The Stratus is definitely the best leak detector I've ever had. I remember picking your brain about it 2 years ago....based on your input i bought it....needlessly to say....im super impressed with it. Thanks again Rick....loved the video as i do all your videos
I tested it for 7 months before doing a video on it. That’s why I get pissed when people trash talk it, then you find out they didn’t know how to properly use it.
Yeah. Agree on that. We have a stratus in common mostly for co2 systems but it's used for hfc's as well. Otherwise we got our own d-tek 3 or selects in our cars. Tested many different leak detecrors but d-tek has delivered best results.
Great idea with the ball valve. Seems harder and harder to find some common sense with these things. Looking forward to the follow up video to this one Rick take care
When I saw the coil I knew it was a Hussman/Krack. I've only had to change 1 Hussman/krack coil. The only good thing about them is they are super light. Good stuff Rick, very interesting.
Great video again! Your calm wisdom makes it so clearly to evident the problems. Always impressed with your way to locate problems😊 I had a lot of elbow leaks on blood bags refrigerators, the producer told that the environment was acidic by the blood😬 Not believing that, but the set up was in Celsius -2C to + 4c on the thermostat with the bulb straight in the evaporator. Kicked in and out inside a couple of minutes, so a wild run. Great to controlling the air temperature with an asap action. The blood bags was always inside a O,1C with that excessive run. Whatever, the freeze and thaw every second minutes killed those elbows. They later made a coating by some solid flexible paint (Epoxy ) on the evaporator that solved the issue. Why does they not use such a coating more often? I know that the solution work good. I was mostly used to fatal leaks down to 1/2 to 1 OZ on low stage cascade units. Not the easiest to find a leak that took years to show/bleed up😂 Had some Robertshaw high press cutouts base mounted with a capillary feed. Only way to look for leak was to dump them into a bucket of water😬 I thinly bubble pr, minute was enough to catch the culprit.
@@HVACRSurvival I was used to vibrating aluminum condensers that stayed put for 30 years plus. It is another world on evaporators. Could some cases be to some galvanic problem? The wet condensation can be the cause, but aluminum is sensitive.
As someone not in the industry who has been watching mostly residential and small commercial HVAC repair channels, I've always wondered why the EPA has been so controlling about refrigerants as all of the stuff I've seen on TH-cam have been tiny little leaks. Then I see your videos and I realize why, all of this big industrial stuff leaks, everywhere. That and the people who own them would rather they be patched up than replaced or properly repaired.
Stratus is gonna be my next purchase, need to get my hands on one. The DR82 has been good to me, no complaints there, but the Stratus has some extra features i need.
Good job Rick, you had it right the first time, it's whoosh, not wash, haha, but yeah I think the Strauss is a good leak detector, I just can't afford it right now, it's part of the future program..........
Mr. HVACR survival man you are a great tech. I’ve learned a lot by watching your videos and fixing stuff but for the life of me I can’t understand why you continue to go over a cold that you know leaking like to see us I guess maybe the show people so but I was just wondering. Tallahassee signing out, Fred.
@@jewellhirsch1694 I don’t know what you mean “go over a cold” ? Did you mean the coil? If so, the reason is it’s very expensive and I need to make dang sure that it’s really the coil leaking. That ain’t no thousand dollar coil.
I think you got confused also 😝 since it said "defrost" when turning off the EPR override. I'm guessing it has a "drip down" timer before reenabling the valve or it just happened to go into defrost in the middle of you testing?
I’ve had better results from my Accutrak when the coil is wet. It seems to make a more distinct sound. Especially when nearby VFDs or other electrical devices that make the thing whistle high pitches. The further away from electrical disturbances, the easier it is to hear the sound “of a rushing, mighty wind” with the included Bose headset.
