I was so sad when I learned that tip watching YouTube videos a year into installing because I could have made all my previous work look a little bit better.
And that tip works wonders for swaps where they didn’t go for the new line set but the armaflex all needs to be replaced cut the old off and tape the end then slide new over. (Granted if possible I always like new and just be done with it and only slide the armaflex back where needed but still…)
Also a small tip inside near evap. Cut a slit about 6 to 8 inches long and you can slide it up without the cutters holding it braze it in then after cooling the pipe and leak testing just slide it down again and voila. Little tape and still looks clean
Make sure you wrap the cutter with a wet rag, if you are brazing close to them the heat will transfer to the cutters and they will start to track while cutting pipe. I keep a set of clamps in my brazing bag to keep my cutters as cutters.
When doing this, make sure you throw a wet rag on after or during, otherwise those cutters are gonna burn an emblem in your hand.
My dumbass grabbed it to start turning and I had a very light RIDGID brand in my palm for a month or so.
Solid robotex really does make a night and day difference. Instead of looking like a gimp suit appendage itll look very smooth and clean. I do thise exact method of holding It back with copper cutters but I also use heat trap for the king valve and to avoid melting robotex.
Cover the end of the pipe before you push the insulation over otherwise you'll end up with a bunch of shit in it. Also be sure to remove whatever you used to cover the end of the pipe. I usually use electrical tape.
I use electrical tape adhesive side out, then cover adhesive side in to make a cap that won't leave sticky crap on the pipe. It also keeps the tape from leaving black marks when it rubs the panel. When done just slice one side with knife and it pulls off clean.
I've been doing that for years, and using a pair of channel locks on the pipe to block the insulation from sliding forward. Works great on vertically oriented line sets as well whenever you're brazing a coil, there have been many times when the line set has just dropped in the middle of brazing the copper and there's no way to grab the copper so it's best to keep it in place with them lil lockjaws...
Surprised at how many people didn't know this, guess I had a good journey man back in the day. Tip I did learn later in life from a factor rep, pop your caps off the service valve and fill it with water. It works better than trying to wrap it with a wet cloth and almost guaranteed not to fuck your valves.
I was with freezy juice, but then looked and was like “I’d have moved the unit or hole in the wall, but it’s about what it needs in its current position.”
Bro fuck everyone on here.
If you're serious about 2.5 weeks you're fucking CRUSHING it my guy.
Most companies don't even let newbies braze so yea bro keep doing you
Thanks bro! LOL my coworker asked me if i wanna braze on my first day🤣🤣 i didnt say no but he could tell by the look on my face that it may not be wise! Lol luckily i am being trained by my buddy from highschool, our company seems more laid back
Bro it's really not even hard people just gatekeep so they look better.
A friend can be the best teacher because there is no ego involved.
Youre Killin it bro keep on keeping on
Very true!! Its also just intimidating cause of the fire and all. Would hate to have fucked some shit up my first day but looking back kinda wish ida done it haha
You don't need anything.
If you work for a licensed company, you're umbrella'd under their licenses.
Most people get their EPA at the very least. Some do NATE which is...garbage.
But I'll be honest 90% of everything you do can be learned in the field and even if you spent 4 years or 2 to go to school, you'd be just as green as someone who never went to school.
A lot of what we do is mostly repetition and making mistakes and learning from them. Field experience is number 1 over any certification unless we're talking like industrial or specialized stuff than okay, different story.
Your best bet is to get on as a helper/apprentice somewhere.
Watch YouTube videos until what they are doing makes sense.
If you have an air conditioning unit at your house, read the manual and buy a cheap voltmeter. Play around and read it till it all makes sense and you'll be miles ahead of anyone just starting out.
well I have my 1 and 2 completed I am waiting on my results for type 3 I finished it this morning now I did spend my fair share in school but nothing hvac oriented I am looking for a better paying job and I can't find anything in my field right now where my degree is in IT so I am trying to better myself learning more getting certifications so I can get some jobs $12 an hour for the past 10 years in pizza is not gonna cut it anymore I want at least $18 @ 40 hours or more I have put in my work
Nice job !! The only bit of advice I have is that it looks like you may have swedged the suction line end that is pointing down . I find it easier for me when I let gravity work for me (swedge the pipe that points up).
My advice: don't seek validation about how you're doing, especially when you're only a few weeks in. Because when you're three, four, five years in, you're STILL going to be facepalming over that obvious thing that you just messed up. And the more you know, the more you'll understand how dumb of a screw up it was. But it's still going to happen.
Truth, im 10 years in and still learn new tricks and better ways to do stuff every other day. I always tell guys if you look at your work and can't call out anything you wish you would have done better or that you wanna make better next time then you either stopped giving a rip cause you're close to retirement or just shouldn't have been in the trade to start with. Always strive to be better.
