Beer Cooler Repair Quick Down & Dirty

Back at the same location for another Kolpak cooler that has more issues that need fixed. This was a down and dirty repair due to time and weather issues.
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#hvacrsurvival #hvaclife #hvacservice #hvacr #refrigeration #troubleshooting

[@ThePowerofElectricity]

"If I was to go and fix everything I don't like, we'd have a new store" Very true words, very true words...

[@HVACRSurvival]

🫶👍👍

[@briancarlisi2224]

No need to justify the way you did things. Your explanation was sound & sufficient. Keep these helpful vids coming, Rick. I appreciate you sharing your knowledge!

[@HVACRSurvival]

Thanks, will do!

[@fshn76]

As wet as it was out I would have been concerned of getting a bunch of moisture in the system. You made the right call.

[@lqueryvg666]

Totally smiled at the "Yellow Jacket" setup - good ole school stuff.....LOL....

[@HVACRSurvival]

They are great gauges but I like my digital ones for the PT chart.

[@lqueryvg666]

@@HVACRSurvival Of course! 😉

[@jin8684]

Love me a 0psi hi-side. Makes for a great work day!

[@terryh8421]

I think you made the right call with the drier Rick. Good post.

[@helmsajr]

Great job Rick. You pulled a vacuum it's all good.

[@JoseRodriguez-xh6qo]

Thank you Sr.

[@HardKnocks101]

I am perplexed why installers mount the temp control on an evap coil period? The constant vibration is not good for electrical controls. Some people’s kids…. Great vid Rick, happy Sunday!

[@sherwinalvarez7365]

What's worse is when they install it on the back , it's against your nose and can't see the temperature. Thank god for a young apprentice with good eyes😂

[@daveg8918]

That’s a factory installed thermostat. They come like that

[@sivalley]

If it's going to be on a service door I'd rather it be on the electrical side, not the txv side where it's bound to do what it did.

[@HVACRSurvival]

Exactly I hate it on the rear

[@qualitybarsolutions6107]

Shocking, truly Shocking….can’t believe you didn’t change the filter drier! System will never be the same again!! Nobody has Ever done that 👀🤣🤣 Nice Vid Rick 👏🏻👏🏻🤟🏻

[@HVACRSurvival]

Great point! 😁

[@jesseh5554]

Looks good from my house.

[@HVACRSurvival]

It does!🤣

[@hvacboy5591]

Real life scenario stuff! 👍

[@dprrn]

Back in '13 I was in a spot and needed a vehicle, Lucked out and got a 97 expedition for $400 that needed work. Among the list was the ac compressor that was swapped for a bypass pulley. That and the manifold were missing. For what I know it had been ran like that for about a year leading up to it being parked for another year and then another six months after I got it I was able to get a used compressor and the lines. I knew literally nothing about ac other than what was on the directions for a quick recharge can at the store lol. I got on here and got a quick crash course, got some gauges and a vacuum pump, took some brake clean to the orifice tube, slapped it together and let it hold a vacuum overnight. That thing had been open to air and driving and I didn't swap the drier. it ran great for about 30k miles and two summers until the headgasket popped at 305k miles. It blew my mind how refrigeration works from watching that vid and thanks to that I have subbed to a few of y'all on here.

[@HVACRSurvival]

@@dprrn awesome dprrn ! Thanks for the info and feedback. !👍👍

[@EverythingHVACR]

Nice Job Rick! 👏 real world repairs

[@HVACRSurvival]

Thanks Steve !!

[@stephenbullock-yn3vh]

Excellent fix

[@HVACRSurvival]

Thanks man👍

[@brennoncook1460]

You have taught me so much being new tech. I have just started doing commercial fridges

[@HVACRSurvival]

Awesome bud! Thanks for letting me know!

[@jasonjohnsonHVAC]

Keeping it at 100%....love it...shows real world HVAC....not made for TV type stuff...one of the many reasons I'm a big fan of your channel

[@HVACRSurvival]

Right on! Thanks Jason! I know you’ve been a supportive commenter 🤜🤛🤟👍👍

[@memarhar]

Great video. Keep them coming, Rick!

