Compress

The first thing that happens in a refrigerant system is the compression of the refrigerant. The , a chemical compound that changes easily from liquid to a gas. When the refrigerant is pushed into the compressor, it is a low pressure gas. The compressor pushes the gas molecules together, heating them up as the pressure raises. The compressor is the piece that keeps the refrigerant moving, as the low pressure is continuously pulled into the compressor to try and create some sort of equilibrium. It’s also one of the pieces to be most careful of, because the piping that leaves the compressor to continue on easily burns exposed flesh.

Condense

Once the refrigerant has been pressurized, the hot gas gets pumped into the condenser. This is the part of the unit that faces outside of your home. When you find the condenser, you’ll find that there’s hot hair usually being blown out of it. Would you believe that that heat is the heat that was in your home? The condenser has a few fans that blow across the pipes, cooling the gas. While the fans are cooling the gas, the pressure pulls the molecules tighter together, and the refrigerant condenses again into a liquid. The temperature drops to a more manageable level, causing the piping to shift from burning hot to very warm.  The liquid has most of the heat from your home burned off, and begins to move along to the next part of the unit.

Measure

In order to keep the refrigerant moving at a constant pace, and in order to gauge whether the air conditioning is continuing to cool the home, and whether the machine needs to continue the cooling process or simply maintain the current temperature. This metering device is the computer that controls the situation and keeps track of how things are working. If you’re having electrical problems, or your air conditioning doesn’t seem to respond to your programming, it might be because of this little device. Most air conditioning repair that requires electrical components focus in on this metering device When the hot refrigerant is pumped through the device, electrical information updates your air conditioning unit on how much work it has left to do.

Evaporate

Finally, the now lower pressure liquid encounters the evaporator. With a lower pressure, the refrigerant liquid is now ready to cool the home. Fans in the evaporator blow over the pipes holding the liquid, causing the pressure to change yet again. The chemical reacts by boiling through an endothermic reaction. Endothermic means that while it boils and evaporates into a gas again, the chemical absorbs the surrounding energy and heat, causing the temperature around it to drop. The fans continue blowing, causing the now chilled air to be pushed into the house. As more refrigerant is pumped into the evaporator, more warm air from the home is chilled through the endothermic reaction. The gas now holds that heat from your home, and is ready to take it outside, leaving you with a cooler house.

Back again, the refrigerant, now a warm low pressure gas, is pumped into the compressor, where it repeats the process over and over again. This chemical continues to react, changing from a high pressure gas to a high pressure liquid to a low pressure liquid to a low pressure gas and over again. It’s the circle of air conditioning, and at the end of it all, the metering device reads that the temperature in the home is now exactly what you asked for. It shuts off the system, allowing the refrigerant to settle back down and fall still.

An air conditioning system works hard to cool your home, and utilizes chemicals like carbon tetrachloride to help you manage every hot summer out there! If you’re interested in air conditioning units and the like, why not consider a career in HVAC service? There are plenty of amazing , like Valley College, that are able to teach you the twists and turns of the fascinating machines that regulate the temperature in your home. Get your certification in air conditioning repair, and ensure that every home has efficient air conditioning that keeps the cool air in and the warm air out!

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Troubleshooting

Something not working? Your main concern is finding out what. If there’s a sound, or a smell, you’ve got to be able to identify the problem. An HVAC technician is trained to recognize the problems first. No use in teaching you how to replace the coolant if you can’t recognize that that is where the problem lies. Valley College starts every technician’s career with troubleshooting, as it’s the first step in any situation.

Gathering Supplies

Once you’ve figured out what the problem is, you’ll need to know how to fix it, and what you’ll need. If something needs to be replaced, make sure you’ve got the right part for it, and know how to perform the replacement. Gather up the tools that you’ll need, and make sure that they’re well maintained and able to do the job. You’ll also need to get the appropriate gear on, as you don’t want to go crawling into an attic or stand outside for minutes on end without the right clothing. Being an HVAC technician can be dangerous, with exposures to cramped and heated attics, hot wires, or leaking units. Without the proper safety gear, you might end up walking out of the place requiring more bandages than when you came in. It’s important to acknowledge the dangers, and be cautious of everything you do, no matter the level of skill you possess.

