Sometimes I beat around the bush too much in these tech tips, so let's get down to the nitty-gritty! (As Nacho Libre would say.) Humidity inside a home should be maintained between 30% and 60% relative humidity. I like to shoot for 50% in humid climates when possible (and by possible, I mean financially feasible […]

HVAC installs sometimes come with surprises. Some of them are good, like when you have a really nice customer who buys you lunch or leaves you a generous tip. But HVAC installs can also come with plenty of bad surprises, like a defective part, not enough space to install the unit, an incorrectly sized platform […]

Often in commercial HVAC and refrigeration, you'll come across a sight glass/moisture indicator on the liquid line. (Oil sight glasses also exist, but those are different from what I'm talking about today.) Sight Glass The sight glass portion is simple; it's just there to show if the liquid line has a full line of liquid […]

   This podcast features a lively discussion on expansion valves, particularly thermostatic expansion valves (TXVs or TEVs), with a panel of expert guests – Corey Cruz (a market refrigeration tech), Matthew Taylor (head of refrigeration service at Kalos), and Joe Shearer (with Precision Air Conditioning). The conversation kicks off by busting some common myths […]

Eric Mele and Joe Shearer join Bryan to discuss the challenging issue of diagnosing and rectifying non-condensibles in the circuit. Non-condensibles are gases that don’t condense, including nitrogen. These are NOT moisture or contaminants, and they can be tricky to diagnose; the pressure readings will likely be normal, but the charge will actually be quite […]