The Furnace Fooler™ by Back To New

We all know of the age old problem of having to tape the door switches while we diagnose the furnace. Well, I found a tool a couple of weeks ago that works great, saves tape, and made me go, “why didn’t I think of that?”.

It’s called the Furnace Fooler™, it’s a tee shaped piece of metal, with a strong magnet attached to one end. It can be put with the magnet right over rocker type door switches, or the other end’s of the tee will go over a pin type switch with the magnet on the electrical box. Best part is you can’t put the door on without removing it, unlike tape where you could leave the switch disabled if you forget the tape.

I’ve used it many times over the last couple of weeks, and it works great.  And for ~ $10, you can’t go wrong.

Check out Kevin’s online store to purchase the Furace Fooler™ here:  http://www.furnacefooler.com/Home_Page.php

Supco® SmarTester™ Poll

The Supco® SmarTester™ and The Honeywell® SmartValve®

It’s that time of year – every year since Zeus opened his doors, we get email after email asking about the Supco® SmarTester™.  Does it work, does it work well, what’s it do, have you used it?

The SmarTester™  is an instrument – just like any instrument it is as accurate, inaccurate, reliable, unreliable as the technician applying it to their diagnostics routine. I do own one and have used it with a great degree of success. Does it do anything that a competent technician with a good DMM can’t do? No of course not – I personally don’t think there are too many things that a competent tech can’t do with a good DMM – but I may be biased.

When you are diagnosing equipment that incorporates the Honeywell® SmartValve® technology (oxymoron I know), what the SmarTester™ can do is speed the diagnostics process and more importantly it does it accurately. A lot of the emails we get are under the mistaken impression that this instrument is designed to analyze the gas valve alone – while it does diagnose the MGV it also simultaneously analyzes multiple circuits in the control system utilizing specifically designed interface cables, called SmartInterface™ and laminated overlays called SmartCards™.

 

I don’t personally like the SmartCard™ overlay concept – I would prefer to see the card function as part of an on screen selection menu from onboard memory – on the other hand that would significantly increase the cost of the instrument. At the time that I purchased the ignition controls analyzer it was not able to interface with the 2nd Generation SmartValves® – this may have been upgraded by now. Two of three connectors will attach to the 2nd Gen valve – but if you power it up – you WILL TOAST THE BOARD – from experience, so trust me.

The Analyzer is shipped with flow charts to assist in diagnostics until you have become acclimated to it’s application – additional interface cables (sold as accessories) and familiarity of the technician with the instrument combine to significantly expand the capabilities and application range of the SmarTester™.

Flow Chart Example:

 

The SmarTester™ can be closely compared to your automobile’s OBD connection and an engine analyzer. I would like to see more instruments designed around this concept. Take Zeus’ poll above and tell us if you are using the instrument – or considering it.

 

Paradigm™………………………Shift?

 

Get Cool™ [The Basic, Basics] With the Testo® 556

Watch for more coming soon at HVACPROTech.com® and Digital Zeus™

New Features Added to Digital Zeus™ T&I Journal

- Check out all of our videos directly here at Digital Zeus’ Tool and Instruments Journal in the right hand panel of the front page in our new Tool Tube™.

- Follow site additions and comments directly from the Digi-Cool® website via our Digi-Cool® Direct™ RSS Feed in the lower right corner panel of the front page. And as always get all of the new announcements on the Digi-Cool® brand DRSA™ products first on HVACPROTech.com® and Digital Zeus™.

Yellow Jacket® 40812 Refrigeration System Analyzer

Is it just me? Maybe deja vu? But doesn’t this…………………………………..

Look an awful lot like this……………………………………………………………….

Which in reality, was really this…………………………………………………

Seriously? Do we all appear to be that naive? I know a secret down in Uncle Tom’s Cabin

Oh yea!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! -