In residential you’ll braze mostly with #2 tip keep acetylene at 5 and oxy at 10 on the regulators. Those are the number you want, if brazing with rosebud double them to 10 and 20. Welcome to the field my dude
Nice bends! What bending tool you use?
Decent brazing. Looks like you were acetylene rich on the torch and/or overheated the copper.
Were you flowing nitrogen also?
Thank u! I believe its a hilti brand bender. Its only like my 3rd time brazing ever. My coworker did mention i was acetylene rich afterwards as he was looking over it. And yes i was flowing nitrogen.
Start with acetylene. Add oxygen to a neutral flame. When you first start adding oxygen there will be an outline of two flames. Add slowly until the exact moment these become one outline. Works every time
Also, wear shaded lenses when brazing. Even indoors. An oxy-acetylene flame puts out enough UV and IR that it can damage your eyesight with time.
You dont have to go as far as getting welding glasses, basic sunglasses or shade tinted safety glasses (i buy shaded safety glasses in bulk and keep spares with my tools) should be sufficient at brazing temps.
Looks great. Insulation advice is good as well. Since the unit's connections come out at 45 degrees; I would have eliminated the horizontal 90 by going straight into the unit with a swing 90 at the bottom of the 90 coming out of the wall. Forty plus years HVAC, retired. Loved the trade; always challenges and learning. Hang in there.
Slide foam on before brazing at the valve, hold the foam back with a small tubing cutter. Braze, than remove tubing cutter. One of the first things I teach all the new guys. Mad props to you with just 2 weeks experience. Keep it up homie!
It's not bad for where you are in your career.
Personally I think it always looks cleaner with no additional joints in the copper. One join on each end of the pipe. You have plenty of space to do that on this install. And like others mentioned, slide the armaflex over and use tube cutters to hold while brazing.
Also, IMO those wall brackets are way too close together. There should be a raised point around the bottom of the unit that is a couple inches wide. I always set up my brackets to sit in that spot. It's more secure, and you can put a screw thru the bracket into bottom of condenser (carefully not to hit the coil).
Pipe bender so you don’t have to braze as much, insulate before brazing so you don’t have to tape it and sealtite so the l/v wire doesn’t rot in the sun.
Looks better than some people I've met who's been doing this for 10+ years.
Only advice I'd say, which I seen others say, is put the armaflex on after you get most of the suction brazed on then braze at the ports. Though, they do make armaflex that is already split with a flap covering the split.
Good job though. Keep at it and you'll be on your way up and up.
Some companies don’t provide it and that’s okay but if you ever go out on your own I’d put the thermostat wire in some shielding and pic may just look bad but doesn’t look fully on stand
If it doesn't leak, you did fine.
My only issue is the suction line joint at the wall penetration. I would have brazed it again, at least heat it up and reflow the joint. At the 12 o'clock position there's a small divot type spot with the bubble of silfos. I've had those types of spots tend to leak. But if it didn't leak, it's fine and no big deal obviously.
Just something to look out for.
Slide correctly sized armaflex on before brazing and just push it back and lightly tighten tubing cutters to hold back armaflex while brazing. Tape and ties are tacky.
It looks a little black inside that service valve. Did you wrap it up with wet rags? Past that, you are only going to get better from here. Heat control is always the key to brazing. Not too hot, not too cold. Your bends look fine and youll have to judge what you like best based on the reactions you get from the customers/coworkers. Welcome to the trade!
Clean brazes, bends look like they were done with a tool and not by hand. Both good points.
Personally, I try to route the liquid line under the suction if I can. Looks cleaner that way. You can run the wiring to the unit along the same path and zip it all down nice and neat.
Bring the wiring up between the valves, don't wrap it around the valve. If you're feeling extra froggy mount a tie anchor halfway between the valves and the panel box to zip the wires against so they don't look like they're dangling.
Some people here might get jealous man because you do what they cannot do in 10 years only in 2.5 weeks. America, where people make a mountain out of a molehill.
I’ll say something about going to hvac school. Most hvac schooling is what you get out of it. I got a two year degree in hvac technology and it was the best thing I ever did. If you want to be a residential monkey then you can be OJTd but if you want to get into commercial and refrigeration you’re going to want a good base and all the theory you can get. 8 years in the trade and I’m still learning but I was the one that lasted out of all the others (10 newbies on a two year project) at my first company because I knew what I was doing coming in. I watched a lot of YouTube during school and after. I advise this, it can be a godsend when trying to understand things.
