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app or software for finding HVAC equipment age and recalls

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jukeboxdenny
jukeboxdenny Member Posts: 2
in THE MAIN WALL
HI-the other day I was listening to a local radio talkshow and they had a HVAC contractor on the air, and he was talking about using an app on there ipad/phone that he said, they take a picture of the model/serial number on the equipment, and it would tell you know the age, sold date, and any warranty or recall issues and estimated life left in the furnace( for example) just by scanning the model/serial info on the unit.

Just wondering if any of you have this app ?

Thanks Dennis.

Comments

  • hot_rod
    hot_rod Member Posts: 28,271
    this, maybe

    https://www.building-center.org/
    Bob "hot rod" Rohr
    trainer for Caleffi NA
    Living the hydronic dream
  • jukeboxdenny
    jukeboxdenny Member Posts: 2
    HI Bob, I looked at that link you posted, that looks like something different that what the guy was talking about.

    There company just takes a picture of the model/serial numbers and it somehow detects the age, manufacture and sold date and any recall info plus estimated life left of the equipment.

    they did not mention the name of the app or software program they used.

    Thanks for the link though-Dennis
  • GGross
    GGross Member Posts: 2,047
    edited August 27

    Considering most sold-date, and warranty status info with hvac equipment is not publicly available I doubt the reliability of any app that encompasses all brands being able to reliably know this info. For example the only way you will ever know what day the brand I sell was sold to either me, or the contractor is if you have direct access to my sales servers, and the only way you would know warranty status is if you called the manufacturer and they will only know if the unit was registered. If the unit was not registered the only way to know warranty status would be to have the date of inspection from the county, or the invoice from the contractor to the customer. recall info is easy enough, just google the model number hit spacebar and type "recall" after

    you could know the BUILD year and month from most serials. but that wont give you warranty info, or remaining unit life lol. Honestly I am very pro-app usage in the field but this seems to just be a way for a tech to turn their eyes and ears off and take at face value information with no real way of being accurate.

  • pecmsg
    pecmsg Member Posts: 7,527

    Most manufactures offer warranty status on their web sites

  • GGross
    GGross Member Posts: 2,047
    https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/comment/1902733#Comment_1902733

    only works if the equipment was registered otherwise it will go based on the date of manufacture. unregistered equipment in most states will still only start warranty coverage from the date of install which the homeowner or contractor will need to provide. I'm only being a stickler to this point because the local PE hvac companies run around telling customer their units are out of warranty based on the unit manufacture date when the install date still puts it within warranty period.

  • pecmsg
    pecmsg Member Posts: 7,527
    https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/comment/1902737#Comment_1902737

    that’s the world we live in.
    crooked contractors

    Sell

    Sell

    Sell

    GGross
  • HVACNUT
    HVACNUT Member Posts: 7,669

    The Bluon HVAC app has a lot of useful features. You can scan models and parts. Search models and parts. Tools and calculators, etc. The catch is, its not free. Your company needs to support it. Its free to install, but you need to be in the system to get all the benefits.

  • pecmsg
    pecmsg Member Posts: 7,527

    that App blew up my phone with crap!

    GGross
  • HVACNUT
    HVACNUT Member Posts: 7,669
    https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/comment/1902770#Comment_1902770

    I get a text from them maybe once a month on my work phone promoting something. The phone is unscathed. Sometimes the vibration tickles.

  • RossWhite1980
    RossWhite1980 Member Posts: 1
    https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/194990/app-or-software-for-finding-hvac-equipment-age-and-recalls

    There are apps that do pretty much what you're describing now. The important distinction is that most of them are decoding the model/serial number rather than actually knowing when the equipment was sold.

    For example, there are current HVAC apps that can photograph the data plate and extract the model and serial number, then decode the manufacture date and equipment information. Some also have warranty or recall lookups depending on the manufacturer and the data available.

    I'd be a little skeptical of the “estimated life left” part, though. A serial number can tell you when something was manufactured, but it can't tell you how well that particular furnace has been maintained or how long its heat exchanger, blower, etc. will actually last. Typical service life is only a rough reference.

    Warranty is another one where I'd want to verify directly with the manufacturer. The manufacture date isn't necessarily the installation or sale date, and warranty coverage can depend on registration. Some manufacturer-specific contractor apps can actually check warranty status when they have the equipment and ownership information.

    So the radio guy may well have been using something like this, but I wouldn't expect one app to reliably know the complete history of every brand just from a photo.

    GGross

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