HVACR VIDEOS VAN TOUR 

Ah, a clean vehicle. Exactly what I *don't* have right now.

I'm a field service tech for a forklift company. Thanks for showing me some ideas to play around with organizing my van!

As someone newely into the software engineering field, videos like this just give the notion that I might have enjoyed the trades a bit more. Thanks for the video.

I lined my cylinder racks with drawer liner from home depot. The same kind that lines the big tool chests. Worked perfectly and is super quiet now.

For your chemicals, here are a few options: 1 large boot tray for the whole shelf, some bigger plastic hotel pans to split things up, or various smaller fridge organizer containers (crystal clear)

Grainger has plastic shelf bins that come in a couple sizes and has plastic dividers you can use for the chemicals.

Plastic Tray for the chemicals, go to the cleaning product isle at the Home Store and you'll find some white, Libman brand cleaning totes - that's what I keep my aerosol and chemicals in....as well as use them to tote 3/4" and 1" PVC fittings/glue/cutters.

i'm hvac technician in south korea. I saw your setup and it helped me a lot. thanks.

Those Fluke 1587 are like $850-$950. Use the PI and DAR settings. They give a ratio which you can reference to be very precise. I'd like to think i know quite a bit about meggers and how to get proper readings....that 1587 is alsoa standard multimeter as well as a megger....i want one...but hard to cough up the dough for it

I couldn't help but to think "that is one expensive van with everything you have in there". I can understand now why people in your industry suffer alot if they get their van's broken in to. HVACR Tech's carry alot in those van's, I had no idea. Thanks for the Tour! It was very interesting.

Pack rat makes an awesome 40”wx48”dx8”&12”H drawer unit. My 2017 Chevy express van had on. I mounted it on the side doors directly to the floor. Lots of storage.

I want to be an HVAC technician like you, Thanks for showing us all the cool tools you have.

That is very impressive and well done. I especially like that everythig is tied down, If you have a wreck, stuff will not be flying around.

If you keep heavier stuff at bottom, lighter stuff at top, it lowers centre of gravity of van, you will feel the difference, gives you more confidence in driving 🙏

I love your van set up. I'm obsessed with work van organization. My boss often tells me to "get a life" or "find a hobby" when he sees what I do to organize my van in my free time. That metal deep drawer, tool chest and "pack out" rack is is a dream set up for me. Lol.

Not the same but my electrical van is similar. For suggestion, it's hard to tell but a battery charging station is probably highly needed. One of the improvements I made these past years was to try to reduce the passenger's side constant mess. One of the solutions that worked for me was to eliminate, to the best of my ability, everything papers related. I got installed a ram mount (seat's fixed) for a lte laptop and put all my documentation(pdf), invoices(excel sheets), etc, in there with an ac/dc converter+printer(HP OfficeJet 250) in the back; so far so good. I also bought a cheap bamboo steering wheel desk to eat or write. You could also maybe add a cleaning thingy in the back for your hands, a paper towel/soap/hydrate your hands' station. For the chemical galore, I bought an aluminum sheet and used a big hole saw in it to cover at less the can making a mess everywhere; if I was to redo it, I would use plastic instead to dampen the sound like abs pipe cut and glued together or whatever.

