Just crossed 500 fridge compressor swaps without a leak

My phone buzzed last week while I was packing up on a job near downtown Denver. It was my old mentor congratulating me on hitting 500 compressor swaps without a single leak. I had been keeping a rough count in my head after a messy leak back in 2019 that cost me a repeat visit and some embarrassment. That number surprised me because I used to dread compressors and always felt like I was holding my breath during the braze. Now it's just routine, but seeing it written out as 500 made me stop and think about how much practice changes things. Have any of you ever tracked a specific repair milestone like this and been surprised by the number?

2 comments

2 Comments

faith_thomas1mo agoMost Upvoted

Wait, 500 compressor swaps without a single leak? That's wild... I can barely go 5 without something going wrong on me. You must have that braze game down perfect by now.

skyler_white1mo ago

Man I think his secret is selling his soul to the HVAC gods or something. My record is like 8 clean swaps before I get that one joint that just refuses to hold pressure and drives me up the wall. Bet he's got that nitrogen purge on a timer and knows exactly how the flame dances with whatever alloy he runs. Meanwhile I'm over here chasing a pinhole on the high side for an hour like a total scrub.