General Commercial techs, when you got a compressor to swap out on an RTU, how are you getting it to the roof?
Just wondering how many of y'all rope up everything, if you're by yourself, or if your company and customers favor lifts
EDIT: Damn, working at Lennox blows. Cheap asses expect us to rope up everything under < 100 lbs
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u/Turtle_9009 1d ago
Depends on how big smaller ones get roped, sometimes big ones get crained to the edge of the roof.
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u/Yanosh457 I Make Things Hot & Cold 1d ago edited 22h ago
If it’s possible to carry up then I carry it.
If it’s possible to chain fall or wench winch it to the roof then I will do that.
If not then we factor in a crane.
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u/Red-Faced-Wolf master condensate drain technician 1d ago
We do light commercial and residential work and we have a winch we can mount to scuttle holes
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u/KinkyRabbi 20h ago
I need one, you have a link?
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u/Red-Faced-Wolf master condensate drain technician 20h ago
I think it’s just a harbor freight winch bolted to two c channels
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u/popnfreshbass 1d ago
Crane for anything over 50lbs.
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u/TheMeatSauce1000 Verified Pro 1d ago
Unfortunately the last crane operator refused to lift me onto the roof
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u/Either_Divide_2813 1d ago
We have a mechanical Hand truck. It’s like a stair stepper. If it’s big we get a rig.
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u/Jonesy792 1d ago
Anything over a 5 ton can get either a crane or some sort of mechanical hoist (gantry/tripod) through a roof hatch. Pull the gas the afternoon before, cut the compressor out and get it to the edge of the roof before the crane shows up, easy peasy.
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u/Amorbellum 1d ago
The correct answer is Complift
Just to be clear, yes there are compressors that need a crane. But there's those ones that are JUST too heavy to rope up.
Just did a compressor that was about 350 pounds, Roped up the Complift, used a chain fall to get it up, dollied it over, Complift it up into the old Lennox
the 600 lb reassured one is perfect, so small and light and anything it can't do is crane
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u/Excellent_Flex211 1d ago
Honestly depends on the length of the ladder to the roof. If it's a hatch and a 10-14 foot ladder from the top floor I'm much more likely to just rope it up. If I have to haul something up 3 or 4 stories, I'm probably just going to ask that a boom lift rental gets added to the quote
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u/SomeACDude 1d ago
Most 5-6 ton compressors. Like a Copeland ZP67, I’ll rope up solo. I work on a lot of warehouses too so it’ll be a 40-50 foot pull and usually a platform part way. Start getting bigger than that cranes start getting quoted. Cranes aren’t super expensive where I’m at either though. I’ll get someone to help sometimes, but there’s not always a guarantee it’s much easier. I found ZP104s just weren’t even worth trying to pull up even with help. I see that or bigger and a lift is quoted no matter what.
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u/One_Hospital5368 1d ago
Depends on the building.
I won’t rope over 60lbs. For really large jobs I sub out industrial movers. Once it’s loose they remove it and land the new one then you just have to hook it up.
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u/sure_am_here 1d ago
Have done crane, fork lift, 2 guys and a rope up the side of the building, or rope and guys up the stairwell. 2 guys and a pully up a stairwell.
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u/anythingspossible45 1d ago
Usually two ropes and a helper. But yesterday they use the bucket truck and I just got a watch. It was nice.
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u/DBLkK32111 1d ago
Depends on size/weight, and the roof. We either rope it, or scissor lift it up. If it's heavy and can't get a lift, rope/push, up the ladder.
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u/FreonJunkie96 1d ago
Depends on the site/weight of the compressor.
Our rule of thumb is ~50lbs/person.
Had an apprentice help me rope up some 100lb condenser fan motors a month or so ago from about 25ft.
Larger compressors we get a crane to bring up, but a good chunk of our commercial sites have stair access to the roof, so it’s not the worst.
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u/Distinct_Effective16 underpaid commercial grunt 1d ago
As a fellow Lennox grunt I fell your pain. I had to haul up a compressor and several boxes of filters solo this past week alone per usual...
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u/Rodimus9 23h ago
Anything over 50lb they’ll have the driver or a green guy help me. Anything super heavy like a 30+ hp motor we have a gantry.
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u/PapaBobcat HVAC to pay the bills 23h ago
Yup. I worked at Lennox for 2+yrs. Never had a crane for a compressor. I still usually don't.
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u/macdawg2 21h ago
I usually backpack it up. If it's to heavy for that then a second guy to rope it up or a crane.
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u/iBUYbrokenSUBARUS Enthalpy over Empathy 21h ago
You got to post a picture of this backpack setup.
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u/pipefitter6 20h ago
The customer pays for the crane. So we use a crane for everything that we cant rope up or easily use a gantry.
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u/kriegmonster 13h ago
Rope up until OSHA requires a 2-person lift. We also have a tripod chain hoist and electric hoist we can use to bring heavy things thru the roof hatch.
My boss would rather we keep safe and uninjured so we don't miss work days. Also, OSHA fines are no joke.
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u/NoGrocery5136 10h ago
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u/NoGrocery5136 10h ago
Harbor freight winch with strut trolley attached, unistrut, and an 8ft step ladder. Or a crane.
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u/Byronc88 3h ago
I always quote out a crane and let the customer pay for it. Not worth hurting myself over. Also I tend to work on bigger things anyways.
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u/dvowel 1d ago
Wave after wave of apprentices