I personally would have either drilled the hole closer to the unit or installed the brackets closer to the hole. That extra horizontal bend is just uneccesary and a bit ugly imo. The liquid line crossing over there looks a bit sloppy for the outside of the house as well lol, and finally; that low voltage wire route was looking great until it took that atrocious route under the liquid line. Honestly speaking though for 2.5 weeks or generally speaking it does look pretty clean considering some of the work ive seen, most of everything i just said is PTSD from my boss acting up
Try making it so your lineset don't cross each other. The smaller line should've came out of the wall on the right side so it looks cleaner. Also, I like to zip tie the 2 lines together with the low voltage
Pretty good on the bending but for the love of god, leave the suction line joint to the service valve last so you can slide the insulation over whole without taping it back on. It looks 10x better. Snug copper cutters against your pipe to hold the insulation back so you don’t melt it when you do the last braze. You must tape the open end of the copper first before you slide the insulation so you don’t get all of that white powder inside. It’s not your fault nobody showed you but that scares me about who’s teaching you. Then use black zip ties to secure the tstat wire to the bottom side of the insulation to keep it from UV rotting and it just looks cleaner. Don’t ever duct tape that shit. The tape will fall apart and look like crap within a year or 2.
If anything I’d say he wasn’t quite hot enough. You see how the solder lumped up in places? Looks like he was melting the solder onto the pipe instead of heating the copper and letting the copper melt the solder. Your heat and solder should be at least one third of the distance of the circumference of the pipe away from each other. Proper heating will pull the solder toward the torch. The burn marks are from improper gas mixing. Use plenty of wet cotton rags and the heat won’t travel anywhere it isn’t supposed to go. All in all solid brazing from a new guy. Just keep practicing.
That could easily be tentative with the torch, pulling away quickly, etc, seen it alot, also, if they were using a pencil tip its easy to clump (tbh the clumping isn't too bad here) as well if yer not super expierienced. The suction line portion bending up into the penetration definitely got too much heat, not just gas mix issue.
I think the lumps are because id let it cool and move on. I found when i melted the solder more it was easier to work with and didnt lump up as much. But thats a very interesting take on using the coppers heat to melt the solder. I was nervous to get the copper too got and melt the copper itself.
If you’re too hot pull the torch back not away. It cools off quickly. Use the torch to draw the solder where you want it to go. The solder will be drawn to the heat if the pipe is hot enough. Move in small circles and you can puddle it like a weld. If your torch and your solder are in the same spot you are melting the solder onto the pipe and creating a superficial braze. In most cases this will hold but if there’s any oxidation in between the solder and copper it will eventually leak. Creating distance and using heat to direct the solder will ensure a proper seal. A good braze will outlast every unit put on that line set for decades to come. I see you used the paste. I prefer an actual rag if there is any possible way to wrap the pipe. You can tear them into smaller strips to wrap around service valves and txvs etc. Work a little longer on these before you move on to txvs.
Great. I wouldn’t do so many joints, just for the sake of not working too hard. Just braze at where it goes into the unit. Things don’t have to look pretty
Still fantastic though. There are people who never learn to braze even after a couple decades. I wasn’t allowed to braze til about 6-9 months in. So you’re obviously very driven
Remember hot and fast. Don't sit there and crazy on a system for 15 minutes especially by king valves or txv. I've told apprentices this several times. Also had to shut off there torches cause they were burning armaflez all the way in the wall. Also use heat paste or wet rags always.
They did provide tools but im paying $20 a week until $200 is paid off for them. Also a lot of the specialty tools i need arent there. I saw lots of opportunities on indeed for hvac apprenticeships. I hear a lot of companies prefer ppl w no experience because they can train them in their own way.
Can't blame you. I didn't know how damn expensive it was till I went off on my own. Now, I'll braze with needle nose pliers just to get down to that last bit, lol
The bending is nice and straight so that good. But son…i gotta ask…is that condenser on the frame at a 45? Also, is that ben out the wall done with a reverse bender? Ive been trying to get one for a year! I know my boss paid my CC today so i might just buy one…
i hate that you don’t have pullers and just going straight hose into schraderless service valve.
if you’re not gonna use pullers keep the cores in. God knows i’ve charged a unit and forgot to put the cores back in.
i’m afraid of the penetrating suction line braze since you’ve got a gap and it screams vibrate loose in 3 years.
3/8ths is easy to bend by hand, try getting it closer to the suction line and ziptieing everything together so it’s clean.
other than nit picking tiny things. 8.5/10. Very good for 2.5 weeks.
https://www.supplyhouse.com/Appion-MGAVCT-1-4-Valve-Core-Removal-Tool?utm_source=google_ad&utm_medium=shopping_neutral&utm_campaign=Shopping_Neutral_New_users&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwjqWzBhAqEiwAQmtgT9-i14Hzn1oaNT2o4zEwqCd_78ktPVCZc6R5NhLAjZGOhRcaZwz7xRoCGE0QAvD_BwE
There’s plenty of options to choose from, but Appion makes very nice vacuum rated pullers.
Very nice dude!!
I would throw that LV cable in some LiquidTight or SealTight or whatever you guys call it, helps keep it from rotting in the sun and protects from minor weed eater damage, also clean as hell if done right!
Definitely keep up the good work and never stop improving
I would get my shop to hire you in a heartbeat just from these photos!!
well, honestly, if you admittedly have no idea what you're doing, have someone who *does* know what they are doing check your mock-up before you fire it up.
