1. Unit 5: Tools and Equipment
Section 2: Safety, Tools and Equipment, and Shop Practices
Unit 5: Tools and Equipment

2. Objectives After studying this chapter, you should be able to:
Describe hand tools used by the air-conditioning, heating, and refrigeration technician
Describe equipment used to install and service air conditioning, heating, and refrigeration systems

3. General Hand Tools
In general, it is a good idea to buy the best tools that you can afford
Good hand tools will usually carry the guarantee of replacement if they are broken during regular use

4. General Hand Tools (cont’d.)
Screwdrivers include:
Phillips tip
Straight or slot blade
Offset
Several standard screwdriver bit types
Examples: keystone, hex head, clutch head, square recess

5. General Hand Tools (cont’d.)
Wrenches
Socket with ratchet handle
Open end, box end, or combination
Adjustable open end
Ratchet box
Pipe
T-Handle hex keys

6. General Hand Tools (cont’d.)
Pliers
General purpose
Needle nose
Side cutting
Slip joint
Locking

7. General Hand Tools (cont’d.)
Hammers
Ball peen
Soft head
Carpenter’s claw
Portable electric drill
Cord type
Cordless

8. Specialized Hand Tools
Assorted nut drivers
Flare nut wrenches
Air conditioning and refrigeration reversible ratchets
Hex
Box wrench

9. Specialized Hand Tools (cont’d.)
Inspection mirrors
Stainless steel
Glass telescoping
Wire stripping and crimping tools
Stapling tackler

10. Tubing Tools Tubing cutters Inner–outer reamers Deburring tools
Modern tubing cutter
Large diameter tubing cutters
Inner–outer reamers
Deburring tools

11. Tubing Tools (cont’d.)
Flaring tools: have a flaring bar, yoke, and a feed screw with a flaring cone
Swaging tools
Punch type
Lever type
Die type

12. Tubing Tools (cont’d.) Tubing brushes Tubing shears Pinch off tools
Metalworker’s hammer

13. Specialized Service and Installation Equipment
The gauge manifold
One of the HVAC/R technician’s most important pieces of equipment
Can read pressures on both the high- and low-pressure sides of the system
Can read pressures below atmospheric on the low-pressure side of the system
Can be of the two-valve or four-valve variety

14. Specialized Service and Installation Equipment (cont’d.)
Electronic thermistor vacuum gauge
Measures the vacuum in a refrigeration system during the evacuation process
Can measure a vacuum down to 50 microns or mm Hg
1,000 microns = 1 mm Hg
As a vacuum is pulled on a system the micron level will drop

15. Specialized Service and Installation Equipment (cont’d.)
Vacuum pump
Designed to remove air and noncondensable gases from an air-conditioning or refrigeration system

16. Refrigerant Leak Detectors
Halide leak detector
Used with acetylene or propane gas
The flame heats a copper disc
Combustion air is drawn through a tube
The open end of the tube is passed over fitting or piping
When a leak is detected, the flame will change color (from blue to green)

17. Refrigerant Leak Detectors (cont’d.)
Electronic leak detectors
Contain refrigerant-sensitive elements
Reacts to leaks with rapid beeping
Additive used with a high-intensity ultraviolet lamp
Pipes will glow at the point of the leak
Ultrasonic leak detectors
Detect the sound of escaping refrigerant

18. Refrigerant Leak Detectors (cont’d.)
Other tools used in detection and repair
Thermometers
Fin straighteners
Heat guns
Hermetic tubing piercing valves
Compressor oil charging pump
Soldering and welding equipment

19. Refrigerant Leak Detectors (cont’d.)
Other tools (cont’d.)
Sling psychrometer
Motorized psychrometer
Nylon strap fastener
Air velocity measuring instruments
Air balancing meter
Carbon dioxide (CO2) and oxygen (O2) indicators

20. Refrigerant Leak Detectors (cont’d.)
Other tools (cont’d.)
Combustion analyzer
Combustible gas leak detector
Draft gauge
Volt-ohm-milliammeter (VOM)
AC clamp-on ammeter
Megohmmeter
Digital electronic manometer

21. Refrigerant Leak Detectors (cont’d.)
AC clamp-on ammeter
Used to measure current flow
Clamps around one conductor of the circuit
The meter can also be used to measure voltage and resistance

22. Refrigerant Leak Detectors (cont’d.)
Volt-ohm-milliammeter (VOM)
Often referred to as a multimeter
Measures volts, ohms, and amps
Come with a number of features, options, and accessories

23. Miscellaneous Tools and Equipment for Specialized Needs
Other tools:
Schrader core remover and replacer
Quick couples, low loss fittings and adapter hoses
Capillary tube cutter
Refrigerant recovery pliers
Service wrench and adapters
Hand held refractometer

24. Miscellaneous Tools and Equipment (cont’d.)
Fan blade puller
Refrigerant tank heater
Ice bucket
Refrigerant tank transporter strap
Liquid chargers
Flare cut-off tool
Thermal imaging gun

25. Summary
Air conditioning, heating, and refrigeration technicians should be familiar with available hand tools and equipment
Always use tools and equipment properly and for the jobs for which they were intended
Improper tool usage can result in personal injury