[@HVACRSurvival]

Thanks, will do!

[@Freezier134a]

I would have done that the exact same way. Lottery win job! Quick braze, good vac and charge!

[@HVACRSurvival]

Right on 👍

[@MikeB9771]

Excellent repair Rick, sometimes it is what it is. Customer is gonna be happy that the Beer is gonna be cold, no one likes foamy beer. Catch the next one.

[@HVACRSurvival]

You got that right!

[@MariosACandRefrigeration]

No winter charge required,it has a fan cycling switch,don"t know if that is a 8 lb or a 10 lb receiver.could have checked pump down.but never the less great work.

[@BLUE_COLLAR_REFER]

Oh we’ve all been there for sure

[@tirrellboi]

Awesome vid! Not every job goes as perfect as we’d like!!

[@HVACRSurvival]

I appreciate that!

[@johnwalker890]

Good job Rick.

[@tylough]

It's way better than you found it. No more hanging wires, optimally charged and you cleaned the condenser.

[@HVACRSurvival]

I try to do it right. Thanks 🙏

[@subcoolHVAC]

Good Call, perfect spot for leak repair. 👍

[@HVACRSurvival]

It was definitely easy.

[@BubbaShaffer]

Outlaw Rick. Great job!!

[@HVACRSurvival]

🙏👍👍

[@zekenzy6486]

Great Video. Thank you for sharing. Have a nice weekend

[@HVACRSurvival]

Thank you! You too!

[@stevencossaboon3237]

Nice work Rick.

[@HVACRSurvival]

Thank you kindly!

[@shlomoattia7706]

good job perfectly not prefect. great video , thank you 🙂☑

[@HVACRSurvival]

Glad you liked it! Thanks 🙏

[@B1gA1]

Wouldn't have happen if it wouldve been a wago 🇩🇪🦅🚘 Great video as always 🫶

[@HVACRSurvival]

True that! 👍👍

[@watermanone7567]

With the cooler warming up the gas in the system would be coming out and not contaminating the system. You did the right thing not changing the dryer in wet rainy weather. Also, you flushed the system with dry nitrogen and pulled a vacuum. You should not have any issues with leaving the same dryer in the system. I've done it several times during bad weather and never had an issue. One time I repaired a very large computer system during a bad snowstorm, fixed a leak and did not change the dryer. The system ran another 10 years before finally changing out the entire system. Back in those days there was huge heat generated in the old IBM computer systems and the AC ran year-round.

[@FPHA697]

Sometimes you do what you can especially in refrigeration

[@HVACRSurvival]

True 👍👍

[@uxwbill]

After you blasted that condenser coil, did I see frost on your nitrogen tank's valve?

[@HVACRSurvival]

Yep. Because it left the bottle at 2000psi then was at 300psi in a couple minutes it can condense.

[@10minutenewhampshirebreak77]

My thoughts are where are the driers with the “pro press” type stubs, and a light weight press tool that’s going to fit in my rooftop kit.

[@peterszczepaniak1893]

I always enjoy your videos

[@HVACRSurvival]

Thanks man!

[@mikestevenson1819]

Good job boss

[@HVACRSurvival]

Thanks!🙏

[@borshardsd]

Great content as always! Hose bibb? ;) we wish. I did a cooling pm on an rtu yesterday. Water was taken from the floor below and boy was it worth it. Dropped head pressure over 100 psi after letting a cleaner soak. I will remember your nitro trick but I'm not sure if I'm ready for that powaaaa I wish you could see the broken oil trap in range keeping one side of the condenser lubricated. -_-

[@HVACRSurvival]

Oh wow! That sounds like a fun day 🤣👍👍

[@WswRefrigeration]

That’s why I never install thermostats on those Side panels like that. Once you close the panel you don’t know what’s touching in there usually

[@joehead1294]

I'm shocked. I don't think I've ever seen you strap a wire straight onto a pipe before. I might be mistaken, though. 😳

[@sterlingarcher46]

At least put some burn marks on the drier to make it look like it was replaced 😂

[@HVACRSurvival]

😂🫶🤫

[@andyvitz]

that's a good way to skunk beer should never be a more than a six degree difference

[@brnmcc01]

Yeah and 29 is too cold, I set my beer walkins to like off at 36, on at 39, been that way for years and 0 complaints.

