Active in the HVACR industry since the 1950s, Bill Johnson graduated in gas fuel technology and refrigeration from the Southern Technical Institute, a branch of Georgia Tech (now known as Southern Polytechnic Institute). He taught HVAC classes at Coosa Valley Vocational & Technical Institute for four years. He moved on to become service manager for Layne Trane, Charlotte, N.C. He taught for 15 years at Central Piedmont Community College, part of this time as program director. He had his own business for five years doing installation and service work. Now retired, he is the author of Practical Heating Technology and Practical Cooling Technology, and continues as a co-author of Refrigeration & Air Conditioning Technology, seventh edition, all published by Delmar Cengage Learning. For more information, he can be reached at 704-968-0000 or thebillj1@gmail.com.
Btu Buddy Notebook is a collection of more than 50 service call scenarios in book form covering both cooling season and heating season troubleshooting. For more information and to purchase the book, visit the HVACR Industry Store.
In this installment of the Btu Buddy series, Bob goes on a service call to a motel where the chiller has shut down. He finds that both the water tower and the chiller's condenser tubes are dirty and require cleaning.
In this edition of the Btu Buddy series, Part 2 of last month’s article, Bob and Btu Buddy meet the next morning to change the compressor in the system.
In this installment of the Btu Buddy series, a customer calls and says his heat pump is not running. Bob finds that the compressor is shorted to ground.
In this edition of the Btu Buddy
series, Part 2 of the previous article, Bob returns to the motel that had a
heating problem to determine how air got into the closed loop
piping system.
In this installment of the Btu Buddy series, the dispatcher sends Bob to a motel that is five stories high with the complaint that the top floor does not have any heat. Bob discovers air in the hot water heating system.
In this edition of the Btu Buddy series, Bob goes on a call where a heat pump indoor fan motor is coming on from time to time even when the thermostat is off. He finds that a grounded heat coil is causing the intermittent fan operation.
In this installment of the Btu Buddy series, Bob finds that a small retail store using a heat pump has had the outside unit stolen, most likely for the copper. He then moves on replacing the unit and preventing this from happening again.
In this edition of the Btu Buddy series, a customer smells smoke coming from her oil furnace. Bob checks it out and finds that the furnace is not drafting. He inspects the chimney and discovers an obstruction.
In this installment of the Btu Buddy series, the customer's building is warmer than normal. Btu Buddy notes that this system has capacity control. Bob finds that one of the solenoid valves is not working.
In this edition of the Btu Buddy series, Bob is dispatched to a home with water on the basement floor around the air handler. He determines that there is a condensate drain problem and he recommends installation of a condensate pump.