HVAC Service is ever-growing, and more and more contractors can benefit from these HVAC Service Tips. The following tips can help any struggling new HVAC technician master everything they need to learn about HVAC service.

Start by focusing on the essentials and you can’t go wrong. Understand how the furnace and cooling system works, and it will be easier to grasp why it’s not working right and how to fix it. You’ll be able to decipher how each part works at last. Refer to the owner’s manual as well as the HVAC service manuals from the manufacturer. They will help you navigate the various HVAC systems you encounter. For seasoned technicians, they do this almost by instinct. But if you were a new technician, you have to make an effort by asking yourself where you should begin troubleshooting? It can be pretty confusing especially when vermin are involved, or there’s too much dirt buildup you can barely make sense of anything upon opening the panel.

Among the most crucial tip that can help you as a newbie in the industry is to ensure you are going to the right customer and address in the first place. Upon reaching the customer’s home, validate that they are indeed the ones who called before starting any work. It may be pretty common sense to some, especially the ones who have been working in the industry for long, but some first-timers can still mess it up. Also, ensure you are working on the right unit if the homeowner has plenty of equipment at home. If working on routine maintenance, ask the customer to turn the unit on before starting work if it is not yet on. If troubleshooting a faulty unit that’s no longer running, check if the thermostat is on. Turn it on if it isn’t. Double check everything and not just rely on what the customer says. The same thing applies to units with leaks but make sure there is pressure in the system first. Before brazing a system where you have recovered a refrigerant, use nitrogen to pressurize the system prior to sweating old parts.

If you are facing a complex equipment that you’re not too familiar with, trace its electrical schematics. Fixing it will become easier by doing this first. When troubleshooting an electrical equipment, evaluate the following essential items:

• Power Quality – right equipment voltage and frequency
• Conductors – wires
• Loads – examples are transformers, fans, control relay, water pumps and solenoid; it can be anything that uses up electricity in the unit and controlled by the switch contact.
• Switch contacts – these are the line and low voltage, whether manual or automatic, and every other switching device found in your unit meant to control loads.

Hence, the basic troubleshooting of an electrical equipment during an HVAC service call is:

• Check for the proper voltage at its terminals for loads that aren’t energized.
• A unit has already failed if the load still is not energized despite being supplied the proper voltage.
• For terminal not being provided the proper voltage, trace its control circuits to look for an exposed conductor or perhaps set of contacts.
• Fix any open conductor you find.
• Check a switch contact if it is still open once you see one, and do the right intervention necessary to fix it.

Continue doing this procedure until you have energized all controls and all controls are likewise satisfied to ensure a normal and smooth-running operation. That’s how an HVAC service is supposed to be like, especially if you’re new in the industry.