I have the Inficon D-Tek stratus, that things amazing. That cloud hunting feature has literally saved my butt a few times. I once picked up a leak inside a walkin freezer that was inside or accessed from inside the walkin cooler. I got a hit of about 10-15 parts per million (404A system) near the lineset connection to the evap, so pulled the covers off the evap coil, checked all the usual spots, TXV, external equalizer, return bends, nothing definite. Checked the unit on the roof, checked the microchannel condenser coil thoroughly, got nothing. Then I had a hunch and climbed up into the attic of this restaurant, and started getting a stronger hit. After awhile I found the culprit. There is a section of the attic above the cooler and freezer that's a storage area with a plywood floor and some shelving units. Well, they had put one of these shelving units on top of the lineset, and one of the legs had worn a small hole in the vapor line. It looked like a pre-charged lineset, and the lazy installers had just coiled up all the extra lineset and left it on the floor! Well, that was easy. I pumped the system down, cut out all the extra lineset (almost 15 feet!) along with the damaged part of the tubing, brazed in a coupling, swaged the 3/8 liquid line, added 4 pounds of gas, and a year later I still have a clear sight glass. Bottom line is that leak detector picked up the leak from that far away! Picked up just what was seeping thru the armaflex suction line insulation. I have not tested it yet with R290 with the included sensor, but just for fun, I tried it with a known VERY small natural gas leak, and it worked like a champ! So if it can easily pickup natural gas, I'm pretty confident it'll pick up R290. Reason being, it's infrared based, and propane is heavier and denser than air, a lot like R22, and I think it'll pick it up. I'll try it out with butane from a Bic lighter when I get a chance. So far that's my goto leak detector, and I think it might just be the closest thing to a '1 stop shop' detector. I use the bubble stuff for a backup, or just to confirm something is leaking enough to bubble. Basically if you get to 1000ppm you're very close, 3000+ is a big leak. One thing I've found is if there's a decent sized leak inside a small walkin, sometimes have to go outside and let it breathe some known clean air to settle down, because the cloud hunting mode is continually switching ports and alternately sampling the port by the handler and the probe tip, so if the refrigerant concentration is equal by your hand to the tip it doesn't work so well, but can just switch modes to Low or Med etc.

For the shelf with chemicals.. try the silicone dish drying mats. They come in all shapes and sizes on Amazon for cheap- with and without a lip around the edge to hold spilled liquid. Iv used them for all kinds of different off label applications. Check them out- might find one or a combination that will do what you need

Looks like a good setup. if you ever do end up putting an aftermarket inverter in check Kussmaul Electronics, they have an auto eject plug so you can plug your van into 110v power and it will keep your battery charged, and it will eject the cord when you start your van so you do not drive off with it plugged in.

My journeyman always made me clean the van Friday morning, we restocked Friday and made sure the consumables are replaced! Now I have taken his “Friday morning clean” to my van, the one thing it does is it keeps you organized and maintaining a routine! Taking an hour every Friday is important for own well being, don’t forget your tools make you money and the van is the most expensive tool!

Suggestion for your van that I'm looking into making myself is a piece of plywood with some magnetic pads that are coated in rubber, have a nut and stud that I will secure to the plywood and then just put standard drywall screws to mount all the Chargers with the keyhole slot and take a grinder and flap wheel to flatten the screws that stick out the back. Using a dab of hot snot to lock charger in place. For your inverter situation you need a lithium battery and an isolator to go with it. Allows charging but not discharging the main battery.

Nice truck layout. I changed from Chevrolet 3500 extended vans about 20 years ago. Went to Chevy 3500 cut away, dual rears with a Zoresco enclosed service body. Saves your knees and banging your head as you get older.

Kudos for showing it before being cleaned! Makes me feel not so bad about how mine looks lol

I'm a telecomm field tech, when my van is clean it will last 2-3 normal days. I've had single work orders that have completely trashed my shit though, I hate those. Commercial rewires, I'm looking at you. Or replacing a long underground run of trunkline. You can directly tell how smooth my day is going and gauge my mood by how the back of my truck lookstrunking. I'm glad to see Klein tools popping up, they're the absolute gold standard in my industry. Especially doing linework.

Looks like the biggest problem with your refrigerant cylinders is that the bungee is letting it bounce. Use the bungee to pull it down and that might help. You could even use a rubber or insulation to keep the tank steady against the bungee so it won't move as much.

I keep a 25’ ref hose and that nitro blow gun for flowing out drains in ceilings. That way the nitro tank stays on the ground. And not trying to balance in the drop ceiling

Now that is real Life , I can not keep my truck clean I move too fast from job to job I clean it on Sundays dirty by Monday afternoon I try to put stuff where it belongs but it is time consuming and I am Service and Install so there is a lot of tools in my small Van . good Videos . can't explain why I watch someone doing what I do for 9 hours a day FFS .