What area are you in some of stores your in look really familiar I’m a service fitter in Nw Indiana/Chicago area do a lot of supermarket refrigeration work love to watch your vids
Most of my stores are in the northwest corner of Ohio. So I’m on the wrong side of the state for you. Lol. I appreciate the views. Thanks for watching.
in a few past vids you have up i seen where you had what i call a pressure washer made just to wash out coils i am hoping it would work on compact tractor radiators can it be got from the tru tach tools or some other place or web site want you to get the kick back from buying it
Yeah, it would work fine for that. TruTech Tools has it. It’s called the porta blaster. click on the link under the description to take you to TruTech Tools then whatever you buy will automatically be logged under my account and use the discount code. Survival to save the money.
doesn't that setup use the EPR's closing to do the defrost, so the coils always stack with liquid under normal defrosting? wouldn't that make the system be very low if multiple happen to defrost at once and shouldn't it always have a far larger amount in receiver to work properly? maybe I missed something or it defrosts some other way. lol, I tend to overanalyze things at times.
You’re correct, closing the eepr is how they go into defrost, however because you’re always regulating the temperature at a constant flow that matches the temperature your desiring you don’t have big swings in temperature and defrost are not as bad. The defrost is strategically chosen for each case to avoid having more than one case in a defrost at a time.
@@HVACRSurvival that makes sense, I figured it wouldn't defrost more then a small amount at a time, depending on total system size, but who knows how things are going these days. try to defrost half the store at once and liquid stack 80% of the receiver out into the evaporators.. lol
I have borrowed and used that Inficon Whisper but never had any result with it , I thought it was either faulty or I was doing something wrong . Turns out I never knew about that sensitivity dial , RTFM i guess huh !
I’m not gonna say they’re perfect, none of them are, ultrasonic is very sketchy on whether or not you can hear the leak, like I said in the video it normally does not sound like what you heard. It can be pops. It can be clicks. It can be all kinds of weird noises.
Studying for the NATE exam. R-22 is .63 oz per foot over 25ft line set. R-410 is .53 oz over 25ft line set. Then you could also get into refrigerant velocity etc.
@@texture6 well, that was likely calculated as part of original system engineering and design, but likely still a rough ballpark figure and total charge weighed in to be noted during startup after filling receiver to a specified level. things change so much in routine servicing, major parts being replaced, boxes added or removed, it could change vastly in no time and they'd be back to just monitoring receiver level and documenting how much gas is leaked and added. majority of systems out there over a few years old, likely have no clue the total amount of gas in the whole system, then can only go by the receiver size and percentage to guess the excess.
Stratus is gonna be my next purchase, need to get my hands on one. The DR82 has been good to me, no complaints there, but the Stratus has some extra features i need.
The Stratus is definitely the best leak detector I've ever had. I remember picking your brain about it 2 years ago....based on your input i bought it....needlessly to say....im super impressed with it. Thanks again Rick....loved the video as i do all your videos
I tested it for 7 months before doing a video on it. That’s why I get pissed when people trash talk it, then you find out they didn’t know how to properly use it.
Yeah. Agree on that. We have a stratus in common mostly for co2 systems but it's used for hfc's as well. Otherwise we got our own d-tek 3 or selects in our cars.
Tested many different leak detecrors but d-tek has delivered best results.
I remember when i was doing residential A/C and the Trane rep brought us an aluminum evap coil and said it was the solution to leaks.
😂🤣🫶🫶🦄🌈. More like a money maker for them.
Sure😂
Great solution if you want repeat paying customers
it was the solution to copper leaks... 🤣
Solution to dwindling sales 😂
Enjoy your videos and the no-nonsense attitude about being practical.
@@joeyf504327 thanks Joe!
Great idea with the ball valve. Seems harder and harder to find some common sense with these things. Looking forward to the follow up video to this one Rick take care
When I saw the coil I knew it was a Hussman/Krack. I've only had to change 1 Hussman/krack coil. The only good thing about them is they are super light. Good stuff Rick, very interesting.
Thanks for sharing👍👍
Those damn service coils! Ive got to be in the hundreds of those replaced. Nice job as always 👍🏻
@@SupermarketRefrigeration Thank you! 🙏
Great video again! Your calm wisdom makes it so clearly to evident the problems.
