Part 1 of this series discussed methods to significantly reduce recovery times and brazing techniques to significantly reduce the time required for evacuation. This article covers system commissioning, including tools and techniques that reduce the time required for pressure testing, evacuation, setting airflow, charging, and performance testing.

Doing it right does not mean adding hours to the job. In fact, with the right tools you can do it right and save a ton of time. In this two-part series, I will discuss several ways to make your technicians faster and more productive during a typical replacement of a split system a/c unit or heat pump.

“Dang it! Not again,” you are thinking, turning into the Water Berry Crest development for the sixth time this month. You cannot help but wonder what you are missing. You pull out your BlackBerry and dial up Steve, your buddy who is an electrician, and ask him about using his thermal imager.

The impact of HVAC is so significant, that it is leading utilities, building scientists, and others into the realm of HVAC system performance evaluation. Contractors that cannot measure system performance may find themselves at odds with these communities. Simply put: HVAC performance testing is quickly becoming a necessity.

If we are going to fix the problems we have in this industry, we really shouldn’t use the same tools we used to create them. Analog gauges have brought us to this point, and will keep us here if we let them. Simply, analog gauges cannot do the job as evidenced by the success we have had using them.

We heat it, cool it, humidify and dehumidify it, clean it, move it, supply it, return it, and monitor it. Somehow, however, we have forgotten, never learned, or perhaps never were taught how to properly measure and set proper airflow.

Safety of the appliance should be the primary goal of all technicians. The production of carbon monoxide (CO) in the flue gases should be kept below 100-ppm air-free, even though the allowable limit in the stack is 400-ppm air-free.

This is the first article of a two-part series taking a look at combustion analysis. In general when performing a combustion analysis, the service tech needs to look at three things: safety, efficiency, and environment.

While it is easy to say that our industry is in need of repair, a quick fix like printing Ak factors on grilles will not provide the needed answers. The key lies in technician and consumer education.

There is still a lot of mechanical satisfaction to be had from maintaining and fine-tuning today’s gas appliances. As an example, in part one (Jan. 15), I described a service contract call for one particular customer, a retired English teacher named Mrs. Johnson.