Perform AC Repair

Once you’re ready to go, and know what you’re doing, get to work! Shut off the power to the unit, and begin the repair. The first necessity is to perform the replacement or to actually fix whatever the problem is. Once you’ve managed that, now is the perfect time to check on other things, like the cleanliness of the vents, any moisture or electrical leakage, or even the filters in the unit. As long as you’re always careful of the possibility of burns or shocks, you can perform a quick maintenance check to see if anything can be topped up or fixed. This helps keep the unit properly maintained, and can help stop larger problems from developing later on.

Perform a Safety Check

Now that you’re done with your repairs, give the unit another once over, and ensure that everything you’ve done is still in compliance with safety regulations. Check your repairs over once again to see whether there are any leaks or anything that needs reinforcement. It’s important to check twice before walking away, as you don’t want to inadvertently create a larger problem by leaving an exposed wire. Once you’re sure that everything you done has only helped the unit run more smoothly, and is still compliant to all the safety and efficiency regulations, you can put it back together and head on out. You’re done!

Cover Your Bases

If you’re performing this in a customer’s house, it’s up to you to alleviate their concerns. Start running the machine, and check it over again to ensure that it will indeed run smoothly. Even if you’re sure of your work, giving it that second glance will soothe your customer, and make them trust in your repair more. Don’t forget that you’re not just a technician that repairs air conditioning units. You’re also a service technician who deals with customers, and you need the customer service to match it! Being agreeable with them and providing that visible “check” will negate their worries and they will wave you goodbye with a large smile.

HVAC School

Think it the right choice for you? Figure that you can handle fixing the wiring in a machine and talking to a customer all in one visit? Then check out an to get your HVAC certification! Valley College is the college that can help you prepare to receive your certifcation, and get you started on the path to your new career in less than a year. Learn how to perform a detailed air conditioning repair, and how to recognize a problem quickly and accurately.

Start your path to an HVAC career today, and learn about our training program at Valley College.  In just nine months, you’ll learn how to perform more than just a basic repair procedure, you’ll be able to rebuild a broken unit from the blueprints up! It takes less than a year to change your career to something new and rewarding, so apply now to get started. When you graduate, you’ll walk out of Valley College with a certification and the knowledge that you can indeed withstand the dangers and hard work that comes with the HVAC business!

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Step One: Find the School

You’ll need to find the right school for you in order to head off to a rewarding career. Consider Valley College for all of your HVAC training. In our training program, you’ll be certified and ready to start your new career in just nine months! Look around in your area, and consider colleges or license training that you can afford, and that can promise you certification in a short amount of time. For the best training, however, you just can’t beat Valley College. We’ve got actual technicians there to teach you, and show you all the tips and tricks they learned on the job that you just can’t find in a book.

Step Two: Begin your HVAC Training

Work hard! Once you’ve joined your school, or become the newest student of Valley College, you’ll need to learn and study. You won’t have to hit the books all the time, however! You’ll only be looking at books and thinking theoretically for a short amount of time. Then Valley College knows it’s time to get your hands dirty.

Once you’re ready, Valley College will start you off from the bottom up, from blueprints and plans to nuts and bolts and wiring. You’ll get hands on training for many situation that can come up, and you’ll have HVAC experts to guide you into becoming a true expert of your own. Think you just won’t be able to keep up? Don’t worry, you’ll get one on one help whenever you need it, and every instructor will be there to answer any questions you have!

What Will I Learn?

It’s easy enough to say that you’ll spend 9 months working on your training, and then you’ll be ready to start your career. But what do you actually learn? At 91ɬ��, you’ll be trained both on paper and in the flesh on what to do, and how to comply with regulations. Learn how to find your way around the most popular brands of ventilation systems, and how to keep them clean and efficient. You’ll know the latest in HVAC changes, whether they be new requirements in machine efficiency or a new way to approach electrical problems. You’ll find out how to protect yourself from the heat and the electricity, and make every home you visit a cleaner and safer place to stay.