Always impressed with your way to locate problems😊
I had a lot of elbow leaks on blood bags refrigerators, the producer told that the environment was acidic by the blood😬
Not believing that, but the set up was in Celsius -2C to + 4c on the thermostat with the bulb straight in the evaporator. Kicked in and out inside a couple of minutes, so a wild run.
Great to controlling the air temperature with an asap action.
The blood bags was always inside a O,1C with that excessive run.
Whatever, the freeze and thaw every second minutes killed those elbows.
They later made a coating by some solid flexible paint (Epoxy ) on the evaporator that solved the issue.
Why does they not use such a coating more often? I know that the solution work good.
I was mostly used to fatal leaks down to 1/2 to 1 OZ on low stage cascade units.
Not the easiest to find a leak that took years to show/bleed up😂
Had some Robertshaw high press cutouts base mounted with a capillary feed.
Only way to look for leak was to dump them into a bucket of water😬
I thinly bubble pr, minute was enough to catch the culprit.
Good information there. Thanks! I only have a few scientific Refrigerators
@@HVACRSurvival
I was used to vibrating aluminum condensers that stayed put for 30 years plus.
It is another world on evaporators.
Could some cases be to some galvanic problem? The wet condensation can be the cause, but aluminum is sensitive.
As someone not in the industry who has been watching mostly residential and small commercial HVAC repair channels, I've always wondered why the EPA has been so controlling about refrigerants as all of the stuff I've seen on TH-cam have been tiny little leaks.
Then I see your videos and I realize why, all of this big industrial stuff leaks, everywhere. That and the people who own them would rather they be patched up than replaced or properly repaired.
Stratus is gonna be my next purchase, need to get my hands on one. The DR82 has been good to me, no complaints there, but the Stratus has some extra features i need.
Good job Rick, you had it right the first time, it's whoosh, not wash, haha, but yeah I think the Strauss is a good leak detector, I just can't afford it right now, it's part of the future program..........
@@johnwalker890 Its definitely not cheap.
Thanks for the video Rick ! I enjoy watching !
Glad you enjoyed it
When the Beepin' thing goes full tone, you know she's not gonna be back for dinner
@@ThePowerofElectricity 😂😂👍👍
Thanks for the video! Always look forward to Sundays waiting on a video!
Thanks for watching! I love seeing that thumb before you watched it. My kinda viewer 🤜🤛👍👍
Great job Rick
Good job man.
Very good work you do.
Thanks Texas 🙌👍👍
Good stuff!
Thanks!
Wow cool tools 😅
Good Video! Yeah the Stratus is worth its Money! 😅
Yes they are 👍👍
Good job rick
Preciate the video brother.
Mr. HVACR survival man you are a great tech. I’ve learned a lot by watching your videos and fixing stuff but for the life of me I can’t understand why you continue to go over a cold that you know leaking like to see us I guess maybe the show people so but I was just wondering. Tallahassee signing out, Fred.
@@jewellhirsch1694 I don’t know what you mean “go over a cold” ? Did you mean the coil? If so, the reason is it’s very expensive and I need to make dang sure that it’s really the coil leaking. That ain’t no thousand dollar coil.
Sweet deal
Partakes of the happiness haha awesome
I think you got confused also 😝 since it said "defrost" when turning off the EPR override. I'm guessing it has a "drip down" timer before reenabling the valve or it just happened to go into defrost in the middle of you testing?
I’ve had better results from my Accutrak when the coil is wet. It seems to make a more distinct sound. Especially when nearby VFDs or other electrical devices that make the thing whistle high pitches. The further away from electrical disturbances, the easier it is to hear the sound “of a rushing, mighty wind” with the included Bose headset.
Mine came with the Koss heavy duty headphones I prefer using the earbuds because they isolate the sound just as well and are like less goofy looking
What area are you in some of stores your in look really familiar I’m a service fitter in Nw Indiana/Chicago area do a lot of supermarket refrigeration work love to watch your vids
Most of my stores are in the northwest corner of Ohio. So I’m on the wrong side of the state for you. Lol. I appreciate the views. Thanks for watching.
