By 2020 the HVAC industry is expected to grow 34 percent. This is great news for those looking to get training now and get into the industry. You’ll get hands on training at All-State Career. Learn about air conditioning units, control systems, heat and refrigeration systems. The training program will prepare you for the EPT refrigerant transition and recovery certification test.
Heating and air-conditioning Systems control the temperature, humidity, and the total air quality in residential, commercial, industrial, and other buildings. Refrigeration Systems make it possible to store and transport food, medicine, and other perishable items. Heating, air-conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers, called technicians, install, maintain, and repair such Systems. Because heating, ventilation, air-conditioning, and refrigeration Systems often are referred to as HVACR Systems; these workers also may be called HVACR technicians.
Heating, air-conditioning, and refrigeration Systems consist of many mechanical, electrical, and electronic components, such as motors, compressors, pumps, fans, ducts, pipes, thermostats, and switches. For example, in a central forced air heating system, a furnace heats air that is distributed throughout the building through a system of metal or fiberglass ducts. Technicians must be able to maintain, diagnose, and correct problems throughout the entire system. To do this, they adjust system controls to recommended settings and test the performance of the entire system using special tools and test equipment.
Technicians often specialize in either installation or maintenance and repair, although they are trained to do both. They also may specialize in doing heating work or air-conditioning or refrigeration work. Technicians also try to sell service contracts to their clients. Service contracts provide for regular maintenance of the heating and cooling Systems and they help to reduce the seasonal fluctuations of this type of work.
Technicians follow blueprints or other specifications to install oil, gas, electric, solid-fuel, and multiple-fuel heating Systems and air conditioning Systems. After putting the equipment in place, they install fuel and water supply lines, air ducts and vents, pumps, and other components. They may connect electrical wiring and controls and check the unit for proper operation. To ensure the proper functioning of the system, furnace installers often use combustion test equipment, such as carbon dioxide testers, carbon monoxide testers, combustion analyzers and oxygen testers.
After a furnace or air-conditioning unit has been installed, technicians often perform routine maintenance and repair work to keep the Systems operating efficiently. They may adjust burners and blowers and check for leaks. If the system is not operating properly, they check the thermostat, burner nozzles, controls or other parts to diagnose and then correct the problem.
During the summer, when the heating system is not being used, heating equipment technicians do maintenance work, such as replacing filters, ducts, and other parts of the system that may accumulate dust and impurities during the operating season. During the winter, air-conditioning mechanics inspect the Systems and do required maintenance, such as overhauling compressors.
Refrigeration mechanics install, service, and repair industrial and commercial refrigerating Systems and a variety of refrigeration equipment. They follow blueprints, design specifications, and manufacturers’ instructions to install motors, compressors, condensing units, evaporators, piping, and other components. They connect this equipment to the ductwork, refrigerant lines, and electrical power source. After making the connections, they charge the system with refrigerant, check it for proper operation, and program control Systems.
When air-conditioning and refrigeration technicians service equipment, they must use care to conserve, recover, and recycle chlorofluorocarbon (CFC), hydro chlorofluorocarbon (HCFC), hydro fluorocarbon (HFC), and other refrigerants used in air-conditioning and refrigeration Systems. The release of these refrigerants can be harmful to the environment. Technicians conserve the refrigerant by making sure that there are no leaks in the system; they recover it by venting the refrigerant into proper cylinders; they recycle it for reuse with special filter-dryers; or they insure that the refrigerant is properly disposed.
Upon graduation from the HVACR program, students will be able to work as entry-level Heating, Air Conditioning and/or Refrigeration technicians in both residential and in commercial sites, conducting troubleshooting, repair and installation services. The graduate will be adept at using a variety of tools, including hammers, wrenches, metal snips, electric drills, pipe cutters and benders, measurement gauges, and acetylene torches, to work with refrigerant lines and air ducts. They use voltmeters, thermometers, pressure gauges, manometers, and other testing devices to check airflow, refrigerant pressure, electrical circuits, burners, and other components. Additionally, graduates will be prepared to sit for the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Refrigerant Transition and Recovery Certification test.
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