Best Of

Probably the best analysis I ever read of how to properly troubleshoot a mechanical or electrical problem was in the book Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. The author at one time wrote technical manuals for a living. And then he wrote this book about many things, based on a long motorcycle trip he took with his son. And the motorcycle trip turns into a long meditation on the art and science of maintaining and fixing complex mechanical things like motorcycles.

So he talks about the many problems he's had with the motorcycle, and his systematic method of fixing them. First, observe closely. Write your observations and state the problem carefully, including the conditions under which the problem manifests, if it's intermittent. Then develop some hypotheses about the possible causes. Then test each hypothesis, again carefully noting results in your (his) notebook. Don't jump to conclusions. And don't assume that there's just one thing wrong. There could be multiple things wrong, and if you only find one, you haven't completely fixed the problem. Don't get caught in "gumption traps," the times when you're totally stumped, have tried everything, and nothing works. Walk away and come back with a fresh mind.

He also analyzes all the ways things can go wrong: you're frustrated, you don't have the tool you need, you overtorque a bolt and break it off in the worst possible place, you drop a nut into the crankcase. Or, you can't find the part you need because the manufacturer classifies it as a suspension part instead of a drivetrain part, so it shows up in the "wrong" parts diagram. etc, etc.

Every pro here has probably learned by trial and error a similar methodology to troubleshooting, but it can be a long and painful learning process if you're not patient and/or don't have someone to teach you. Some people never learn because they don't have the patience or the interest.

But one of the most important things he said was, you have to care. If you don't care about what you're doing, you'll never do it well. So the first, and most important thing, is to care about what you're working on.

The OP topic was techs who don't even attempt to diagnose. "you need a new one" The techs do as per, Bosses, Market, Industry. The Techs are not loose cannons. They are doing what's asked of them. Even if they had the skills to repair (many don't) and the products were more repairable and built to last (many are not) the consumers have the desires of a disposable culture and the bosses maximum profits are not in repair. It's very connected. It's not as simple as just, we have less repairable products or it's just, a lack of training or just , malfeasant bosses. I would say our current state of culture is a bit more irrational than when old Mr. T. Paine was doing his best rationalizing. Why and how is complex and interconnected, even though we all prefer the simple answers.

The hardest part is, we simply can't go back, no mater how much we would like to, no mater how much we might try. The future is a juggernaut tyrant of collective creation.

A local competitor/ peer of mine screwed up a draft damper diagnosis on a boiler that his grandfather installed at the end of his long carrier. He left the customer with no and intermittent heat, days of changing other parts and was never able to fix it. I got called to verify his replacement price against mine. I was stunned when the customer was completely uninterested in fixing it. The quality and condition of the existing equipment was disregarded. My years of skills and knowledge meant nothing to him. He went with the the guy who couldn't fix it anyway. Why? He was sold on the need for replacement, Grandpas last name and a flashy truck is my best guess. Customer's are not always rational and some enjoy being lied to because it fits with their understandings. Oh! You should definitively replace it. A 20 year old cast iron Hydrotherm? Bla bla bla, questionable reliability, bla bla, new is much higher efficiency! I tried to offer a counter with the facts of a high temperature load. He called me back to re-question me about his promised efficiency gains. He was obviously confused by my competitors nonsense responds his questions my info spawned. Despite the fact that he is an accomplished CFO, thermodynamics and good logic proved to be irrelevant.

I hear the don't touch it or you'll own it thing all the time. That's not really the typical legal case. I get that properly handling old equipment repair takes effort with details. If you don't inform the customer of risks in writing and you perform work that was not agreed to and then you break something or make it worse then you are liable. If you don't have the ability to accurately verify if the equipment is safe or not, then do not touch it. If you have no idea what could go wrong and can't clearly communicate verbally and in writing, then, do not touch it. These hurdles are why repairs are not being offered.

The skills needed to provide the "Good" or "Better" options are more and more rare. What I see is young "techs" that can only offer "Replace" (not "Best" like HD?) The unqualified service call responders are just feeders for a predator sales manager and a single semi-skilled, over worked, cookie cutter, installer. The feeders know enough to ID a few things and to confidently toss out large numbers. The aprovals go to and the semi-skilled installer who gets it right enough of the time that it pays for when he doesn't. My old boss called it "throwing darts". They're not all bullseyes, but the close hits pay for problems and inefficiencies caused by the lack of skills. The turn over of the call responders is high but who cares. It doesn't take long to find a new fresh faced hungry shill. When you find a good one, cut them in with higher commission. Of course you must keep the semi-skilled installer happy. You need someone in the company that can fix the problems and smooth failures over or scare people off. Often but not necessarily, the owner. It's a model that works and there's little intention of training anyone to a very high level of competence. The requirements for technical training is: presentable, slightly higher than average IQ, flexible ethics and above all company loyalty. Developing higher skill levels just creates higher wages or is training your next competitor. Obviously all companies are not just like this but there's certainly a trend of many variations towards the like.

Fire both of the companies. All they want to do is spend money needlessly.

All you need to do is to slow the flow in the 3" piping to the front of the building so it matches the flow in the 1" pex going to the rear of the building.

How do you do that?

You install a 3" butterfly valve in the 3" piping ( a bit of a task) and you close the butterfly valve until you get the performance at the rear of the building.

The alternative is a second zone. As @Ironman mentioned……….one zone for the front of the building. One zone to the rear of the building. You'll need another pump and proper controls.