To be an HVAC technician you will need to have a variety of tools to service units. The most important tool is actually the license you will need to be able to service units and handle Freon, which is called the EPA 608 certification. That is the most important one as it is illegal to service HVAC units without one, now here are some of the other tools you will need.

I will be going over the tools needed for residential air conditioning systems, and the first tool an HVAC technician should acquire is a pair of HVAC gauges. These will consist of one high pressure gauge, one low pressure gauge, pressure release fittings, and three hoses, one for suction, one for charging, and one for the high pressure gauge.

When replacing a condensing unit you will need a place to store the old refrigerant, this is where the recovery tank comes into place. Recovery tanks are gray with a yellow top, and they are used to store refrigerant.

In order to transfer the refrigerant from old HVAC system to the recovery tank you will need a recovery machine. They are not cheap but they are needed to properly transfer the refrigerant to the recovery tank, they can also be used to move the refrigerant from the tank back into the new air conditioning system.

A good pair of copper cutters will be necessary to cut the copper piping once the refrigerant is removed from the old system. Dont worry, they are pretty cheap to buy. Then you will need to reattach the piping to the new system by means of soldering.

HVAC torches are also expensive but they are needed to solder copper lines together. The set up consists of an oxygen tank, a gas tank, hoses, and various regulators and other types of fittings. An inspection mirror, a rag, and sandpaper are some good items to keep in your torch tank set up.

After you have the new system all sealed up by soldering, you will need to get all of the air out of it by using a vacuum pump. The vacuum pump takes suction on the refrigerant lines and removes all of the air and non condensable gases from the system.

An HVAC technician will also need a type of refrigerant leak detector, there are many kinds out there to choose from. A thermostat will be needed also to test the efficiency of how the system is cooling or heating.

There are many other HVAC tools that you will need but these are the essential ones you will be using the most especially if you are replacing entire systems. These are also the most expensive of the tools you will need so it would be best to get these first and get them out of the way, the other tools needed are cheaper and will not be used as much.