Air Conditioning and Heat Pumps

Residential and light commercial air conditioning and heat pumps, followed through a third-year apprentice in Louisville: system types and SEER2, EER2 and HSPF2 ratings under DOE's regional standards; reversing valves, COP and balance points; defrost and supplementary heat; ductless and multi-zone systems; inverter and communicating equipment; cold-climate heat pumps and dual-fuel changeover; sizing with Manual J and Manual S; installation, line sets, electrical and condensate; rooftop units and economizers; commissioning A2L equipment; maintenance and capacity testing; and troubleshooting, ending with a propane-to-heat-pump retrofit.

RAC-320 12 lessons · 3 h 37 min ▶ Video lessons coming soon

Offered by HSM University · HVAC-R

This is the American version of this course. See the Canadian version.

What you'll learn

Describe split, packaged, rooftop and ductless air conditioning and heat pump systems, and interpret SEER2, EER2, HSPF2, COP and AHRI ratings and the minimum efficiency rules that apply in the United States
Explain how a heat pump reverses its cycle, why its capacity and COP fall in cold weather, and find a house's thermal balance point from capacity data and heat loss
Explain why outdoor coils frost and what happens in a reverse-cycle defrost, and size, stage and control supplementary and emergency heat
Select, place and install ductless and multi-zone systems, including head selection, combination ratios, flare joints, interconnects and condensate
Explain how inverter-driven and communicating systems modulate capacity, why they are efficient at part load, and how to charge, test and diagnose them safely
Evaluate cold-climate heat pumps from extended capacity data and specifications, and set dual-fuel changeover from the thermal and economic balance points
Use calculated loads from Manual J and Manual S and design temperatures to select equipment, and explain the effects of oversizing and undersizing
Install split systems and heat pumps with correct outdoor placement, line set sizing and insulation, charge adjustment for line length, electrical circuits and condensate drainage
Describe rooftop units, economizers and ventilation, estimate capacity from airflow and temperature, and plan a rooftop unit replacement safely
Commission split systems and A2L heat pumps, verifying airflow, charge, both modes, defrost, refrigerant detection and control settings, and hand the system over to the owner
Carry out preventive maintenance, use quick performance indicators and measure delivered capacity by the enthalpy method against extended data
Troubleshoot heat pumps methodically, including reversing valve, defrost, airflow and backup heat faults, and evaluate the results of a heat pump retrofit

Course content

12 lessons · 3 h 37 min total · final exam

1 Air conditioning and heat pump systems: types and efficiency ratings 18 min · quiz
2 Heat pump fundamentals: reversing valves, COP and balance points 19 min · quiz
3 Heat pump defrost and supplementary heat 19 min · quiz
4 Ductless mini-splits and multi-zone systems 18 min · quiz
5 Inverter-driven and communicating systems 19 min · quiz
6 Cold-climate heat pumps and dual-fuel systems 17 min · quiz
7 Equipment selection and sizing 18 min · quiz
8 Installation: placement, line sets, electrical and condensate 18 min · quiz
9 Packaged and rooftop units for light commercial buildings 17 min · quiz
10 Start-up and commissioning, including A2L equipment 18 min · quiz
11 Maintenance and performance testing 18 min · quiz
12 Troubleshooting heat pumps and the Novak retrofit capstone 18 min · quiz
E Final exam 20 questions

Requirements

RAC-220 Metering Devices and System Charging

Recommended background. You can start any course at any time.