The valve that meters everything
A catering kitchen's walk-in wasn't pulling down. Compressor running on the roof, box sitting warm, and the gauges said the evaporator was being starved: low suction, high superheat.
Read the note →Job notes from real service calls, posted every Tuesday and Thursday. Guides, case studies and company news are here too.
What broke, why it broke, and how we fixed it.
Insights from B&M Mechanical: HVAC and refrigeration field notes from New York City.
LatestNew every Tuesday and Thursday(B&M — 01)
By equipmentWalk-ins to rooftops(B&M — 02)
Start from the equipment you run.
EverythingNotes, guides, case studies, news(35 entries)
Everything we have published, newest first.
Filter by what it is or by the equipment it covers. Clients are described, never named.
Type
Equipment
35 entries, newest first
- The valve that meters everythingJob note · Walk-ins
- The blinking light already knewJob note · Ice machines
- A condenser packed with flourJob note · Reach-ins & prep tables
- A rooftop coil frozen by dirty filtersJob note · Rooftop units & AC
- A cheap control running an expensive boxJob note · Walk-ins
- Scale is what’s eating your ice machineJob note · Ice machines
- Doors propped open on a 90-degree dayJob note · Rooftop units & AC
- Cooked at the terminal blockJob note · Reach-ins & prep tables
- No complaint yetJob note · Rooftop units & AC
- A 1998 evaporator, iced solidJob note · Walk-ins
- Cocktail bar: three back-bar coolers, one iced solid and freezing the garnishCase study · Reach-ins & prep tables
- Catering kitchen: the walk-in that would not pull down, then the 15-ton rooftop unitCase study · Walk-ins
- Care-facility kitchen: a freezer creeping up, two failed defrost timers, both boxes back overnightCase study · Reach-ins & prep tables
- Butcher’s cold room: a blocked drain, two evaporators and a new expansion valve in one visitCase study · Walk-ins
- Walk-in freezer floor rebuilt from the subfloor up, inside a working kitchenCase study · Walk-ins
- A room people learn to live withJob note · Splits & ductless
- The parts of an install nobody photographsJob note · Splits & ductless
- Four heads, one roof, one system to balanceJob note · Splits & ductless
- Building a walk-in freezer floor from the subfloor upJob note · Walk-ins
- Thirty feet from the iceJob note · Walk-ins
- A confident, precise, wrong numberJob note · Walk-ins
- White ice is not an ice problem.Job note · Ice machines
- The controller said “Making Ice.” The bin disagreed.Job note · Ice machines
- This Manitowoc quit every afternoon.Job note · Ice machines
- Ice Is Food. Start Treating It That Way.Guide · Ice machines
- Top 3 things health department looks for and how to avoid getting shut downGuide · Ice machines
- 3 signs your walk-in cooler is about to failGuide · Walk-ins
- Our Russell walk-in is warm.Job note · Walk-ins
- B&M Mechanical is officially your Universal Coolers Authorized Service ProviderCompany news · Reach-ins & prep tables
- B&M Mechanical is officially your GE Authorized HVAC ProCompany news · Splits & ductless
- B&M Mechanical is now an authorized service provider for ManitowocCompany news · Ice machines
- Do I turn the heat off when I’m not home?Guide · Controls & thermostats
- Is a maintenance plan worth the money?Guide · Maintenance
- 8 Heating Scenarios That Need Immediate AttentionGuide · Heating
- Top 5 Commercial HVAC Issues and How to Fix ThemGuide · Rooftop units & AC
Nothing published yet for that combination. Call or text 718 802 1700 and ask us directly.
GuidesLonger reads(B&M — 04)
Longer reads for the people who run the equipment.
Ice Is Food. Start Treating It That Way.
Under the FDA Model Food Code, ice isn't a garnish, a convenience, or an afterthought. It's legally classified as a food product.
Read the guide →8 Heating Scenarios That Need Immediate Attention
Eight heating failures that should not wait until morning, from gas smells and short cycling to no heat in a rental, and what to do first in each case.
Read the guide →Top 5 Commercial HVAC Issues and How to Fix Them
The five commercial HVAC failures we see most in NYC restaurants and retail, what causes each one, and which fixes hold up versus which ones come back.
Read the guide →Is a maintenance plan worth the money?
What an HVAC and refrigeration maintenance plan covers, what it prevents, and how to judge whether one pays for itself in a NYC business or home.
Read the guide →
Five jobs written up in full, from the first call to the parts list.
Case studies · field photoCase studiesThe long version(B&M — 05)
The call, what we found, the work in order, and the parts.
Written for the people who manage the building. Each client is described by sector.
- Cocktail barCocktail bar: three back-bar coolers, one iced solid and freezing the garnishHospitality · 3 min read
- Catering kitchenCatering kitchen: the walk-in that would not pull down, then the 15-ton rooftop unitHospitality · 5 min read
- Kitchen serving a nursing homeCare-facility kitchen: a freezer creeping up, two failed defrost timers, both boxes back overnightEmergency & Critical Response · 3 min read
- Independent butcher shopButcher’s cold room: a blocked drain, two evaporators and a new expansion valve in one visitRetail · 3 min read
- Commercial kitchenWalk-in freezer floor rebuilt from the subfloor up, inside a working kitchenRestaurant & QSR · 4 min read
From the officeCompany news(B&M — 06)
Authorizations, milestones and news from the shop.
- 5 Apr 2026
- GE Authorized HVAC Pro
- Since 1992
- In business in New York, from our base in Brooklyn. More on the About page
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