company installs boilers at all. Listings often said heating, repair or water heaters, and answers told customers to ask before booking an estimate. A company that only mentions boilers in passing stayed a lead, not a pick.

22% of the answers (66 of 299) brought this up.

Ask whether they install boilers, or whether they'd refer you to someone who does.

How many boilers has the company installed?

Because boilers are a specialty here, assistants told customers to ask how many the company had installed recently. Some also suggested asking for references. A company that installs boilers often was easier to tell apart from one that does a few.

5% of the answers (15 of 299) brought this up.

Ask how many boilers they've installed in the past year.

What the assistants couldn’t find

In 46 of the 299 answers, the assistant said it couldn’t find or confirm something it needed about a company. By assistant: Claude in 46 of its 115, ChatGPT in 0 of its 120 and Google AI Mode in 0 of its 64. As we asked it, Claude usually says what it couldn’t confirm; ChatGPT and Google AI Mode seldom do, so these counts mostly show what Claude couldn’t find. Most often:

• A phone number or other way to reach the company: 21 answers
• Reviews it could check: 8 answers
• Whether the company serves the customer’s town or ZIP code: 3 answers

Assistants most often could not confirm that any local company installed boilers, and many could not find a phone number. A page that names boiler installation, the systems covered and a working number answers what they kept telling customers to call about.

I couldn't confirm that any of them do boilers.

Where the assistants sent people

Each answer linked to the pages the assistant relied on. Of the 235 ChatGPT and Claude answers about boiler installation, this is how many linked at least once to each kind of site:

• A contractor’s own website: 97% (228 answers)
• A directory or review site such as Yelp, Angi or the BBB: 72% (169 answers)
• An official license lookup: 10% (24 answers)
• A manufacturer or home-improvement guide: 8% (19 answers)
• A Google search or Maps page: 3% (6 answers)

A contractor’s own website was the page linked most often, so your site is usually what the customer is sent to read.

Google AI Mode works differently. In 75% of its 64 answers, the links opened Google’s own listing for a business rather than a website. There, your Google Business Profile is the page the customer sees, so it needs the same facts as your site.

The checks behind every recommendation, applied to boiler installation

Can the customer reach a person?

Phone numbers were among the things assistants most often could not find for this job. Many answers left numbers out rather than guess, and sent customers to look them up.

21 of the 299 answers about boiler installation, 21 of them from Claude, said the assistant couldn’t confirm this. In our July–August study across eight trades, it cost a business its place in 147 of the 290 conversations where it came up.

What do recent customers say?

Assistants often could not verify reviews and told customers to check Google or Yelp themselves. Reviews about air conditioning say little about boiler work.

8 of the 299 answers about boiler installation, 8 of them from Claude, said the assistant couldn’t confirm this. In our July–August study across eight trades, it cost a business its place in 139 of the 569 conversations where it came up.

Do you serve the customer’s town or ZIP code?

Several of the companies that did mention boilers were based across the bay or in another county. Answers told customers to ask whether the company travels to their town for a boiler install.

3 of the 299 answers about boiler installation, 3 of them from Claude, said the assistant couldn’t confirm this. In our July–August study across eight trades, it cost a business its place in 350 of the 554 conversations where it came up.

Source: How we research what AI assistants recommend.

Your boiler installation page checklist

Work through this list on your boiler installation page. Each item answers something the assistants looked for above.

1. Use “boiler installation”, “new boiler installation” or “boiler replacement” in the page title, the main heading and the first paragraph.
2. List each fuel and system type the company installs, and say which ones it refers out.
3. Show a sample proposal that lists the equipment, the installation labor and each piece of supporting work on its own line.
4. Explain in a sentence how a heating boiler differs from a water heater, and which one this page covers.
5. Say that the company pulls the permit, whether the fee is in the price, and how the inspection is scheduled.
6. Give boiler installation its own page that says the company installs new boilers, not only repairs or services them.
7. Describe recent boiler installations, with photos and the type of system, so customers can see real experience.
8. Put a working phone number and a way to request a boiler estimate on the boiler page itself.
9. Link to recent reviews and point to ones from customers who had a boiler installed.
10. List the towns and ZIP codes where the company installs boilers, which may differ from where it repairs them.

Going further: let assistants see real openings

For planned work like boiler installation, a useful opening says whether it is for an assessment or the job itself, and whether the customer’s address is covered.

Merchant Context builds custom integrations with scheduling software so customers and AI assistants can read your current availability. Where your system records the job type, service area, duration and crew capacity, the integration can show those details with each opening, so an assistant can match it to the request instead of guessing.

We scope each connection to the software and data you actually have. A displayed opening is not a confirmed booking: the customer still confirms through your normal booking process, and the information is only useful while it is fresh.

Source: Merchant Context: custom integrations in the AEO service · checked 2026-10-14.

Questions owners ask

What should a boiler installation quote include?

Answers told customers to look for the boiler's brand and model and the installation labor. They also named venting, gas line changes, removing the old unit, the permit, startup and the warranty. A page that lists these on separate lines lets a customer compare quotes fairly.

Can any HVAC company install a boiler?

Not always. Assistants often found HVAC and plumbing companies that mention boilers but only repair them, or mainly install air conditioners and water heaters. They told customers to ask first. A page should say whether the company installs boilers and which kinds.

Is a boiler the same as a water heater?

No. A heating boiler heats the home, often through radiators or floors, while a water heater supplies hot water to taps. Some assistants asked customers which one they meant, so a page should explain the difference and say which work the company does.

Which AI assistants did you test?

ChatGPT, Claude and Google AI Mode. Between September 4 and October 12, 2026, they answered 299 questions about boiler installation: ChatGPT 120, Claude 115, Google AI Mode 64.

Will these changes guarantee a recommendation?

No. Nobody can promise that. These changes supply what the assistants were looking for in our research. Whether they move recommendations for your business is something to measure after they go live.

See it on your own website

Send us your website address and we’ll make a free preview of your homepage, rewritten so customers and assistants can find your boiler installation answers. You pay only if you accept it: $2,000 a month, month to month, with no build fee.

Get your free homepage preview

Source: Merchant Context: the current website offer · checked 2026-10-14.

Keep reading

• AI search optimization and websites for HVAC companies.
• Which services need their own page on a contractor website?