Step Three: Become A HVAC Certified Technician!

Congratulations, you’ve made it through the nine months of hard work in our program at Valley College. However, now that you’re ready to graduate, you still need a way to prove your new skills. We know better than to just shove you out the door and say “good luck.” Valley College provides free career counseling, and has built good working  relationships with local businesses that may help you get a job more easily. We’re here to help you not only receive your certification, but take that step forward in your career! At 91ɬ��, you’ll even get a head start on building your own professional network by speaking to our technicians and building from there.

HVAC School

Now that you know just iswhat steps to take to become a , consider Valley College as your choice. We’re a local college with outposts in various cities in West Virginia, with a strong focus on our students. We want quality, not quantity, and work hard to ensure that everyone who comes to us leaves with all the knowledge they can hold. We teach you not only how to repair an air conditioning system, but to recognize small problems before they become big and save people a large hassle down the line. We teach you how to be a good technician, and a great salesman. Valley College sets you up for a rewarding  career as an HVAC technician.

Go ahead and check out our program information, and see whether a career in HVAC is right for you. You’re always welcome to for any questions you may have, and we’ll assist you in addressing your concerns. Ready to get started? , and change your life for the better!

The post The Road to Becoming a Certified HVAC Tech appeared first on Valley College.

If you have never heard of an HVAC technician before, these are the people that install and service residential and commercial heating and air conditioning systems. HVAC stands for “Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning,” and anyone who decides to enter this field has job security and great salary.

As an HVAC school, Valley College offers all the training you need to begin an HVAC career in under a year, and we even offer job placement services after graduation. Let us take a look at what you can expect as an with a VC degree.

Prior Education for an HVAC License

Before you can enroll in an HVAC training school, you must complete your high school education, or have a general equivalency diploma. It is helpful that while in high school you took classes such as mathematics, mechanical drawing, electronics, physics or any other industrial arts related courses. These types of courses help prepare you for the training you will receive at Valley College.

After graduating high school or receiving your GED, your next step is to enroll in Valley College’s HVAC license program. Our accredited training program offers a curriculum of blueprint and plan reading, air conditioning, heating unit and boiler repair, commercial system training, safety and handling training and professionalism training. Our well-rounded 9-month training program ensures you are ready for all aspects of being an HVAC technician immediately after graduation.

HVAC Examinations

After you complete your studies at Valley College, you will be required to take a licensing exam. On the exam, you will be expected to display knowledge of all aspects of HVAC repair and installation, as well as some electrical coding.

Any HVAC technician wishing to work with refrigerants must receive the Environmental Protection Agency’s HVAC certification in safe handling. A second, written exam is given that specifically focuses on this area of the trade.

Types of HVAC Certification

There are four types of HVAC certification.

1. Type I – An HVAC technician with this type of certification usually services small appliances such as window air conditioners, vending machines and residential refrigerators.
2. Type II – This HVAC technician’s job is to service and dispose of high-pressure refrigerant equipment such as residential air conditioning units and heat pumps, as well as process refrigeration and supermarket refrigeration.
3. Type III – Type III HVAC technicians service and dispose of low-pressure refrigerants such as chillers.
4. Universal Certificate – Any HVAC technician who wants to service all types of equipment must have universal certification.

What Makes a Good HVAC Technician?

Being an HVAC technician requires more than just getting the proper education. The following key characteristics are some that a good HVAC technician possesses.

• Must be mechanically inclined
• Must be able to understand technical drawings, diagrams and graphs
• Must be safety-minded at all times
• Must be able to understand electrical equipment and other tools
• Must possess good troubleshooting skills
• Must have experience handling power tools and hand tools
• Must possess good customer service skills and be able to work well with others

Benefits of Heating and Air Conditioning Certification

While you can certainly find work without certification, technicians who have heating and air conditioning certification have more opportunities than those who do not pursue certification. Technicians who possess certification can be promoted to supervisory positions, managers and sales and marketing jobs. They can also become system test and balance specialists, cost estimators or building superintendents with HVAC certification.

