As with most other trades, HVAC/R technicians need to have a solid set of hard skills to make it in the industry. Whether we pick up those hard skills by working on cars as teenagers, learning them in a trade school, or acquiring them on the job, we’ll have to rely on our hard […]

The primary role of setting an appropriate level of subcooling is to ensure that we deliver a full line of liquid refrigerant to the metering device. We want to do this at: A pressure differential required by the metering device At a temperature and pressure no higher than required for maximum capacity and efficiency But […]

I watched an instructional video the other day where the guy kept palming his gauge manifold and CRANKING down on the valves when he closed them. I've seen techs use channel locks—and even vise grips—to tighten down their gauges “just in case” when they have a hard time finding a leak or a vacuum that […]