[@Earth_to_Kensho...ComeInKensho]

I'm just getting back into refrigeration. I'm not going to comment but I have a few questions if it's OK to ask. What is the proper subcool range when the system is operating close to set point? You had a 54 F ambient and your head gauge were reading about 80 +/- F. Is this the spread I should be shooting for? What should my back pressure be when it cycles off at 29F. I realize superheat is not an issue but where do we start crossing a line when it comes to minimum back pressure? And what is an acceptable compression ratio for this compressor and refrigerant application just in case I'm dealing with a semi hermetic. I appreciate the feedback. I joined your Facebook group. edit: Good video.

[@HVACRSurvival]

Hello, subcooling is usually low because it has a receiver. We don’t use that as much as making sure the superheat is correct. If you have solid liquid the TXV should keep a good superheat of 8-10 for coolers and 6-8 for freezers. That’s checked when the box is at temp. Head pressure is generally In the 20-30 deg over ambient. Compressor superheat is to be around 25*. Suction or back psi will usually be 10-15 deg saturation below your box temp but you don’t charge by that you just use it as a rule of thumb to double check where you are. Check out a book called refrigeration for air conditioning technicians. It covers all this and a lot more. It’s a little bit of money but it’s a great book.

[@Earth_to_Kensho...ComeInKensho]

@@HVACRSurvival I bought that book after Trevor Matthews recommended it. I appreciate the feedback and look forward to your future posts. What is the delta T on this type of application? Thanks so much!

[@brnmcc01]

@@Earth_to_Kensho...ComeInKensho Typical refrigeration evaporators are sized for a roughly 10 degree F delta T, but that varies, and that is at like hot summer conditions at design temps for the local area. In milder weather the condensing unit will be performing above spec which will bring the delta T up to more like 15 degrees. It all depends on the matchup of the condensing unit capacity versus evaporator capacity. Now on smaller cheaply built reach in coolers this is a different story and can very a lot. I've seen a lot of small reachin coolers running the coil at a 20 degree Delta T, this is so they can extract more BTU's out of a smaller (read: Cheaper) coil. Those are the ones that have constant issues with freezing up in humid weather in busy bar locations because the bartenders are constantly opening the door, or leaving the doors open for long periods of time etc.

[@hobbesip1]

You're polluting the air with all your nitrogen which is...oh. 78% of the atmosphere composition 😂

[@HVACRSurvival]

🙂✌️

[@dougking7592]

Sometimes you can not and DO not have the weather and time to do every single thing for the so called KZbin police brother as always nice work Rick

[@HVACRSurvival]

I know but when you put it out there some people might have never seen me do it right 400+ times and think it’s always like this.

[@JoseRodriguez-xh6qo]

Can't charge systems when they are dirtyyyy 😢. Clean #1 then charge 😮 artificial pressures

[@garypoplin4599]

5:47 - The power wire coming out of the back of the thermostat rubbed out (near the end of the split sleeve).

[@brnmcc01]

Yeah that little pinhole you didn't really open up the system. If that sight glass is yellowish-green, that's on the original installer or maybe the system was opened up in the past and that's the OEM drier.

