JL Heating & Air — AC Service & Clean Checklist

1. Arrival Speech

“Hi, I’m ______ with JL Heating & Air. Today we’re doing your AC service and cleaning. Before I get started, is the system cooling okay? Any noises, hot rooms, high bills, water issues, or anything else you want me to look at while I’m here?”

Park professionally and arrive clean/professional.

Greet client, confirm service, listen for concerns.

Take arrival photos of indoor equipment, outdoor unit, thermostat, filter, and work area.

2. Safety Before Touching Equipment

Never trust a switch or disconnect. Verify power is actually off before opening or touching electrical parts.

Turn thermostat/system OFF.

Shut off indoor power.

Shut off outdoor disconnect.

Verify disconnect actually shuts power off with meter.

Verify fuses are correct size if fused disconnect is present.

Discharge capacitors before touching terminals or removing wires.

Use safety glasses and gloves when needed.

3. Indoor Cleaning Order

Clean first. Diagnose after the cabinet and work area are clean enough to inspect properly.

Brush loose dirt, dust, and debris first.

Sand/clean rusty or dirty contact points only when appropriate.

Vacuum cabinet, blower compartment, furnace bottom, and accessible debris.

Blow out spaces the vacuum cannot reach.

Wipe down with dry rags first.

Use cleaner on rag and wipe cabinet, panels, and accessible surfaces.

Leave indoor equipment cleaner than when you arrived.

4. Indoor Inspection

Check air filter size, condition, airflow direction, and restriction.

Check blower wheel for dirt buildup, wobble, vibration, and set screw.

Check blower motor, wiring, mounts, and amp draw if needed.

Check evaporator coil if dirty, airflow is off, temp split is poor, or client reports poor cooling.

Check drain pan, drain line, condensate pump, float switch, and water safety.

Add indoor supply and return temperature probes.

5. Indoor Electrical

Check for loose wires, burnt wires, rub marks, discoloration, and bad connections.

Check control board, transformer, low-voltage wiring, and thermostat wiring.

Test capacitor after power is off, verified, and capacitor is discharged.

Indoor Capacitor Rating Measured

Rule: recommend replacement if capacitor is outside ±5% of rating, swollen, leaking, rusty, or questionable.

6. Outdoor Cleaning

Verify outdoor power is OFF before opening condenser.

Brush loose debris first.

Vacuum leaves, cottonwood, grass, and debris.

Blow out areas vacuum cannot reach.

Clean condenser coil with water if needed. Avoid damaging fins or soaking electricals.

Wipe condenser fan blades with rag and cleaner.

Check coil condition, fins, panels, fan guard, unit level, and clearances.

Condenser coil

Contactor

Filter at arrival

7. Outdoor Electrical

Check disconnect, whip, wire condition, lugs, and grounding.

Verify fuse size matches equipment requirements if fused disconnect is present.

Inspect contactor for pitting, burning, insects, chatter, or overheating.

Check contactor coil resistance.

Contactor Ohms Condition

General helper rule: 10–30 ohms is a common normal range. Replace if open, shorted, burned, chattering, or badly pitted.

Discharge and test outdoor capacitor.

Outdoor Capacitor Rating Measured

Rule: capacitor should be within ±5% unless manufacturer states otherwise.

Inspect compressor wires, terminals, sound blanket, oil stains, mounts, and obvious damage.

Inspect condenser fan motor, blade, mounts, wiring, and amp draw if needed.

8. Reassemble Before Power On

All wires are back on correct terminals.

All panels and doors are installed.

All screws are back in place.

No tools, rags, or loose parts left inside equipment.

Disconnect is ready to reinstall.

9. Startup

A/C year (slide — from condenser data plate)

unknown

Turn power back ON.

Start system from thermostat.

Watch and listen during startup.

Confirm blower starts.

Confirm condenser fan starts.

Confirm compressor starts.

If there is a bad noise, vibration, short cycle, or issue: shut system off and fix before continuing.

What we see & hear Major concerns

10. Refrigerant & Performance

Install gauges and temperature probes after system is running.

Let system stabilize before judging charge.

If TXV: verify subcooling against equipment target.

If piston/fixed orifice: verify superheat using target chart.

Suction Pressure Head Pressure Outdoor Temp Superheat Subcooling Compressor Amps

11. Temperature Split & Airflow

Check return temperature.

Check supply temperature.

Confirm temperature split is around 18–22°F. 20°F+ is usually strong if airflow is correct.

Return Temp Supply Temp Temp Split

If temp split, airflow, pressures, or charge look wrong: stop and analyze before telling client.

12. Recommendations

Gather facts before making recommendations.

Explain what is good first.

Explain what needs attention.

Explain what should be repaired now if needed.

Issues / Recommendations

13. Upsells & Add-Ons

Tap anything the client is interested in. Doesn't have to be a hard sell — just flag interest so Josh can follow up with pricing.

Power Surge Protection Protects compressor, board, blower motor from spikes & brownouts.

UV / UVC Light (Cleaner Air) Kills mold & bacteria on coil and in airstream. Good for allergies / odors.

Drain Overflow / Float Switch Shuts system down before clogged drain floods ceiling or floor.

Condensate / Wiring Safety Switches Pan switch, secondary drain switch, low-voltage protection.

Acid Neutralizer / Drain Pan Tabs Keeps drain line clear; prevents algae clogs & water damage.

Hard-Start Kit / Compressor Saver Extends compressor life on older units; helps weak starts.

Indoor Deodorizer / Odor Neutralizer Pet smell, smoke, cooking odors — passive in-duct treatment.

Filter Upgrade (MERV / Media Cabinet) Higher MERV or 4" media cabinet for better air quality & longer change cycle.

Smart / Programmable Thermostat Schedule, remote control, energy savings; flag if current stat is basic / dying.

Whole-House Humidifier / Dehumidifier Dry winter air, sinus / wood floor issues, or muggy basement.

Duct Cleaning Heavy dust, post-construction, pet hair, recent rodent activity.

JL Maintenance Plan Monthly plan = priority service + spring/fall tune-ups + discount on repairs.

Upsell Notes / Quoted Items

14. Cleanup & Closeout

Remove trash, debris, screws, packaging, and used materials.

Wipe work area and make it cleaner than when you arrived.

Take final photos of clean equipment and readings.

Make sure thermostat is set correctly.

“Everything has been serviced and tested. The system is operating properly at this time. I checked cleaning, electrical, airflow, temperature split, and refrigerant performance. Do you have any other questions or anything else you want me to look at while I’m here?”

“Thank you. Take care.”

Final Pass

Safe

Clean

Put back together

Running properly

Client informed

Photos completed

📱 Health Report — text to customer

Grade what you inspected, tap Build, review the message, then text it. Never grade equipment you didn’t look at.

RED safety items: tell the customer face to face first. The report is the record, not the notice.

Plan member? (sets the plan line on the visual report)

A/C Furnace Water Heater Next visit

Keep an eye on (plain English — what + why + cost of waiting)

Report preview (edit before sending)

Job Info