Maintenance tips for your air conditioning ‹ Waccamaw Mechanical

Posted February 21, 2012 - By Adam | Leave a comment As an HVAC technician one of the main things I do is go on what we call a "basic" service call. This is when we arrived at the property to service the vary basics of an HVAC system. I have a short talk with the owner to get there general feelings about the air quality in there home or place of business. Some questions are; How do you feel inside? Are you able to rest comfortably or do you find yourself jossling around in your chair or tossing and turning in bed? Do you notice humidity or a stuffiness feeling inside? Do you notice the inside temp being warm just before the air kicks on?" All of these are questions that can tell you if the system if running correctly before you even start your evaluation. Next I check the temperatures. Outside air temp,discharge temp,liquid temp(or saturation temp) suction line temp. Then I go inside and check the diffuser temp, return air temp and the ambeant temp. With these numbers you can calculate the system charge with in a few ounces with out hooking up the gushes. Preventing the loss of refrigerant. Now it is time to move on to the inspections. Condensing/Heat pump Unit: Visually look at the fins on the coil. They should be nice and uniform with no ripples,cupping,waves or discoloration. They should be a light gray all the way across.(There also may be a weather guard coating witch is usually black. If this is the case the never clean with a serfacton as it will cause the coating to come lose. Only rinse lightly with water 2-3 times a year.) You will also want to look for curosion. White spots or crumbling fins are a bad sign. If that's the case it should be cleaned by a professional and sealed with an after market weather guard. Next you want to look for any oil or residue around the bottom of the unit as this is a sure tell of a leak. It is probably a good idea to pull the service panel off and clean any cobwebs and bugs out. While I'm there I check the defrost board. Putting it in test mode and making sure the coil starts to warm. Blower Unit and Evaporator Coil: Inside there is an air handling unit or blower unit. This houses the evaporator coil, blower fan, and metering devices. As soon as you see the air hander you will want to take a good look at the general condition of the unit. How does the return air duct look? How does the air supply look? Look for any lose panels or noticeable air leaks. Water in the secondary pan. Sluge or dibris in the drain line. (Usually there it and inspection stack on the drain line.) Now its your turn to share. What are your thoughts on a basic service calls, have you had one done recently or have you given one to a customer? What do you look for? What have technicians done for you? Your ideas and thoughts are important to me. Please add to this post. Thanks for your support.

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