[@HVACRSurvival]

You’re probably correct on the yellow-ish color. A new drier would help dry it up but 🤷‍♂️🤫

[@brnmcc01]

@@HVACRSurvival You're also probably right, but I'm confident it wasn't your fault, or that leak. Since it was an obvious short circuit, and probably a sudden loss of charge, I'm fairly confident it wouldn't affect the system. In fact, I just had a very similar system service call at a restaurant a couple of days ago. Walkin freezer, complaint of 40 degrees, I get there, system is flat, and discharge line from compressor to condenser busted vibration eliminator. Compressor is an old KALA-0150-TAC serial number says April 1988! Cut out part of the discharge line, sweated in a 12" piece of 1/2" copper I robbed from a mini-split lineset leftover piece, purged the discharge line, recharged it up. Sight glass is still a nice dark green. Dried was last replaced March of 2023, that was when I put a valve plate kit in it and changed the compressor oil while I had the head off.

[@austrianpainterinhiding88]

What do you use for your leak check bubbles? I was using the bubble 'n trouble by diversitech but I found that my leak detector reacts to it, both the Fieldpiece and the prowler. Once I spray bubbles I may as well put the detector up, I'll never get an accurate reading, better hope it's a big enough leak to blow bubbles.

[@HVACRSurvival]

That’s just slither reason why I constantly push the dtek3 and stratus. They don’t do that

[@brnmcc01]

@@HVACRSurvival I love my stratus. Phenomenal battery life too, I think I can count on fingers of one hand how many times I've had to take it off the truck and plug it in to charge it. I can leave it for 6 months and battery doesn't even drop 1% of charge. I've had to replace the sensor one time in about 4 years I've had it.

[@etonmows7901]

The big blu bubbles work pretty well in my experience

[@sherwinalvarez7365]

🚨🚔👮‍♂️ This is KZbin police. Pull over. 😂

[@HVACRSurvival]

🤣😜✌️✌️

[@Boraxo]

Eek, line voltage for contactor coil and cutout circuit.

[@HVACRSurvival]

That’s how almost all refrigeration is. There’s no low voltage transformers usually.

[@ryanisaacson118]

You did it how i would have done it

[@Paul-IE-Repairs]

My logic tells me risk vs reward, on a humid day changing a drier that is not damage or plugged is wasted time and resources, especially when you pull down to the same micron level with both the existing and new drier installed. Anything below 500 microns will be vaporing the existing moisture as well as any new introduced moisture, during the change out. it reminds me of the old joke, "you need to exchange the winter air in your tires for summer air".

[@harrydickson4575]

👍👍👍

[@lyndonlakhansingh]

Someone explain to me this winter charge thing, where am from we don't have winter 🥶

[@HVACRSurvival]

It’s reserved refrigerant used when the headmaster holds back refrigerant to reduce the size of the condenser coil during low ambient temperatures so you will have a solid column of liquid to your metering device.

[@wtfman5313]

I can’t scrutinize a guy that does the same stuff I do.

[@HVACRSurvival]

😆🫶

[@shine-cg9uf]

🇺🇸💪❄️👍 nice work

[@HVACRSurvival]

Thanks 👍

[@WswRefrigeration]

Any real refer techs know there’s plenty of times where we don’t change the driers

[@commenter5469]

Can’t stand THHN inside the equipment. Should have been MTW or other “hook up” wire. THHN is wonderful wire, but it is for power service and inside conduits, have no business being passed the disconnect.

[@shifter8207]

Whoever says they change it every time probably isn’t lol

[@HVACRSurvival]

I try but there is many times if I can justify it I’ll skip it.

[@shifter8207]

@@HVACRSurvival I’m the same as you. Some situations it just don’t get done

[@steveblake8766]

492 thumbs up

[@hh-oq8gc]

Does anybody know how much r410 empty can weight?

[@sherwinalvarez7365]

6# depends on the manufacturer bottle.

[@etonmows7901]

I’ve had anywhere between 7 and 10 lbs empty weight for a 25lb jug, and they even vary a lot amongst the same manufacturer off the same pallet.

[@brnmcc01]

I usually use Genetron by Honeywell, they are right at about 8#. Just went and looked at a new jug I have, I always write the weight down on the box when I buy them, this new one is 33.18 pounds full (25lb can). That's including the cardboard box though.

[@thesilentonevictor]

Good job Rick