Sep 3, 2009
The Tools Commonly Used By Hvac Technicians
I will be going over the main tools that an HVAC technician will need to service units, and replace air conditioning systems. Before I get into these tools the one thing you must have is an EPA 608 certification, as it is against the law to handle refrigerant or work on a air conditioning system without one.
You will need a pair of gauges for testing refrigerant pressures, charging units, and recovering Freon from HVAC units. For residential units your gauges should be able to read the pressures of r-12, r-22, and r-502. Three hoses and a low pressure gauge, high pressure gauge, and the manifold will make up the gauge set.
When replacing a condensing unit you will need a place to store the old refrigerant, this is where the recovery tank comes into place. Recovery tanks are gray with a yellow top, and they are used to store refrigerant.
Now a recovery machine will speed up the process of removing refrigerant from and HVAC system. They can be kind of expensive but they are well worth the investment to an HVAC technician. They will also let you know when the HVAC system is totally empty of Freon.
Once the refrigerant is removed from the old system you can cut the copper piping with pipe cutters, and set up the new air handler or condensing unit for installation. Copper piping is joined back together by soldering, so you will need a good set of HVAC soldering torches and solder sticks.
HVAC torches are also expensive but they are needed to solder copper lines together. The set up consists of an oxygen tank, a gas tank, hoses, and various regulators and other types of fittings. An inspection mirror, a rag, and sandpaper are some good items to keep in your torch tank set up.
Now that you have the pipes soldered together, we have to remove all of the non condensable gases, and also make sure that the system is air tight. We can do this by using a vacuum pump, which is hooked up through your HVAC gauges. Vacuum pumps are not cheap but are very necessary to have.
You will also want to have a good voltage meter on hand, as you always need to test a unit before servicing the electrical side. Some other tools you might need are a coil fin straightener, refrigerant leak detector, and a thermometer made for HVAC systems.
There are many other HVAC tools that you will need but these are the essential ones you will be using the most especially if you are replacing entire systems. These are also the most expensive of the tools you will need so it would be best to get these first and get them out of the way, the other tools needed are cheaper and will not be used as much.
Jason has been working on A/C and heating systems for more than 20 years. If you want some more detailed information on HVAC Tools then you can visit his website. HVAC For Beginners
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