HVAC Service Call Checklist Template

Log the call, find out what the customer is seeing and how urgent it is, and record the equipment before anyone travels. Enter the date of the first site visit on the first task: every due date counts from it in business days. Choosing the country shows short notes on refrigerant and gas work for the UK or the US.

• Log the call: the site, the visit date and who is involved — the customer and site, who reported the fault and how to reach them, the job number, the date of the first site visit, the country, and the people who coordinate the call, attend it and approve the estimate
• Record the symptoms the customer reports — what is happening, when it started, which rooms or areas are affected, any error code on the controller, and anything already tried, such as a reset
• Set the urgency of the call — emergency, urgent or routine, on the scale your organisation uses; record what is at risk, such as vulnerable occupants without heating, an overheating server room, stock that needs cooling or water leaking near electrics
• Record the equipment details — the type of unit, make, model and serial number, the refrigerant type and charge from the nameplate, where it is (roof, plant room, ceiling void, outside wall) and the year it was installed if known
• Check the service history, warranty and contract cover — earlier visits and repeat faults on this unit, whether it is still under the manufacturer’s or installer’s warranty, and whether a service contract covers the call-out, parts or labour
• Arrange site access and confirm the visit — access times, keys and escorts, the site’s induction or permit rules, roof or plant room access, parking, and the visit time confirmed with the site contact
• Prepare the parts, tools and access equipment — likely parts for the reported fault, test instruments, access equipment, and recovery equipment and empty cylinders if refrigerant work is possible, with a technician whose refrigerant certification covers the equipment

Before any panel comes off, the technician signs in, looks at the risks at the unit, sets up safe access and sees the fault for themselves. The checks here are this template’s practice: follow your employer’s risk assessments, the site’s rules and the manufacturer’s instructions.

• Sign in and agree the work area with the site contact — follow the site’s sign-in, induction and permit rules, ask for the site’s information on known hazards in the area, such as asbestos, and agree where you can work and leave equipment
• Assess the risks at the unit before starting — roof edges and fragile roofs, ladders and access, plant room hazards, hot and moving parts, electrical supplies, confined spaces and working alone; record the controls you will use
• Set up safe access for work at height — use the access equipment the risk assessment calls for, and do not work near an unprotected edge or on a fragile roof without protection agreed with the site; mark this task not applicable when the unit is at ground level
• See the fault for yourself — with the site contact, run the unit if it is safe to, check the controller’s settings and error log, and compare what you see with the symptoms reported
• Isolate the unit before opening it — isolate the electrical supply at the local isolator, lock it off and tag it, and prove it dead before touching terminals; isolate the gas supply on gas-fired units; restore power only for live tests your risk assessment allows

The HVAC diagnostic works from the simple causes to the failed component, with readings recorded so they can be compared after the work. The last question here, whether either option would involve refrigerant, adds the refrigerant tasks in Phases 6 and 8.

• Check the controls, settings and power supply — thermostat or controller settings, time schedules and building management system commands, fuses, breakers and the isolator, before looking for a failed component
• Inspect the filters, coils, fans and condensate drain — blocked filters, dirty or iced coils, a failed or slow fan, a blocked drain or a full condensate pump, and loose or burnt wiring
• Take and record the readings — temperatures, refrigerant pressures, electrical current and voltage and any fault codes, against the manufacturer’s data; only a technician certified for refrigerant work fits refrigerant gauges
• Record the diagnosis and the cause of the fault — what failed and why, the condition of the rest of the unit, and whether it can be repaired or needs a like-for-like change-out; add photos
• Leave the unit safe until the work is done — if the unit cannot run safely, keep it isolated, label it out of use and tell the site contact; agree any temporary heating or cooling

The HVAC estimate prices a repair and, where it makes sense, a like-for-like change-out, so the approver can choose. Nothing after the approval can be completed until the approver records a decision, and the decision shows the repair tasks or the change-out tasks. Not approved adds a task to make the unit safe and close the call or re-quote.

• Price the repair and the like-for-like change-out — parts, labour, access equipment, refrigerant work, removal and disposal of the old unit and the lead time for each option; price a change-out when the unit cannot be repaired or a repair looks poor value, and record why
• Check a change-out unit is a like-for-like match — capacity, electrical supply, refrigerant type, size and mounting, condensate route and controls, so the new unit fits without other work; mark this task not applicable if no change-out is offered
• Write the HVAC estimate — the fault found, each option with its price and lead time, what is not included, how long the price stands, and what happens if nothing is done
• Send the estimate and agree when a decision is needed — send it to the approver chosen on the first task, or to the customer, explain the options and agree the date a decision is needed
• Approve the estimate before any work starts — the approver chooses the repair or the change-out, or does not approve; record any conditions and the purchase order, and attach the customer’s written approval where you have it
• Make the unit safe and close the call or re-quote — the estimate was not approved: leave the unit isolated and labelled if it is not safe to run, tell the customer in writing, and either close the call or revise the estimate

Order what the approved option needs, book the work and tell the site about the downtime. If parts or a new unit will arrive later than the due dates here, agree a new date with the customer and move the remaining due dates.

