Refrigeration, Air Conditioning & Heating Technologies

600 Contact Hour / 34 Semester Credits

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Opportunities About RSI Hands on Training Learn More	Electrical Principles Residential Air Conditioning Advanced Air Conditioning Techniques Refrigeration Techniques Advanced Trouble-Shooting Techniques

HVACR Career Opportunities

600 Contact Hours/34 Semester Credits

The career opportunities in heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration (HVAC/R) are numerous, and a career in this field means that a person will be participating in an industry revolution as equipment becomes more efficient and the industry adopts more energy saving devices. This could mean that there could remain a need for more technicians with better training.

Air Conditioning deals with heating and cooling for personal comfort. It is used in hospitals, skyscrapers, shopping centers, restaurants, homes - the list goes on. There are many different types of machines used to do the job of "conditioning the air," and whether it's a gas furnace, a chilled water system, or a heat pump, the equipment needs to be serviced by a trained technician.

Refrigeration is similar to air conditioning, but as air conditioning is heating and cooling for people, refrigeration is used to make something cold. Most of us think of this as our home refrigerator, a grocery store meat counter, or a soda machine. However, refrigeration is used in every step of the food processing channel, in medicine production and storage, and of course, it is critical to the National Hockey League. In fact, it is safe to say that 90% of all the process industries must use controlled temperature and humidity in their everyday functions!

The success of our graduates gives us pride in our program quality, and confidence of continued acceptance. These graduates are found in positions as high as vice president of maintenance, general manager, service manager, and owners of air conditioning and refrigeration corporations.

Educational Objective

The objective of the Refrigeration, Air Conditioning and Heating Technologies Course is to train and prepare students for entry as service and maintenance technicians in jobs that utilize technologies employed in the fields of air conditioning (both heating and cooling) and refrigeration. A student is required to complete each course of training with a proven degree of competency in academic as well as hands-on acumen. Upon successful completion of the course, the student should have an understanding of mechanical and electrical principles and will have practical exposure to diagnosing, servicing and repairing common types of problems in related equipment. Courses are taken in this sequence; however, the school reserves the right to modify the sequence as needed.For Financial Aid purposes, The Refrigeration School defines the academic year as a minimum of 24 credits and 30 weeks of training.

NOTE: First academic year concluded upon successful completion of (24) semester credits and 30 weeks of training.

Jim Watson of Magic Touch Mechanical

Before coming to RSI, Jim Watson had already had a diverse background. His early beginnings were in farming and carpentry on a family owned grain farm in North Dakota. Once he completed his Bachelor’s of Science Degree in Airway Science at the University of North Dakota, he worked as an Aviation Maintenance Technician for several years. In 2005, looking for a career change, Jim attended the Air Conditioning, Heating & Refrigeration Technologies course at RSI. Now he is an Operations Manager for Magic Touch Mechanical in Mesa, Arizona and is very happy with his career change and the opportunities he has had as a result.

Method of Training

The Refrigeration School, Inc. has become recognized internationally as a training center dedicated to providing affordable, high quality training. This is accomplished through a combination of lecture and shop classes with a major emphasis on "hands-on" training. The mix of lecture to hands-on varies from class to class as a student progresses.

The early classes of training emphasizes more lecture, utilizing many audio and visual media from major equipment manufacturers such as Carrier, with a small amount of hands-on training to help the student understand lectures. As a student progresses, this mixture changes, with the majority of the training focused on working with new and older models of equipment, with enough lecture to help a student master the more complex problems and review principles already learned. In the sixth and final phase of training, students will review nearly all of the material they have learned, and concentrate on electrical troubleshooting using the E-STAR System. This system has been developed over the years using the E-STAR troubleshooting trainer, invented at The Refrigeration School, Inc.

The E-STAR System for Employable Skills

The E-STAR System was developed by the staff at The Refrigeration School, Inc., who realized the importance of hands-on troubleshooting experience in the classroom environment. To get this experience before the E-STAR was created, all training units had to be "pre-bugged" by instructors. Now things are different!

Your instructor can now program problems into a E-STAR Trainer in a few seconds. You'll use actual test equipment, such as meters, to troubleshoot the systems and isolate the problems following proven troubleshooting procedures. Once you decide what the problem is, you can program in your solutions, and the unit will operate properly. If you make a wrong choice, E-STAR will simply sit and stare back at you.

The outcome is, that once comfortable with the process, the troubleshooting repair cycle will take most students less than three minutes, and you can experience many problem combinations in a short time on the E-STAR. The repetition you go through should cause your troubleshooting skills to become a mental reflex.

This is just one of the methods we use to make sure that you get the quality of hands-on training you need in a short period of time, and enter this career field as quickly as possible.

Classes

Fundamentals of Refrigeration - 6.3 Credits

This introductory course familiarizes students to the fundamentals of refrigeration. Topics include: laws of thermodynamics, pressure and temperature relationships, tools of the trade, refrigeration cycle, refrigerant management and safety. Students demonstrate their proficiencies via classroom participation, lab exercises and periodic quizzes and examinations.

Fundamentals of Electricity - 6.3 Credits

This introductory course provides students an introduction to electrical concepts and theories used in the air conditioning industry. Topics include: A/C theory, electrical distribution systems, motors, voltage circuits, wiring diagrams, low voltage controls and safety. Students demonstrate their proficiencies via classroom participation, lab exercises and periodic quizzes and examinations.

Comfort Systems Residential - 5.3 Credits

This advanced course provides students insight into the installation and servicing of commercial comfort systems. Topics include: hydronic systems, chilled water systems, package units, cooling towers, accessories and safety. Students demonstrate their proficiencies via classroom participation, lab exercises and periodic quizzes and examinations.

Refrigeration Systems and Practices - 5.3 Credits

This introductory course introduces students to refrigeration components, equipment, and systems. Students learn skills that support the installation, testing and servicing of a refrigeration system. Topics include: piping, tubing, brazing, soldering, welding, troubleshooting, component identification and safety. Students demonstrate their proficiencies via classroom participation, lab exercises and periodic quizzes and examinations.

Advanced Troubleshooting - 6.3 Credits

This advanced course familiarizes students to the refrigeration systems and practices. Topics include: fundamental troubleshooting, troubleshooting electric heat, troubleshooting gas furnaces, troubleshooting oil heating systems, plotting the refrigeration cycle, troubleshooting split air conditioning systems and troubleshooting heat pump systems. Students demonstrate their proficiencies via classroom participation, lab exercises and periodic quizzes and examinations.

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