This article was written by senior furnace tech Benoît (Ben) Mongeau. Ben hails from the frozen tundra of Ontario, Canada, where high-efficiency gas furnaces are commonplace. While some codes and practices may be different from the US, I find that most of it is common sense and translates pretty well. One glaring difference between Canada […]

This article deals heavily with entropy. Entropy is not a simple topic, so we highly recommend checking out HVAC School’s Entropy in Refrigeration and Air Conditioning for some background information. Describing isentropic compression is a daunting endeavor. We all recognize the term compression, and I’m sure most of us can deduce that isentropic has something […]

Pump down solenoid valves are commonplace for any refrigeration technician. They are energized with the compressor still running, shutting off flow in the liquid line so that the refrigerant is pumped into the condenser and receiver. The compressor will then shut off once a low-pressure switch opens the circuit when the pressure falls below a […]