Bob and Tim were on their way to a no cooling call. The spring season was still cool at night and warm in the daytime. The customer told the dispatcher, “The unit started up at about 10:30 a.m. this morning and made a noise, but did not cool the house, even though it is still running.”
In this month’s troubleshooting situation, our customer’s description of the problem is “not cooling” and “blowing warm air,” and the equipment that is supposed to keep this residence comfortable is a split system that has been in service for 16 years.
Among the more stressful challenges facing HVAC service providers is meeting customer demands for rapid diagnosis and repair of their systems. For many HVAC contractors the solution can be found in a compact electronic measurement system that can monitor and log the status of all HVAC functions.
Bob and Tim were on their way to a no cooling call, their first of the season, when Tim asked, “Wonder why we would have a no cooling call this time of year? It is only 75°F during the day and 40° at night.”
Looking ahead to the upcoming cooling season, the equipment in this troubleshooting situation is a split system that’s approximately eight years old, consisting of a gas furnace that provides heat in the winter and a condensing unit and A coil to provide summer cooling.
Bob and Tim were on their way to an oil heat service call. It is cold and the owner has no heat. Tim read the service ticket for today and said, “The owner says that the burner won’t burn and makes a sputtering sound for a few minutes and shuts off.”
To minimize motor imperfections, contractors must stress the importance of a comprehensive inspection, properly identify and diagnose the root cause of the deficiency, and be able to explain the failure to customers in terms they’ll understand.
Technical Training Associates, an independent training firm in Tucson, Ariz., has established a new website at www.hvacrtroubleshooting.com that focuses on HVACR troubleshooting and equipment servicing. The company is also offering two videos on specific troubleshooting problems related to heat pumps.