HVAC Maintenance

Most successful businesses recognize the need to maintain their heating and cooling equipment. They often represent one of the most expensive pieces of equipment they own and they can have a serious impact on the day to day operations if they break down.

A modern heating and cooling system will function for long periods of time with virtually no maintenance at all. It can in fact, take several years for a system to deteriorate to the point that something breaks. Since this equipment is almost always out of site it is easy to take it for granted. If the room temperature is acceptable, we tend to forget about it. This can be a dangerous situation. Even though the equipment may be functioning it is likely working harder than it should, wasting energy and shortening its life expectancy.

The two items which most often affect the performance of the unit are filters and belts. A filter is intended to keep dirt off of the evaporator coils and out of the duct work. A filter’s efficiency is determined in part by how much dirt it will hold. When it reaches its holding capacity the dirt will begin to unload, or pass through the filter and be caught by the coil. All of this restriction in the system will cause it to run longer to satisfy the thermostat.

When the coil plugs, the air can no longer pass through it fast enough and it will freeze up. Typically this would result in a service call to replace the filters and clean the unit. This is what most service agreements are based upon. If you change the filters before they start to unload the equipment will function. The question is, how much energy are you wasting through excessive run-time?

A conscientious mechanic will, while on site, compile a list of items or situations which require further work in order to keep your system operating at peak efficiency. As long as both the mechanic and the owner of the equipment have time to communicate with one another regarding the equipment condition this system will be effective. If however, either party is too busy or does not fully understand the situation, the work will not get done and the equipment will be left in an unsatisfactory condition.

Preventive maintenance can be defined as any task which is intended to increase efficiency, extend equipment life and/or reduce the likelihood of breakdown. A good preventive maintenance program will ensure that a mechanics time at your place of business is spent on ensuring that he does not have to return until the filters need to be changed again

Maintenance programs consist primarily of two things, materials and the mechanic’s time. Assuming every contractor would at least be required to supply the same materials, the difference between one price and the next has to be labour. If a contractor with a high labour rate has a contract price lower than, or the same as a contractor with a lower rate you should ask yourself if you believe they are both going to spend the same amount of time on your equipment. No contractor can afford to give away their mechanics time. It is all they have to sell.

If you want to know how much time is being spent making sure that your equipment is not going to break down find out how many dollars are needed for materials and divide the balance of the contract price by the labour rate of the contractor you deal with. Then go look at your equipment. You don’t have to have years of training to recognize good workmanship. Is it clean? Does the wiring look safe and secure? Look at your ceiling tiles and air vents. Are they clean? Look at your invoice history. How often do you need a service call because something needed to be cleaned, because a belt broke, or because a wire shorted out?

Our Maintenance Solution
A quality mechanical contractor employs people who enjoy working with heating and cooling systems. Like anyone else, these individuals want to take pride in their work. If they are not allowed to use the talents that they have they will become disillusioned. If they are too rushed in their work they will assume that the owner does not care. If the owner does not care, they will not be as thorough as they should be. When the equipment breaks they will go fix it and shake their head at the waste of money.

The most important part of the maintenance equation is trust. Sooner or later, you have to find a contractor who you believe has your best interests at heart. Only you can make that determination, no sales pitch or literature will show you that you can trust anyone. But look at the price and then look at the task list which they have laid out. If it seems too good to be true, it most likely is