I used a yeti just like that when I still ran out of a van. You can buy an adapter for the drain to adapt to a water hose then I got a short hose with a ball valve on it. Ran it behind the driver seat to the step so I could drain the cooler without removing it from the van.

Mannnn I can't wait to be able to put a van together! I am outgrowing my truck. Thank you for sharing!

Great off the cuff video Chris. Thanks for showing your a human being too. Stay safe and be well. Hope thw day goes quick for you.

I work at a family owned retail appliance and electronic store... I do all the installs and service work for the past 5 years...I like your load out... My van looks way worse after a week😂... Im curious where's the multi tool!😂😂😂 You have awesome tools...Great video and walkthrough!

It’s always a great feeling when your vans organized. I love the set up! A recommendation I would make are getting some simple spill trays for your chemicals. I keep mine in crates so they’re not moving around too much. For the odds and ends in the tool bag, if become fond of using plastic pencil cases and labeling them accordingly. It definitely helps keeping my bag clean!

try some thing like foam board in t in the refrigerant tank holder to give it a bit snugger of fit that also bubbles as padding

Just loved the condenser unit short cycle comment. ✌🏻You’re the man! Thank You for being legit and humble!

Additional option for the chemicals. Heavy adhesive vinyl. Lay it across the painted sections (you can use a heat gun to mold it a bit), and up the sides. Then, take some silicone caulk and hit the crease/corners to seal it.

Akro-Mils makes many different kinds of trays and storage stuff, love them in my truck...

That is the way I used to carry the 4-wheel cart. Big difference with certain companies, nothing extra in the cab. Many co-workers seat-belted in items into the passenger seat. (Still disallowed). Company has had some crazy drivers over the years, unable to keep van upright.

My cart i breakdown to save space since i don't always use it. Take the screws out of the legs, the legs will come out and fit in the bottom and the top flips and covers the bottom, bungie cord holds it all together.

That lil piston doe! Its sooo cute!!

I have the combustion sensor, it works good.

One of the neater vans! Any place with lots of stuff and no spare room gets messy. Maybe a big, wheeled Rubbermaid or whatever box for the chemicals? On the floor? Strap in, pull out, full liquid containment (as long as they don't eat plastic). PS Liked cargo netting as a trucker. Fast to throw on and take off, best coverage. Might be something for the shelves or extra security.

Your clean and pristine van are an exact opposite of my chaos portal Van. Somehow happen to know where all the stuff I need is though lol

That's a cool van setup I like the strut to mount the tanks. Your refrigerate bottle rack you could get some felt and glue it in that may stop the squeek

Excellent idea with the Harbor Freight tool box end.

I keep an ice chest between the seats too - up against the bulkhead. I don't see how other guys work all day without having water. In front of the icechest I have 3 of the Harbor Freight ammo cans to hold smaller parts I don't want riding in the back: * One can has all my small batteries and an M18 to USB adaptor. * One has things like brass caps, hose gaskets, o-rings, mini-split adaptors, service tees, and other various refrigerant hose fittings, etc. * The third has sauce packets, seasonings, plastic forks, etc for eating lunch on the go. ...I keep my Day Planner, paperwork, and iPad on top of the cans.

For the chemicals, you could take out that bottom shelf and get a chemical storage/ fire cabinet it would ensure nothing moves around while in transit and in the event that you have a leak that causes a reaction you wouldn’t have to worry about it damaging anything outside of the cabinet only challenge would be ventilation for the cabinet.

I use a small metal drain pan that our sheet metal shop made one for me. Works pretty good. I love using cases for fuses too. Just in case the label rubs off I label the top of the case. I hate guessing what fuse size I have. And this mini fuses are crazy expensive!

try cutting some semi ridged foam wedges that you can use on the tanks to help cushion the noise mine work great

Beautifully done. Thanks for making this video. GREAT job.

Thanks for sharing the van !

Take one of those garden hose hangers like you have on your back window and screw it to the ceiling inside about 4 and a half feet from the back. You can hook the top of your 4 ft ladder in the holes and then secure the bottom of the ladder to the roof with a bungie strap that runs side to side in the back. It is easy to take in and out and keeps it out of the way of everything else.

