Working as a refrigeration technician: training and career
The specialist in cooling installations and heat pumps: installing, maintaining and repairing systems that food, pharma and data centers cannot do without.
At a glance
| Where you work | Installers of industrial and commercial refrigeration, maintenance contractors, food companies with their own refrigeration plants and data centres. |
|---|---|
| Status | Blue-collar |
| Joint committees | PC 149.01, PC 111, PC 124 |
| Bottleneck profession | Yes, according to VDAB |
| Working hours | Mostly days, often with standby duty |
| Certificates | Refrigeration certificate (category I to IV) |
What you do as refrigeration technician
- Installing and commissioning cooling and freezing installations, chillers and heat pumps
- Performing preventive maintenance and checking refrigerant circuits for leaks
- Tracing faults in the refrigeration, electrical and control parts
- Carrying out repairs and replacing components such as compressors and evaporators
- Performing statutory checks and registrations under the F-gas regulation
- Advising clients on use, energy consumption and replacement
What employers ask for
- Training in refrigeration or electromechanics, complemented by practical experience
- Refrigeration certificate (category I or II) or the willingness to obtain it quickly
- Electrical insight: reading schematics, measuring and working safely on installations
- Independent and client-focused: you are often on the road alone at clients
- Driving licence B; standby duty or shifts are negotiable in many roles
What does a refrigeration technician do?
In the VDAB occupational information, working as a refrigeration technician falls under Koeltechnicus. You install, maintain and repair refrigeration installations in line with the safety rules, the regulations and the given specifications.
Training and certificates
To work on refrigerant circuits as a refrigeration technician you need a refrigeration certificate; you sit the exam at a recognised training centre on the list of the Flemish Department of Environment. Fitting programmes for a refrigeration technician are the third-stage courses in refrigeration installations or refrigeration and heating techniques, the seventh year as refrigeration installation technician and the associate degree in HVAC systems.
For work as a refrigeration technician, employers often ask for Refrigeration certificate (category I to IV).
Shift work and standby duty
Refrigeration technicians mostly work days; because cooling must not fail, standby duty is often part of the job at service companies. If you work as a refrigeration technician between 20:00 and 06:00, the FPS Employment counts that as night work, for which new rules apply since 1 June 2026.
Growing as refrigeration technician
Specialist in industrial cooling or heat pumps: the most in-demand niches
Service coordinator or team leader: planning and steering a service team
Technical sales or project engineering: from executing to advising and designing
Pay at a glance
Our pay range: €3,000 - €4,300 gross per month, without premiums and fringe benefits, based on the vacancies we fill.
Sector minimum
- PC 149.01, minimum hourly wages, blue-collar workers (38-hour week): 16.88 to 26.82 euros gross per hour, valid from 1 January 2026
- PC 111, national minimum hourly wage: 16.2682 to 17.1244 euros gross per hour, valid from 1 July 2026
- PC 124, minimum hourly wages per category (40-hour week): 18.747 to 27.003 euros gross per hour, valid from 1 October 2026
Lowest and highest amount in the pay scale table; which amount applies to you depends on your class or category and your experience.
Sources for this data: see the list at the bottom.
What public sources report
| Source | Job title at the source | What the source reports | Sample and date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Indeed | Servicemonteur Koeltechniek (m/v) | Average 19.17 euros per hour; minimum to maximum: 15.81 to 23.25 (base pay, gross or net not stated) | about 1,200 salaries reported; updated 8 November 2026; different job title from ours |
| Talent.com | Koeltechnieker | Median 32,838 euros per year; low to high: 31,616 to 37,149 (gross or net not stated) | 101 salaries reported; no date stated |
Not included: Glassdoor (blocks automated reading), Jobat (no salary page for this job in Belgium), StepStone (blocks automated reading), PayScale (no salary page for this job in Belgium), Statbel (occupational group too broad).
Why do these figures differ so much? They don't measure the same thing. Glassdoor, Indeed, PayScale and Talent.com count salaries people report themselves or that appear in job ads, often without saying whether they are gross or net. Jobat gives an average gross salary without a sample. Statbel measures officially, but per broad occupational group and for October 2022, so before the indexations of the following years.
The unit differs too: per hour, per month or per year. We convert nothing, because an annual salary may include twelve or thirteen months and holiday pay, and an hourly wage depends on your weekly schedule. A small sample can be far off because of a few outliers.
Open vacancies
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Frequently asked questions
Is refrigeration technician a bottleneck profession?
Yes, working as a refrigeration technician is on the VDAB list of bottleneck professions for 2026, as "Koeltechnicus". According to VDAB, finding a refrigeration technician is hard because there are too few job seekers available and candidates often lack the right experience or training.
Which joint committee covers a refrigeration technician?
As a refrigeration technician you fall under the joint committee that matches your employer's activity, not a committee for your job. For a refrigeration technician these are usually PC 149.01, PC 111 and PC 124. As a refrigeration technician you usually work as a blue-collar employee.
Sources
Checked on 3 November 2026 unless stated otherwise.
- VDAB, beroepeninformatie Koeltechnicus (checked on 13 November 2026)
- VDAB, Knelpuntberoepen 2026
- Vlaanderen.be, erkenning als koeltechnicus (certificaat categorie I tot IV)
- Departement Omgeving, lijst erkende opleidingscentra koeltechniek (pdf)
- Onderwijskiezer (CLB), overzicht studierichtingen derde graad secundair onderwijs
- Vlaamse overheid, Hogeronderwijsregister: erkende graduaats-, bachelor- en masteropleidingen, academiejaar 2026-2027
- FOD Werkgelegenheid, minimumlonen.be: sectorale minimumlonen per paritair comité
- Vlaanderen.be: informatie voor de koeltechnicus (verplichtingen, actualisatie-examen, retributie) (checked on 23 October 2026)
- Indeed, lonen voor Servicemonteur Koeltechniek (m/v) in België (checked on 13 November 2026)
- Talent.com, lonen voor Koeltechnieker in België (checked on 13 November 2026)
- minimumlonen.be (FOD Werk), PSC 149.01 elektriciens: installatie en distributie, geldig vanaf 01/01/2026
- minimumlonen.be, PC 111 metaalverwerkingsondernemingen, geldig vanaf 01/07/2026
- ACV bouw - industrie & energie, info Bouw PC 124 oktober 2026 (lonen vanaf 1 oktober 2026)
- FOD Werkgelegenheid, Nachtarbeid (regels vanaf 1 juni 2026)
Spotted an error or an outdated source? Report it to the editorial team
General information based on the law and the sources listed. Your collective agreement, your contract and your payroll provider or union remain decisive for your own situation.
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