HVAC StateWatch from ACCA

“Each state has different rules and regulations regarding HVACR licensing and business operations. While we can’t keep track of everything that happens in all 50 states, we have compiled some basic information and links to point you in the right direction to operate a proper contracting business in each state.”

http://www.acca.org/states/

Side by side comparison of the Retrotec and Minneapolis blower doors.

Blower Door Comparison Guide

TruTech Tools, LTD was founded on the belief that better tools and better training make for better technicians.  Our motto: “A true sign of a true technician is the quality of their tools and his or her ability to use them. “

At TruTech Tools, it is our mission to insure that you not only own the best test equipment, but also know how, when and where to use it. We spend a lot of time and effort evaluating and testing products, truly understanding them from the inside out, so that your experience with them is the best it can possibly be. Whether it be the nuances of how a sensor functions or the limits the range of a probe, we put our knowledge in the context of how you use the product to be sure it fits.

It is also our belief that a trained user makes a better customer.   We do our utmost to provide support: whether it be phone support, video clips on line, video calls, PDF materials, many of them embedded in our website, some available on request. We do not go for the quick-sell or the useless upgrade. That’s not what we are about.

We pay attention to the small details, like setting the time zone on your digital equipment, before it ships to you. Or configuring probes to be sure things work for you right out of the box.

We are also interested in you and appreciate your questions and feedback, as no one is perfect, yet we try our darnedest to be so!

Thanks for reading this little message and as a token of our appreciation we are offering you a 7.5% discount off your purchase from our webstore. Just use coupon code WP-9-1 at Step 2 of checkout.
Thanks and keep in touch!

The Team at TruTechTools

Instructors invited to apply for donations of Thermal Imaging Cameras

EVERETT, Wash. – Fluke Corporation, the world’s leading supplier of handheld test and measurement equipment, is donating $100,000 worth of infrared thermal imagers to schools and training programs for use in teaching students to perform weatherization work and home inspections.

Through the new Fluke Weatherization Grant Program, announced today, instructors in accredited programs in building science, weatherization, energy conservation, home inspection and heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) can apply for grants of Fluke IRInSIGHT®Thermal Imagers for use in instructional programs.  These IR-InSIGHT imagers are designed for inspecting building envelopes to spot leaks and find places where energy is being lost.

Twenty programs will be selected to receive one thermal imager kit including software, two rechargeable batteries, charger, operation manual and USB adapter.  Fluke will announce the winners in September, 2009.

Fluke Thermal Imager Donation Press Release

To Purchase Fluke Thermal Imagers click here.

Testo Printers on sale at www.TruTechTools.com

Only $225!

Here’s a special that’s hard to turn down!

SAVE $250 on testo Combustion Analyzer Printer kits!

Testo 327-1 Printer kit now $1105

Testo 327-1 Printer and Smoke Spot tester kit now $1249

Testo 330-1 Printer kit now $1955

Testo 330-1 Printer kit with EASYHEAT PC Software now $2314

These are fantastic, rock solid pieces of equipment with 3 year (327-1) and 4 year (330-1) sensor warranties.

This is a limited time offer so act soon!

]]> http://trutechguy.wordpress.com/2009/08/18/testo-fall-promo-kick-off/feed/ 2 trutechguy testo_logo http://trutechguy.wordpress.com/2009/08/12/free-green-job-training-for-veterans/ http://trutechguy.wordpress.com/2009/08/12/free-green-job-training-for-veterans/#comments Wed, 12 Aug 2009 20:35:37 +0000 trutechguy http://trutechguy.wordpress.com/?p=102 ]]>

Free green job training for veterans

East Central University
Veterans’ Workforce Investment Program

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Who: Veterans with more than 180 days of active duty service or a service connected disability.

What: Six to eight weeks of training designed to assist veterans in obtaining employment in green jobs. Veterans can earn up to five green job certifications.

When: Classes are scheduled to begin:
August 17, 2009; October 19, 2009; January 19, 2010; April 19, 2010.