I do learn things from your videos, but I mostly watch them for your comments and snarkiness. Keep it up Rick. Your tax dollars are paying off here 😂
I appreciate that
Nice to listen to another fridgie when all day I am talking to myself Except when the boss or the client is giving me the shits
@@DOWNUNDER. I fully understand what you’re saying 😁🤜🤛👍👍
I the south we say” warsh “ ha ha 🤣
in a few past vids you have up i seen where you had what i call a pressure washer made just to wash out coils i am hoping it would work on compact tractor radiators can it be got from the tru tach tools or some other place or web site want you to get the kick back from buying it
Yeah, it would work fine for that. TruTech Tools has it. It’s called the porta blaster. click on the link under the description to take you to TruTech Tools then whatever you buy will automatically be logged under my account and use the discount code. Survival to save the money.
@@HVACRSurvival thank you like i said been watching a lot of your videos last few days
doesn't that setup use the EPR's closing to do the defrost, so the coils always stack with liquid under normal defrosting? wouldn't that make the system be very low if multiple happen to defrost at once and shouldn't it always have a far larger amount in receiver to work properly? maybe I missed something or it defrosts some other way. lol, I tend to overanalyze things at times.
You’re correct, closing the eepr is how they go into defrost, however because you’re always regulating the temperature at a constant flow that matches the temperature your desiring you don’t have big swings in temperature and defrost are not as bad. The defrost is strategically chosen for each case to avoid having more than one case in a defrost at a time.
@@HVACRSurvival that makes sense, I figured it wouldn't defrost more then a small amount at a time, depending on total system size, but who knows how things are going these days.
try to defrost half the store at once and liquid stack 80% of the receiver out into the evaporators.. lol
Do you find that the Ultrasonic is generally useless in residential? For small leaks, say an evap coil, it just doesn't seem to help.
It’s not my first choice by any means. There are times it shines but not often.
@@HVACRSurvival Thanks for the feedback. That definitely lines up with my experience as well. Cheers.
I have borrowed and used that Inficon Whisper but never had any result with it , I thought it was either faulty or I was doing something wrong .
Turns out I never knew about that sensitivity dial , RTFM i guess huh !
I’m not gonna say they’re perfect, none of them are, ultrasonic is very sketchy on whether or not you can hear the leak, like I said in the video it normally does not sound like what you heard. It can be pops. It can be clicks. It can be all kinds of weird noises.
Anyone know a decent inspection Camara? (Less then 5 ft is all I need)
TruTech Tools has one that’s got a short wand like you’re saying and it pivots left and right. It’s not cheap, but it works really good.
What was the line set length? What is the oz of refrigerant per foot of line set? Added
What are you talking about?
@@HVACRSurvival must think it's the same as a dinky mini-split with limited gas storage in accumulator tank. lol
Studying for the NATE exam. R-22 is .63 oz per foot over 25ft line set. R-410 is .53 oz over 25ft line set. Then you could also get into refrigerant velocity etc.
@@texture6 well, that was likely calculated as part of original system engineering and design, but likely still a rough ballpark figure and total charge weighed in to be noted during startup after filling receiver to a specified level.
things change so much in routine servicing, major parts being replaced, boxes added or removed, it could change vastly in no time and they'd be back to just monitoring receiver level and documenting how much gas is leaked and added.
majority of systems out there over a few years old, likely have no clue the total amount of gas in the whole system, then can only go by the receiver size and percentage to guess the excess.
Nice vid Rickster ... Thx
Appreciate it!
Stratus is gonna be my next purchase, need to get my hands on one. The DR82 has been good to me, no complaints there, but the Stratus has some extra features i need.
As you know, I have friends at Inficon, they told me they compared it and it didn’t beat it and they would tell me the truth because it’s just us.
@@HVACRSurvival Interesting