Description of maintenance of air conditioners, terms of reference and regulations

The right to install, maintain air conditioners and repair them is given by an official license, which must be obtained by any company offering its services on the climate technology market. However, the presence of this document does not guarantee the high professionalism of employees.

Specifically, a license for servicing air conditioners is not required, since this type of activity does not imply any alterations for the construction, reconstruction and overhaul of buildings, therefore, it does not affect the safety of facilities in any way.

At the same time, companies offering maintenance services are also engaged in the installation and repair of climatic equipment, and these actions without this document are considered illegal. The presence of an official permit gives the right to install / dismantle any kind and type of refrigeration machines with appropriate changes in the architecture of the premises. Obtain a license to service air conditioners and other types of work in the Gosstroy of Russia on a personal request with the provision of the relevant documents.

Time schedule for maintenance

There are certain norms of time for any action with climatic equipment. The regulations on the time frames for maintenance are drawn up taking into account the recommendations of each manufacturer separately.

On average, under normal operating conditions, the norms of time for servicing air conditioners look like this:

• visual inspection of the device for mechanical damage - 5 min;
• power supply check - 3 min;
• check of operating modes and system indication - 5 min;
• comparison of temperature parameters with the norm in the passport of the device - 5 minutes;
• drainage system verification - 7 minutes;
• detection of freon leaks - 5 min;
• cleaning of mechanical filters, heat exchangers, fans and external panels of the split-system units - 40 min.

Standard maintenance of the air conditioner takes about an hour +/- 10 minutes.

The increase or decrease in time costs depends on what type of maintenance the customer wants to carry out and what air conditioning system is available. This is not a complete list of air conditioner maintenance work, so the time rates can vary significantly.

During the maintenance of the VRF system, you will also need:

• diagnostics of operating currents of electric motors;
• checking the serviceability of compressors and fans;
• checking the tightness of thermal insulation;
• inspection of anti-vibration mountings.

All of these additional steps add time to the maintenance of air conditioning systems.

During maintenance, malfunctions of the refrigeration machine may be identified, which require repair and restoration work. Some of them can be carried out immediately on site, and in some cases, a split system or another type of cooling device will have to be dismantled and taken to a service.

List of maintenance works for air conditioners

The simplest maintenance involves the following services:

• inspection of equipment;
• checking the condition of the filter system;
• diagnostics of the operating parameters of the display system and basic modes;
• control over the temperature of the outgoing air;
• drainage system check.

If necessary, clean the filters, drainage, heat exchangers, fans and the casing of the indoor module.The outdoor unit is most often treated with a pressure washer. If there is a suspicion of a freon leak, the employee measures the suction and discharge pressures, and, based on the results, determines whether refueling is needed.

Tariff plan

You can choose from different tariff plans for the maintenance of air conditioning systems. Most firms offer maintenance:

• annual or one-time;
• semi-annual or seasonal (twice a year);
• quarterly;
• monthly.

For domestic air conditioners that are used only in spring and summer, it is recommended to carry out an annual service. For split systems used in the cold season, it is better to order a semi-annual one.

In the presence of semi-industrial and industrial refrigeration systems, it is recommended to conclude an agreement with the company for quarterly or monthly maintenance. The choice depends on where the equipment is located, what heat load is on it during working hours, where the object itself is located. If a crowded office with a mass of computers and office equipment is located along a busy highway, it is better to give preference to servicing air conditioners every 3 months. When it comes to technical rooms of service, warehouses, manufacturing plants, regular cleaning and checking of parameters should be carried out once a month.

When concluding a contract with a company for the repair and maintenance of air conditioners, the customer should remember that if any unit of equipment fails during the validity of this document, he has the right to demand free repair. Only spare parts and consumables are paid for.

The cost

First of all, the contractor looks at the refrigeration capacity of the equipment. For a household split system up to 5 kW, you will have to pay one amount, and for a device over 5 kW - another. The more power, the higher the price. From 10 kW in the cold, 30-35% is added to the initial amount. Maintenance of semi-industrial splits will cost 2 times more than cleaning and diagnostics of a household model.

The calculation of the cost of maintenance of a multi-split system and central air conditioning systems is based on the number of indoor units, their type and capacity.

An increase in tariffs for maintenance of a refrigeration machine can occur in the following cases:

• blocks are located in hard-to-reach places;
• works are carried out at night;
• an industrial climber call required.

In each individual case, a technical assignment for maintenance should be drawn up, which indicates all the technical and architectural features of the facility, the model of the device, as well as its characteristics.

Terms of reference for the maintenance of air conditioners

It is required to carry out maintenance of two wall-mounted DAIKIN air conditioners with a cooling capacity of 2.5 kW and 5 kW in a private house at the address: Moscow region, Serpukhov, st. Zakharkina, 8E.

List of required maintenance work for air conditioners from the service provider:

• Visual inspection of split systems and fasteners for mechanical damage.
• Checking the drainage system and the tightness of the freon refrigeration line.
• Monitoring the performance of systems: the temperature of the outgoing stream, the pressure of freon.
• Diagnostics of the display system and the main modes of the indoor unit using a self-diagnosis system.
• Checking power supply wires, taking measurements of starting and operating current, voltage in the network.
• Cleaning coarse filters.
• Cleaning the heat exchanger of the indoor unit with a steam generator.
• Cleaning the heat exchanger of the outdoor unit with a high pressure washer.
• Refueling as needed.
• Drawing up a checklist for the work performed.
• Drawing up an act on the state of equipment with recommendations for possible repairs.

Something like this may look like a technical task for servicing air conditioners in the application. In the main part, the legal obligations of the parties and the requirements for each other are prescribed. A service card is required for each piece of equipment.

Repair and restoration work

During service maintenance, malfunctions may be found, then we will talk about repairing the air conditioner. There are also time regulations here. The list of possible repair and restoration services is very large. Here are a few points:

• search for leaks in the device up to 20 kW - 20 min;
• replacement of the compressor in case of mechanical or electrical damage - 250 min;
• condenser replacement - 150 min;
• replacement of the fan motor of the outdoor unit - 120 min;
• replacement of the fan impeller of the indoor module - 120 min;
• replacement of a four-way valve - 100 min;
• repair of the drainage pipeline - 15 minutes;
• re-rolling - 10 min;
• replacement of the temperature sensor - 30 min.

This list contains over 100 items. In most cases, the cold power of the device must be taken into account.

Equipment

Repair and maintenance of air conditioners requires the availability of special equipment and materials.

For standard maintenance, you will need devices:

• manometers;
• scales + bottle with freon;
• high pressure washer;
• steam generator;
• clamp meter;
• chemical solution for treatment of the evaporator of the indoor unit;
• Swedish key;
• rags.

Depending on the type of fault, completely different tools may be needed:

• To replace the board, you need a screwdriver and a multimeter that measures voltage and current resistance.
• To replace the fan motor, you need: a screwdriver, a multimeter that measures the resistance of the stator winding of the fan motor, a key, a test capacitor to check the health of the starting capacitor.
• To replace the compressor, you need: keys, clamp meters, freon, pressure gauge, vacuum pump, pipe cutter that cuts off the tubes from the compressor, a torch, solder, nitrogen.

Professional equipment for the maintenance of air conditioners cannot be replaced with improvised means.

Repair and maintenance of air conditioners are trusted only by experienced specialists who have been trained and have an electrical safety group of at least the 3rd. All work is carried out in accordance with the current operational and technical documentation for the equipment.