Weatherization and Blower Door Use Certification: Prepares students for technical positions with HVAC contractors and energy efficiency agencies.
Infrared Science Use and Analysis Certification: Prepares student for technical positions in t he remodeling and energy conservation area s.
Asbestos Worker Certification: Prepares student for entry-level positions in the asbestos abatement industry and maintenance organizations.
Solar Energy System Certification: Prepares student for entry-level posit ions in the renewable energy and green construction industries.
Basic Environmental Science: Hazardous waste and environmental problems, energy and resource conservation, toxicology and environmental health topic s.
Where: East Central University, Ada, OK
For an application or more information:
Contact your Local Workforce Oklahoma Office Or Mary Huckleberry Meeks, Director at 580.559.5541 Or Terry Doepke and Kylie Stephens, Case Managers at 580.559.5852
Veterans Workforce Investment Program (VWIP) Office, East Central University, Ada OK

Hard to beat this!

A new website, www.EnergyAudits.com, launched at the Affordable Comfort Conference in Kansas City provides a searchable (by state and zip code) national database of certified (BPI or RESNET) Energy Auditors, Energy Raters and Home Performance Contractors.

Presently EnergyAudits.com is encouraging certified professionals to be listed free of charge.  Once the database has representation in all 50 states, they will begin a national marketing campaign to drive traffic to the site and inquiries to you! (Up to 46 states at last check!)

The website connects homeowners, realtors and builders to the community of certified home performance professionals; provides content for homeowners – i.e. what is a diagnostic home energy audit, info on tax incentives, an energy efficiency products store, energy saving tips etc.

A Basic Listing  (company name, address, contact and phone) is FREE to certified professionals listed in the Energy Auditor/Energy Rater database and/or the Home Performance Contractor database .

A Professional Listing is $250 per year and includes the above basic info along with hyper-links to the your website and email address, a customizable company bio/sales message space, color certification logos of BPI and/or RESNET displayed next to the listing. Professional listings will also have leads forwarded to them via email. The annual is fixed, no matter how many leads you receive during the year.

Both Basic and Professional listings will be awarded up to a 5 star rating based on client feedback forms with the comments viewable to prospective clients. This rating system will maintain the quality and integrity of the home performance industry as it grows rapidly over the next few years.

Carbon Monoxide Alarms Save Lives.

If you are involved in home energy auditing, building science, weatherization or HVAC, you should be installing and carrying  low level CO alarms.

Every home you test and tighten is a liability. Testing and retesting my not minimize your liability to the levels that you and your insurance company desire and your customers expect. Because homes are dynamic they need to be treated as so. Even the best contractors cannot predict every characteristic that a home will have or that will change after air sealing, insulating, installing new HVAC equipment, HVAC servicing, changing windows or door or siding. That is the primary reason a low level CO detector should be installed on every job your company is involved with.

What is Carbon Monoxide?

• Carbon Monoxide is rightful called the silent killer.
• Carbon Monoxide (CO) is odorless, colorless, tasteless and moves with the air (does not stratify).
• Only specially designed gas sensors effectively detect the presence of CO.
• CO poison accumulates in the body so low level exposure over longer periods can be just as harmful as a high level exposure over a shorter period.

Why an “off the shelf” detector is not enough.

US and Canadian alarm standards (UL 2034 and CSA6.19) call for:

• No displays under 30+ PPM (parts per million)
• No alarms at 70+ PPM for 60 to 240 minutes (1 to 4 hours)
• No alarms at 150+ PPM for 10 to 50 minutes
• No alarms at 400+ PPM for 4 to 15 minutes

YET…
CO becomes (dangerous) toxic for healthy individuals at concentrations more than 50 ppm with continuous exposure over an eight hour period according to the US Occupational Safety and Healthy Administration (OSHA). Reactions to exposure to 70 to 100 ppm CO over a few hours include flu-like symptoms such as headaches, irritated eyes and a runny nose. Exposure to 150 to 300 ppm CO may produce dizziness, sleepiness and nausea. Exposure to more than 400 ppm CO may result in unconsciousness, brain damage and death.

Low level CO detectors are designed to protect you and your customers by alarming far below the UL listing standard.  They are an easy up-sell for a tighter home.

CO-Experts Low Level Residential CO Monitor with Alarm

Sensit Technologies P100(CO) Industrial Personal Monitor with Alarm