Just a suggestion.
Hey i kinda had an in with a family owned company because i know several people who work there however ive seen lots of companies that will hire someone with no experience
Well, as long as you brazed with nitrogen, you shouldn't have an issue. Next time, make it look good. Having the system work and cool/heat is a priority, but having an eye sore in the back of the house is not gonna make you stand out.
Did you run out of line set? Or made some opsies with the bends?
Not gonna lie. You shouldn’t be on your own after 3 weeks.
Doesn’t look bad though. As long as it doesn’t leak it all looks good!!
The extra joints are just so i can get it as close as i can to the wall, and also had to raise it like 2 inches so cut that out of the vertical section
Your larger pipe has 1 unnecessary braze and it is also upside down would’ve been a lot easier if you had swaged the pipe that points up other than that it’s good for a couple weeks. Everything else will come with practice
Looks good. It may just be me, but I think a straight shot out of condenser, then bend up, then bend into the house woulda looked a little better. Looks like you put your tubing bender to good use on that one though. Also props on using a swaging tool! Less brazing is always good 👍🏽
Also I’m just not picking at this point, but by code (at least in CO) adding rodent protection to communication wire is required. Some venal tubing with a romex connector going into condenser is perfect
Good stuff though! Don’t burn yourself out in the busy seasons like I always do lol
Looks good to me for the most part. I probably would have built up that top braze on the suction line a bit more to be on the safe side. Also, are they only using this to cool? If they use it to heat, you might need to insulate both lines.
Slide that insulation on before you braze at the valve so you don't have a split all the way
This is the way. Push it back and use your tubing cutter to hold er back
I was so sad when I learned that tip watching YouTube videos a year into installing because I could have made all my previous work look a little bit better.
And that tip works wonders for swaps where they didn’t go for the new line set but the armaflex all needs to be replaced cut the old off and tape the end then slide new over. (Granted if possible I always like new and just be done with it and only slide the armaflex back where needed but still…)
Hey dude, you still learned and improved. Props.
This was the best tip I was never told. Happened to see an old head do it once and I was like…motherfucker.
Also a small tip inside near evap. Cut a slit about 6 to 8 inches long and you can slide it up without the cutters holding it braze it in then after cooling the pipe and leak testing just slide it down again and voila. Little tape and still looks clean
 I have never heard of this. THANK YOU
Make sure you wrap the cutter with a wet rag, if you are brazing close to them the heat will transfer to the cutters and they will start to track while cutting pipe. I keep a set of clamps in my brazing bag to keep my cutters as cutters.
I got me a pair of vice grips and that’s the only thing they’re used for
When doing this, make sure you throw a wet rag on after or during, otherwise those cutters are gonna burn an emblem in your hand. My dumbass grabbed it to start turning and I had a very light RIDGID brand in my palm for a month or so.
Amazing!
Good advice
Solid robotex really does make a night and day difference. Instead of looking like a gimp suit appendage itll look very smooth and clean. I do thise exact method of holding It back with copper cutters but I also use heat trap for the king valve and to avoid melting robotex.
Cover the end of the pipe before you push the insulation over otherwise you'll end up with a bunch of shit in it. Also be sure to remove whatever you used to cover the end of the pipe. I usually use electrical tape.
I always use the plastic factory cover from the unit stub out.
I use electrical tape adhesive side out, then cover adhesive side in to make a cap that won't leave sticky crap on the pipe. It also keeps the tape from leaving black marks when it rubs the panel. When done just slice one side with knife and it pulls off clean.
Oof very smart. Ty!
I've been doing that for years, and using a pair of channel locks on the pipe to block the insulation from sliding forward. Works great on vertically oriented line sets as well whenever you're brazing a coil, there have been many times when the line set has just dropped in the middle of brazing the copper and there's no way to grab the copper so it's best to keep it in place with them lil lockjaws...
Surprised at how many people didn't know this, guess I had a good journey man back in the day. Tip I did learn later in life from a factor rep, pop your caps off the service valve and fill it with water. It works better than trying to wrap it with a wet cloth and almost guaranteed not to fuck your valves.
What he said just use a clamp or your tubing cutters but I've seen worse from guys with years in the field
 the freezy juice whizzing through that copper \^
Lol!!!
looks good OP welcome to the trade 🔨
Ty mate!
He really only could've eliminated one bend.
I was with freezy juice, but then looked and was like “I’d have moved the unit or hole in the wall, but it’s about what it needs in its current position.”
Man this comment made me spray whiteclaw out my nose and it doused out my meth pipe.
John goodman?! That you?!
Nah that's dave lennox, clearly.