I have the d-tek stratus and I love it one of many of my favorite investments in tools

Best containers for chemical is the plastic totes pool cleaners use they have loops to be pulled up too just bulky in general but it will fit all of the chemical and brushes

Freon cylinders (re: squeaking) .. use some knee pad / yoga mat material and cut small wedges to place under the strapped down end. No more squeaking.

Man I wish my van was laid out that nice haha also one thing I've found to cut down on tank rattle is to get a small bungy cord and wrap around the handle of the tank and then hook it on each side. Great video!

If you add the charging station, you should add a small solar panel and charge controller on the van to keep the battery topped off. I know you don't have much room for a solar panel with the ladders, but any extra energy helps.

Drop some boot trays on the shelf with the chemicals, which will contain any leakage. There are all different sizes on amazon. Look for one with more vertical sides. You can tell you use your van and all the tools you keep on it.

You never know when having the Dye kit (even if it IS back at the shop) will end up being a requirement on a warrantee repair. So it's good that it's somewhere.

Idk boss who you trying to fool that van looks pretty awesome. Milwaukee has a battery charger that plugs into a cigarette lighter. Yes I know most new vehicles don’t have one I hardwired mine.

Hi. For the bottles in the back, you could use some rubber or silicon grommets to prevent the rattling. You just have to increase the holes where the hooks connect to the casings.

About the chemical shelf, you might give some thought to spray in truck bed liner.

In regards to the rubber feet on your bag, why not pool hot glue into the spot? It’s got grip and can fill that spot up (if you can’t find a replacement).

If you have access to a tin shop, I love to make small plenums to store stuff in to protects things in/out of the container (you can caulk the seems if you need it water tight)

Wow this is full packed hvac car evrything you need good job 👌

Nice van! Years ago I had the sheet metal guy make me a pan for all my chemicals, might not be a bad idea. And I wish you remembered that guys name. I would buy that in a heartbeat!

These are my favorite type of videos, right up there with the difficult diag stuff and the "day in the life" kind of videos some other channels do (video idea?). Tool bag set up videos are cool too, I know you've done a few of those.

love the video thanks for taking the time to explain what and where every thing is in the van and letting us in to your personal life a little bit. i also love luke

I dont work as hvac technitian for about 6months and i miss it so much

Refrigerant cylinders - since there's probably not a lot of room in the collars, go buy vinyl contact paper (shelf paper, wall paper) - self adhesive. Line the collars with it. It won't last forever, but it's cheap enough you can replace it when it wears through, and the plastic will squeak a LOT less than the enamel paint.

Good video Lots of detail on different products like the veto bags and such

Consider putting a makita cooler in place of the yeti ice based cooler, can be powered by 18v, 36v, or plug in !

For the refer tanks, get a small thin sheet of UHMW from McMaster and put it where the tank is rubbing. Should help a good bit, and being UHMW it will be slick and wear resistant. Shouldn't need to be too thick, just enough to provide a sliding surface.

Idea to keep refrigerant jugs from rattling: I jam rubber door stops under my jugs, can be gotten for about a dollar at the dollar tree or whatever your discount dollar store is in CA.

Man I really dig your setup Chris. Seems like everything fits wonderfully. I'm sure it took you some time to get it right. Nice job man

For your chemical tray get your sheet metal duct shop to bend you a tray with sealed corners and seal with chemical resistant paint on pan sealer. Pickup truck bed protection coating is tough as heck.

I do supermarkets . Have had the stratus 2 years not big fan of it . I feel like it isn't as sensitive as an h10 . But really it's all preference. Honestly i have majority Dewalt but have millwakee pack outs I would say it's about 70 Dewalt 30 millwakee I love m12 stuff . I really wanna get the navac stuff especially after what you said about the battery compatibility.

Wow. That’s fantastic. Those Milwaukee shop vacs are a must have. Lookin good pal.

Looks a lot more organized and clean than what I've seen in previous in-field videos.

Have you considered wiring in a small inverter if you don't already have one and mounting up your batteries and chargers so you can charge in the van or just a tether cord on a reel you can connect the van to an outlet in your garage with? Double bonus throw a wifi camera in it that comes on when you plug-in the van to watch the cab or the back door extra security.