As you can see, HVAC technicians have many opportunities to find work and advance in their careers with the right training. With the average salary of an HVAC technician in West Virginia being roughly $40,000, this career is not anything to sneeze at. Furthermore, depending on how far you decide to take your training, you have the potential to earn even more.

Valley College’s 9-month HVAC training program offers all the education and hands-on training you need to begin a new career in the heating, ventilation and air conditioning industry. Technicians in this field are in high demand, and the outlook over the next several years shows growth in this trade.

Do you have what it takes to be an HVAC technician in the Beckley, WV area? Does this trade sound exciting and challenging to you? If you would like more information on our HVAC training classes, contact our Beckley admissions office at (304)252-9547. We have several start dates throughout the year so you do not have to wait to get started. We look forward to hearing from you soon and helping you begin a new and exciting journey in this much-needed trade.

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Traits that Make HVAC Service Training Even More Successful

Being a good HVAC technician takes more than just knowledge of the tools and equipment of the trade. The job requires other skills that many people fail to think about before entering an HVAC training program.

1. Customer service skills – As an HVAC technician, you will be working directly with residential and/or business owners who need their systems repaired or maintained. It is tremendously important that you possess exceptional customer service skills because in many instances, the people you come across won’t be in the best of moods. A good HVAC technician is able to professionally handle unhappy customers and deal with stressful situations with finesse and patience.
2. Time management skills – During the course of a workday, an must handle several calls. As such, he must be able to manage his time efficiently to get each job done in a timely manner, so he can move on to the next quickly. Being organized and self-motivated are key factors in making this happen.
3. Education – In order to be considered qualified in the HVAC industry, you should receive a formal education. Heating and air conditioning repair programs last anywhere from six months to two years. An HVAC school like ours offers a 9-month program that provides hands-on training taught by the qualified instructors who have an extensive experience in the industry. We have three campus locations in the mid-Atlantic Region of the United States.
4. Licensing – Once you’ve received your training and are a full-fledged technician, you will be required to have a certain HVAC certification, depending on the state in which you work. Regardless of the state and its specific laws, you will be required to take a certification exam before you can begin working.
5. Certification – Because HVAC specialists work with refrigerants while on the job, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requires they have HVAC certification in the proper handling of refrigerants. You will take a specialized exam, for which Valley College helps prepare you.
6. Mechanical skills – If you are not mechanically-inclined, don’t worry. You will learn these skills during HVAC training. However, it is important that anyone considering this field be comfortable working with mechanical systems. HVAC systems are complicated units that require technicians to have knowledge of disassembly, repair, assembly and programming.
7. Troubleshooting skills – Most home or business owners who call for HVAC service repair give little to no information to help the technician figure out the problem. Because of this, a good technician asks questions, assesses the equipment and uses good troubleshooting skills to figure out what is going on as quickly as possible.
8. Physical strength – Many HVAC technicians work alone on service calls. It is helpful to be physically strong and in shape because some parts and equipment can be heavy. Furthermore, because the job is so physical, and days can be long, being physically fit ensures the stamina it takes to make it through the day.
9. Attention to detail – We mentioned earlier that HVAC technicians need to be organized in order to be successful. This means keeping good records of each appointment, the services performed and the equipment used. There should be no question as to what took place at each call. Being detail-oriented protects the technician and the customer alike.

Do You Have What it Takes for Heating, Ventilation and AC Repair career?

If you think you have what it takes to enter the fast-paced, exciting world of heating, ventilation and ac repair, get your new career going by contacting Valley College. If you’re in the area, we are proud to inform you that we now have HVAC training available on our Princeton campus. HVAC technicians are in high demand, so now is the perfect time to jump-start a career in this field.

Our 9-month program allows you to train quickly for your new career, and with frequent start dates, you do not have to wait to begin your new journey. The HVAC industry needs dependable, hardworking people like you, so enroll at Valley College. Our admissions office is on hand to take your call today.

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