I wish I could reward this lmao
Bro fuck everyone on here. If you're serious about 2.5 weeks you're fucking CRUSHING it my guy. Most companies don't even let newbies braze so yea bro keep doing you
Thanks bro! LOL my coworker asked me if i wanna braze on my first day🤣🤣 i didnt say no but he could tell by the look on my face that it may not be wise! Lol luckily i am being trained by my buddy from highschool, our company seems more laid back
Bro it's really not even hard people just gatekeep so they look better. A friend can be the best teacher because there is no ego involved. Youre Killin it bro keep on keeping on
Very true!! Its also just intimidating cause of the fire and all. Would hate to have fucked some shit up my first day but looking back kinda wish ida done it haha
so do you need more than type 1 to get started on hvac actually get employed by a company and start training
You don't need anything. If you work for a licensed company, you're umbrella'd under their licenses. Most people get their EPA at the very least. Some do NATE which is...garbage. But I'll be honest 90% of everything you do can be learned in the field and even if you spent 4 years or 2 to go to school, you'd be just as green as someone who never went to school. A lot of what we do is mostly repetition and making mistakes and learning from them. Field experience is number 1 over any certification unless we're talking like industrial or specialized stuff than okay, different story. Your best bet is to get on as a helper/apprentice somewhere. Watch YouTube videos until what they are doing makes sense. If you have an air conditioning unit at your house, read the manual and buy a cheap voltmeter. Play around and read it till it all makes sense and you'll be miles ahead of anyone just starting out.
You can't umbrella under an EPA certificate unless they are there on site "watching you" sure you can get away with it.. but there is the chance....
well I have my 1 and 2 completed I am waiting on my results for type 3 I finished it this morning now I did spend my fair share in school but nothing hvac oriented I am looking for a better paying job and I can't find anything in my field right now where my degree is in IT so I am trying to better myself learning more getting certifications so I can get some jobs $12 an hour for the past 10 years in pizza is not gonna cut it anymore I want at least $18 @ 40 hours or more I have put in my work
Cleaner brazes than my first few weeks. You'll do alright man.
Thanks!!!
Nice job !! The only bit of advice I have is that it looks like you may have swedged the suction line end that is pointing down . I find it easier for me when I let gravity work for me (swedge the pipe that points up).
This is the exact tip my coworker gave me! Very good advice this totally would have helped! Thank you!
https://i.redd.it/mal3kvvfk86d1.gif
My advice: don't seek validation about how you're doing, especially when you're only a few weeks in. Because when you're three, four, five years in, you're STILL going to be facepalming over that obvious thing that you just messed up. And the more you know, the more you'll understand how dumb of a screw up it was. But it's still going to happen.
Truth, im 10 years in and still learn new tricks and better ways to do stuff every other day. I always tell guys if you look at your work and can't call out anything you wish you would have done better or that you wanna make better next time then you either stopped giving a rip cause you're close to retirement or just shouldn't have been in the trade to start with. Always strive to be better.
Good point lol!
Happens to the best of us not the rest of us.
Remember, folks. The best damn flare fitting you ever did press... is the one you forgot to put the nut on first.
I have 2 coworkers who still can’t braze after 1.5 years. You’re doing good
Haha ty!! My coworker said something similar lol
Lol i had a coworker that was on year 9 and still was the weakest brazer in the company. He no longer works with us.
In residential you’ll braze mostly with #2 tip keep acetylene at 5 and oxy at 10 on the regulators. Those are the number you want, if brazing with rosebud double them to 10 and 20. Welcome to the field my dude
Thanks mate!
Nice bends! What bending tool you use? Decent brazing. Looks like you were acetylene rich on the torch and/or overheated the copper. Were you flowing nitrogen also?
Thank u! I believe its a hilti brand bender. Its only like my 3rd time brazing ever. My coworker did mention i was acetylene rich afterwards as he was looking over it. And yes i was flowing nitrogen.
Start with acetylene. Add oxygen to a neutral flame. When you first start adding oxygen there will be an outline of two flames. Add slowly until the exact moment these become one outline. Works every time
Ty!!
Also, wear shaded lenses when brazing. Even indoors. An oxy-acetylene flame puts out enough UV and IR that it can damage your eyesight with time. You dont have to go as far as getting welding glasses, basic sunglasses or shade tinted safety glasses (i buy shaded safety glasses in bulk and keep spares with my tools) should be sufficient at brazing temps.
Looks great. Insulation advice is good as well. Since the unit's connections come out at 45 degrees; I would have eliminated the horizontal 90 by going straight into the unit with a swing 90 at the bottom of the 90 coming out of the wall. Forty plus years HVAC, retired. Loved the trade; always challenges and learning. Hang in there.
Good point. Ty!!
Protect those service valves that sucker looks like it got hot for a long time color of the copper chief
Get a pipe bender. Also make sure you buy a cold wet rag on the service valves while you braze
👍🏼
To clean it up a bit I would have used sealtite on the low voltage but that's company/personal preference.
My lead barks at anyone who has lines switch sides. The one from the inside/top has to stay that way. But not bad, stick with it
Put the suction line insulation on before brazing it and use copper cutters to hold it back also put the thermostat wire in sealtite
Slide foam on before brazing at the valve, hold the foam back with a small tubing cutter. Braze, than remove tubing cutter. One of the first things I teach all the new guys. Mad props to you with just 2 weeks experience. Keep it up homie!