Awesome! Thank you so much for sharing, this is really neat and gives me a few ideas for my own van

You should really get some leather gloves from a welding shop for when you use the torch. If one of those globs of brazing rod fall on you it's going to suck. Also for Teflon tape the yellow gas line stuff I find is better in general just because it's thicker and easier to work with because it doesn't fold over on itself as easy

@32:25 -- I don't see how guys blow drains out correctly without an airgun - it makes it so much easier - not to mention blowing out line-sets. It's also GREAT for the times when you get water on or in something electrical and need to dry it out before you can power it back up.

For the shelf with all the dewalt and Milwaukee impacts and the foam guns, you should put some kind of netting from end to end just too keep everything more secure.

Resisto membrane use a piece of that for the shelf to contain any leaking chemicals

To store the chemicals in a tray, check out the Hazet 190L-1 plastic tote tray. It is a solvent-resistant tray that can hold quite a bit of weight.

now that you have plenty of room in the van you can be able to stock all the replacement belts. heck you can even bolt on some box between the ladders on the roof and put the belts there.

Nice Van. I use to do inventory on 4 vans Before I Retired. My Boss was good at making a mess but was bad at cleaning the vanss and keeping inventory.

After this past week my van looks like a tornado went through it. Im going to have fun tomorrow sorting everything back out and cleaning all the failed components I replaced. 🤣

For chemical storage. Take a look at the container the chemicals come in. That gives you some idea as to the material your storage trays need to be made of. Most will be plastic. DeWalt has these yellow plastic storage trays, part of their Tough System. They are about 20 inch by 12 inch and 3 or 4 inch deep. If some of your chemicals demand a metal storage or even glass. Try some dollar and thrift stores for cheap purchases. You can get some square pans about 4 inch deep used to make bread loafs, etc.

Home depot sold these rubber bins that fit perfectly in adrian steel shelves. Ive got all my chemicals in them, never had anything corrosive spill in them yet tho. I can look up the brand if youre interested

For the bumpers on the tool bag that have worn out, I know it would be a bit of a PITA, but you could get some nylon stock machined to suit (or hand cut) and have it fixed on with a recessed screw and penny washer + lock nut inside the bag. It's a good looking bag over all!!

To replace the feet, just get some thick neoprene, or if you can find it, conveyor belt fabric. Use a cleanable adhesive like ordinary rubber cement and mount pieces to the bottom. As they wear off, just replace them. Don't worry about riveting. Extreme heat may make them come a bit loose, but that's going to be reasonably rare; just when parking them for long periods on the hottest roots, and just be aware of it.

37:38 that type of wire stripper is very common in europe. I see pretty much every electrician use that wire stripper as the go-to tool. You can even use it to cut wire if you set the depth far enough.

Chris I did the work for 40 years and never seen the floor we always said if your truck is clean you don’t work

Pretty much all of the power tool manufacturers make car chargers for your power tool batteries. I'd recommend buying those instead of an inverter if that's all you're going to use it for, because it's going to be a lot more efficient than converting from DC to AC and then back to DC again. If you want to charge the batteries while the van is off without worrying about killing the battery, use some kind of low voltage cutoff so your power tool batteries will stop charging before your van won't start.

And for the squeaking of the tanks you can just strap or glue some old bicycle inner tubes to the metal of the holder so that it'll keep the tanks in place and muffle any rubbing noise.

Custom shelf for the bins is great.

maybe a 115 volt pump,to increase volume and pressure for the RTU cleaning when you have low water pressure, cuts cleaning time in 1/2.thanks for sharing.

tip for the bag rubber feet get a hockey puck cut it to make the rubber stoppers and attach them you could use a rivet but I used a high strength construction 2 part epoxy the hockey pucks are alot more durable rubber mine has lasted longer with the puck than the OEM feet

It's funny because those knipex stripers are the standard wire strippers for electricians here in Europe (or at least Portugal). Every electrician I know uses those style strippers daily for all types of small conductor stripping