• Order the parts or the replacement unit — against the approved option and purchase order; record the supplier, order number and promised delivery date, and if it is later than the due dates here, agree a new date with the customer and change the remaining tasks’ due dates
• Book the work and the access equipment — the date and time, the technicians needed, access equipment, any crane or lifting for a rooftop change-out, permits, and an isolation window the site can accept
• Tell the site about the downtime — when the unit will be off, which areas lose heating or cooling, temporary arrangements, and any noise or access disruption
• Check the parts or the new unit on delivery — against the order: model, capacity, refrigerant type, electrical supply and any damage in transit

Applies only when the diagnosis says the work involves refrigerant. If the approved option does not touch refrigerant, mark these tasks and the recharge and refrigerant record in Phase 8 not applicable. A technician certified for the equipment recovers the refrigerant before a circuit is opened or a unit is removed. The country chosen on the first task shows short notes from gov.uk or EPA; this template gives no handling instructions beyond them.

• Confirm the technician holds the right refrigerant certification — for the type of equipment and the work; record the certificate type and number. Only a certified technician opens a refrigerant circuit, adds refrigerant or recovers it
• Check the recovery equipment and cylinders — a working recovery machine, enough empty recovery cylinders for the refrigerant type, labelled, and scales to weigh what is recovered
• Recover the refrigerant before opening the circuit or removing the unit — into recovery cylinders, weighed and recorded, before any part of the circuit is opened or the old unit is disconnected; refrigerant is never released to the air

The approved option is carried out. Approved: repair shows the repair task; Approved: change-out shows the removal of the old unit, the installation of the new one and the disposal of the old one. Anything else found during the work is priced separately.

• Carry out the repair — replace or repair the failed part as approved, following the manufacturer’s instructions, and record the parts fitted
• Disconnect and remove the old unit — once it is isolated and any refrigerant has been recovered: disconnect the power, pipework, condensate and controls, and remove the unit safely from the roof, plant room or wall
• Install the new unit — in the agreed position with the agreed connections, condensate route and controls, following the manufacturer’s installation instructions; record the make, model and serial number
• Send the old unit for disposal — through a waste route that accepts it, with the waste paperwork kept on this task
• Record anything else found during the work — other defects, damage or wear outside the approved scope; price extra work separately and do not start it without approval

The unit is brought back into service and checked against the readings taken at diagnosis, so the record shows the fault is gone. When refrigerant was involved, the circuit is recharged and the refrigerant records are completed. The last task asks whether a follow-up visit is needed.

• Recharge and leak test the circuit — by the certified technician, following the manufacturer’s instructions for the refrigerant type and charge; record the type and amount added
• Restore power and commission the unit — remove the isolation, start the unit and check it runs through its modes with the controls, following the manufacturer’s commissioning steps
• Record the readings after the work — the same readings as at diagnosis, so the before and after can be compared
• Check the controls and settings with the site contact — setpoints, time schedules and building management system points back as they were or as agreed, and the symptoms reported at the start gone; if they are not, record why and ask for a follow-up visit in the last task of this phase
• Record the refrigerant recovered and added — the refrigerant type, the amounts recovered and added, the cylinders, the technician, and where recovered refrigerant went; give the owner a copy
• Decide whether a follow-up visit is needed — for example a part still on order, a temporary fix, a re-test after a leak repair, or the customer’s request

Leave the site as you found it, take the customer through the work, and finish the service record so the next visit starts from facts. A follow-up visit appears here when one is needed.

• Clean up the work area — remove packaging, old parts and debris, clean any marks, and put back ceiling tiles, panels and access covers
• Get the customer’s sign-off — walk the site contact through the work, the readings and anything still open, and record who signed off
• Complete the service record — the fault, the diagnosis, the work done, parts fitted, readings, refrigerant records where they apply, the technician and any recommendations; send a copy to the customer
• Update the asset record and service history — the unit’s details (the new unit’s make, model and serial number after a change-out), the warranty start, and the next planned service, so the planned maintenance schedule picks it up
• Book the follow-up visit — the date, what the visit is for, the parts or access needed, and the site contact told
• Invoice the call and close the work order — against the approved estimate and purchase order, with any agreed extras; if a follow-up visit is booked, keep this checklist open until it is done
• Carry out the follow-up visit and record the result — do what the visit was for, record any readings or re-test result, and update the service record