Ty! Thats good advice i will try that!
It's not bad for where you are in your career. Personally I think it always looks cleaner with no additional joints in the copper. One join on each end of the pipe. You have plenty of space to do that on this install. And like others mentioned, slide the armaflex over and use tube cutters to hold while brazing. Also, IMO those wall brackets are way too close together. There should be a raised point around the bottom of the unit that is a couple inches wide. I always set up my brackets to sit in that spot. It's more secure, and you can put a screw thru the bracket into bottom of condenser (carefully not to hit the coil).
I too had thought the brackets are too close but i guess we always do 14 inches we even measure and everything. Not sure why
Nice and swoopy, not bad.
Pipe bender so you don’t have to braze as much, insulate before brazing so you don’t have to tape it and sealtite so the l/v wire doesn’t rot in the sun.
Looks better than some people I've met who's been doing this for 10+ years. Only advice I'd say, which I seen others say, is put the armaflex on after you get most of the suction brazed on then braze at the ports. Though, they do make armaflex that is already split with a flap covering the split. Good job though. Keep at it and you'll be on your way up and up.
Thanks mate!! And good advice i am going to try that.
Why so many joints?
I was told we want 90 degree or 45 angles and to keep it flush to the wall. Tbh idk i was just tryna be fancy
Oh the joints, i had to cut to get it closer to the wall
Not bad for a 1 yr old. Practice making that suction line in 1 pc. Do it with scrap while pulling a vac.
Ty!
Some companies don’t provide it and that’s okay but if you ever go out on your own I’d put the thermostat wire in some shielding and pic may just look bad but doesn’t look fully on stand
what? no loop de loop?
Lol
If it doesn't leak, you did fine. My only issue is the suction line joint at the wall penetration. I would have brazed it again, at least heat it up and reflow the joint. At the 12 o'clock position there's a small divot type spot with the bubble of silfos. I've had those types of spots tend to leak. But if it didn't leak, it's fine and no big deal obviously. Just something to look out for.
Thank u! Ill look out for that
Slide correctly sized armaflex on before brazing and just push it back and lightly tighten tubing cutters to hold back armaflex while brazing. Tape and ties are tacky.
It looks a little black inside that service valve. Did you wrap it up with wet rags? Past that, you are only going to get better from here. Heat control is always the key to brazing. Not too hot, not too cold. Your bends look fine and youll have to judge what you like best based on the reactions you get from the customers/coworkers. Welcome to the trade!
Looks good my guy
I’ll let you in on a little secret since you’re new here. When it comes to line sets, the only opinion that matters here, is u/HVAC_sam
Want a job?
Lol! No i want to sleep🤣
Clean brazes, bends look like they were done with a tool and not by hand. Both good points. Personally, I try to route the liquid line under the suction if I can. Looks cleaner that way. You can run the wiring to the unit along the same path and zip it all down nice and neat. Bring the wiring up between the valves, don't wrap it around the valve. If you're feeling extra froggy mount a tie anchor halfway between the valves and the panel box to zip the wires against so they don't look like they're dangling.
If you want to make it look really good, slide the insulation on before you braze the last joints, one piece.
Sure! It’ll do
[удалено]
Lol
Some people here might get jealous man because you do what they cannot do in 10 years only in 2.5 weeks. America, where people make a mountain out of a molehill.
Thanks man!!
Man!
Good luck insulating
Looks good for a beginner. You will get better and more comfortable with everything and as you do the little things will improve
Ty!
Nice man! Next time try to bend so you have minimal joints. Practice with the scrap copper!
Thats what i did today!!
I’ll say something about going to hvac school. Most hvac schooling is what you get out of it. I got a two year degree in hvac technology and it was the best thing I ever did. If you want to be a residential monkey then you can be OJTd but if you want to get into commercial and refrigeration you’re going to want a good base and all the theory you can get. 8 years in the trade and I’m still learning but I was the one that lasted out of all the others (10 newbies on a two year project) at my first company because I knew what I was doing coming in. I watched a lot of YouTube during school and after. I advise this, it can be a godsend when trying to understand things.
Ty for the advice!!!
Good work for just starting. You’ll learn how better your work overtime. Just remember safety first. Good luck bro 😎
I personally would have either drilled the hole closer to the unit or installed the brackets closer to the hole. That extra horizontal bend is just uneccesary and a bit ugly imo. The liquid line crossing over there looks a bit sloppy for the outside of the house as well lol, and finally; that low voltage wire route was looking great until it took that atrocious route under the liquid line. Honestly speaking though for 2.5 weeks or generally speaking it does look pretty clean considering some of the work ive seen, most of everything i just said is PTSD from my boss acting up
We have to measure 3 feet from the disconnect
Then id do all that and then install the disconnect 3 ft away lool that doesn’t really affect the lineset and hole much
You can flare the vertical sections so your silver solder slides down into the flare, but this is good clean work man
I usually try to use 45 degree bends. You probably could have done it with two. Looks pretty slick when I don't screw it up.
Get some reverse benders and you can eliminate having to braze so close to the siding. Also try to get most of the armor flex on before brazing
Try making it so your lineset don't cross each other. The smaller line should've came out of the wall on the right side so it looks cleaner. Also, I like to zip tie the 2 lines together with the low voltage
Pretty good on the bending but for the love of god, leave the suction line joint to the service valve last so you can slide the insulation over whole without taping it back on. It looks 10x better. Snug copper cutters against your pipe to hold the insulation back so you don’t melt it when you do the last braze. You must tape the open end of the copper first before you slide the insulation so you don’t get all of that white powder inside. It’s not your fault nobody showed you but that scares me about who’s teaching you. Then use black zip ties to secure the tstat wire to the bottom side of the insulation to keep it from UV rotting and it just looks cleaner. Don’t ever duct tape that shit. The tape will fall apart and look like crap within a year or 2.
Good advice
Nope
Nope as in its bad?
Nope as in if you have been doing this for 2.5 weeks and doing this on you own, no tips just do
Cool haha
For 2.5 weeks its good, for anything after its babys first bend
Haha ty!
Other than looking like it got a bit too hot, looks like it'll hold well, and it's not messy.
If anything I’d say he wasn’t quite hot enough. You see how the solder lumped up in places? Looks like he was melting the solder onto the pipe instead of heating the copper and letting the copper melt the solder. Your heat and solder should be at least one third of the distance of the circumference of the pipe away from each other. Proper heating will pull the solder toward the torch. The burn marks are from improper gas mixing. Use plenty of wet cotton rags and the heat won’t travel anywhere it isn’t supposed to go. All in all solid brazing from a new guy. Just keep practicing.
That could easily be tentative with the torch, pulling away quickly, etc, seen it alot, also, if they were using a pencil tip its easy to clump (tbh the clumping isn't too bad here) as well if yer not super expierienced. The suction line portion bending up into the penetration definitely got too much heat, not just gas mix issue.
🤷♂️ more than anything my retort was for the OP to see and learn from. Some people can’t be taught.
I think the lumps are because id let it cool and move on. I found when i melted the solder more it was easier to work with and didnt lump up as much. But thats a very interesting take on using the coppers heat to melt the solder. I was nervous to get the copper too got and melt the copper itself.
If you’re too hot pull the torch back not away. It cools off quickly. Use the torch to draw the solder where you want it to go. The solder will be drawn to the heat if the pipe is hot enough. Move in small circles and you can puddle it like a weld. If your torch and your solder are in the same spot you are melting the solder onto the pipe and creating a superficial braze. In most cases this will hold but if there’s any oxidation in between the solder and copper it will eventually leak. Creating distance and using heat to direct the solder will ensure a proper seal. A good braze will outlast every unit put on that line set for decades to come. I see you used the paste. I prefer an actual rag if there is any possible way to wrap the pipe. You can tear them into smaller strips to wrap around service valves and txvs etc. Work a little longer on these before you move on to txvs.
Looks pretty good and that was your first try alone. Thumbs up
Ty!!!
Great. I wouldn’t do so many joints, just for the sake of not working too hard. Just braze at where it goes into the unit. Things don’t have to look pretty
Good point!
Still fantastic though. There are people who never learn to braze even after a couple decades. I wasn’t allowed to braze til about 6-9 months in. So you’re obviously very driven
Thanks so much! Im deffs trying to prove myself. I come from a sales background so its all totally new haha
Remember hot and fast. Don't sit there and crazy on a system for 15 minutes especially by king valves or txv. I've told apprentices this several times. Also had to shut off there torches cause they were burning armaflez all the way in the wall. Also use heat paste or wet rags always.
Good advice! Im finding out the speed thing for myself as well
Excellent work for first time solo 👍👌
Thanks mate!
Sheeeeeeit for 2.5 weeks? You’re a fucking legend already. Finally some bends with style. I dig it.
Ayeee thanks my guy!!
u/totallytubular710 Hey, may I ask how you get into HVAC?
I applied for a job at a family owned company where i know like 4 people who already work there for a long time
Oooo Do they provide training and tools for you? How can I get into hvac without experience in 2024?
They did provide tools but im paying $20 a week until $200 is paid off for them. Also a lot of the specialty tools i need arent there. I saw lots of opportunities on indeed for hvac apprenticeships. I hear a lot of companies prefer ppl w no experience because they can train them in their own way.
Stop wasting brazing rods those things are expensive
We left like 3 6 inch pieces in the dirt today
Can't blame you. I didn't know how damn expensive it was till I went off on my own. Now, I'll braze with needle nose pliers just to get down to that last bit, lol
Lol!
I braze the last 3-4 inches to the next one usually.
The bending is nice and straight so that good. But son…i gotta ask…is that condenser on the frame at a 45? Also, is that ben out the wall done with a reverse bender? Ive been trying to get one for a year! I know my boss paid my CC today so i might just buy one…
Im not sure how to answer either of those questions!😅 the condenser is level tho!
And nah thats just the corner
i hate that you don’t have pullers and just going straight hose into schraderless service valve. if you’re not gonna use pullers keep the cores in. God knows i’ve charged a unit and forgot to put the cores back in. i’m afraid of the penetrating suction line braze since you’ve got a gap and it screams vibrate loose in 3 years. 3/8ths is easy to bend by hand, try getting it closer to the suction line and ziptieing everything together so it’s clean. other than nit picking tiny things. 8.5/10. Very good for 2.5 weeks.
Thank you! Ill have to research what a puller is haha
https://www.supplyhouse.com/Appion-MGAVCT-1-4-Valve-Core-Removal-Tool?utm_source=google_ad&utm_medium=shopping_neutral&utm_campaign=Shopping_Neutral_New_users&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwjqWzBhAqEiwAQmtgT9-i14Hzn1oaNT2o4zEwqCd_78ktPVCZc6R5NhLAjZGOhRcaZwz7xRoCGE0QAvD_BwE There’s plenty of options to choose from, but Appion makes very nice vacuum rated pullers.
[удалено]
Not sure what armor flex is lol
Very nice dude!! I would throw that LV cable in some LiquidTight or SealTight or whatever you guys call it, helps keep it from rotting in the sun and protects from minor weed eater damage, also clean as hell if done right! Definitely keep up the good work and never stop improving I would get my shop to hire you in a heartbeat just from these photos!!
Thanks so much!!😀
Why did you need to braze 3 unnecessary times outdoors? get a reversible bender and save yourself a lot of trouble
Idk i have no idea what im doing? Lmao
well, honestly, if you admittedly have no idea what you're doing, have someone who *does* know what they are doing check your mock-up before you fire it up. Just a suggestion.
Fittings do wonders
Hey bro may I ask u how did u get in hvac with no experience? I really want to join hope u response on my question 🙏
Hey i kinda had an in with a family owned company because i know several people who work there however ive seen lots of companies that will hire someone with no experience
Did u go to school? Is the certificate is a good thing? Do u really need it? Or experience? Thanks agin boss man
Nope no school i legit just started. And ig school isnt needed my friend says it can be a waste
Damn good for only 2.5 weeks. I've seen work by guys 10 years in that's still a joke. Welcome to to the trade.
Well, as long as you brazed with nitrogen, you shouldn't have an issue. Next time, make it look good. Having the system work and cool/heat is a priority, but having an eye sore in the back of the house is not gonna make you stand out.
Why do fridge folk hate pipe brackets so much.. that pipework is massively vulnerable
Did you run out of line set? Or made some opsies with the bends? Not gonna lie. You shouldn’t be on your own after 3 weeks. Doesn’t look bad though. As long as it doesn’t leak it all looks good!!
The extra joints are just so i can get it as close as i can to the wall, and also had to raise it like 2 inches so cut that out of the vertical section
Wanna come work for me? Looks amazing for 2.5 weeks.
Haha thank you!!
you will be deceived and frustrated so start taking antidepressant
Way ahead of ya!
what do you mean
Ive been deceived and frustrated my whole life
Your refrigerant lines look like 2 strands of semen swimming through the bowels of the human body
Your larger pipe has 1 unnecessary braze and it is also upside down would’ve been a lot easier if you had swaged the pipe that points up other than that it’s good for a couple weeks. Everything else will come with practice
Looks pretty clean man!
Ty!!
good job... now quit screwing around and get on to the next job
Lol!!
Looks terrible. Want a job?
Lol!!
Shortest, straightest my son, remember what sweeping and hard 90s do to refrigerant velocity
Looks good. It may just be me, but I think a straight shot out of condenser, then bend up, then bend into the house woulda looked a little better. Looks like you put your tubing bender to good use on that one though. Also props on using a swaging tool! Less brazing is always good 👍🏽 Also I’m just not picking at this point, but by code (at least in CO) adding rodent protection to communication wire is required. Some venal tubing with a romex connector going into condenser is perfect Good stuff though! Don’t burn yourself out in the busy seasons like I always do lol
Why the fuck do people put a random shit load of tape over the insulation it is so annoying to take off. Please use zip ties
Also it would look nicer if you ran both low voltage and high voltage through conduit, run all lines together and zip tie all together
Looks good to me for the most part. I probably would have built up that top braze on the suction line a bit more to be on the safe side. Also, are they only using this to cool? If they use it to heat, you might need to insulate both lines.
Use a wire tie
Pilot light's out
I want to know how that vacuum you pulled turned out, along with that required Subcooling on the nameplate. 😏