Does a freon leak mean I must get a new home AC unit? Can't I just get the leak fixed? A PSE&G technician was at my house to charge the freon in my AC. He told me that I've got a leak & that I'll have to get a whole new unit. This seems a little far-fetched to me, especially because my unit is only 10 years old. Can't the leak just be fixed? The technicians are getting lazy, especially if the companies pay commission , then they would rather try to sell you a new system , than repair !Call and get someone else to perform a proper leak check on your system ,I've got systems that we service that are 40 years old and still operating. Call and get someone else to perform a proper leak check on your system ,I've got systems that we service that are 40 years old and still operating.The technicians are getting lazy, especially if the companies pay commission , then they would rather try to sell you a new system , than repair !good luck Source: Owner of hvac company 9 out of 10 times if you have a good tech with enough technical skills he should be able to find your leak.

if it is a single leak he should be able to fix it. But now a days it is more advantage to sell you a new system than repair it because the fix is time consuming and they would rather have the tech stick to schedule than waste time looking for the leak. time is money and techs are paid by the call then by the hourRaymond gonzalez Did he say where the leak is ? If in a fitting or line, simple and cheap to just repair or change that out. If in the exchanger coils, commonly they have to be replaced unless it is in a reachable spot that can be brazed. If in the compressor (compressor bypass leak) then that is a major component, and probably the most expensive part of the system to replace, so in that case you would be putting down a lot of money to fix a system that is out of warranty and is probably 65-85% of the way to its average service life of 12-15 years.One other possibility which he may have been thinking but did not say, is if it is an R22 refrigerant system, that is costing hundreds of $ to fill now that it is going out of production, and will cost more in the future, so he may have figured you were better off with a system that uses the replacement refrigerants.

For more on that subject and when the phaseout takes full effect, see the discussions in Home - HVAC (link right below your question, above).3 ton unit return duct sizeI would call him back and find out where the leak is (if he tested for that, rather than just checking the pressure and saying there was a leak somewhere), and why he recommended a new unit over repair.car ac repair sarasota flThen you can decide what you want to do, and if you wnt to get another opinion. car ac repair fresno caYou might want to check his firm's rating on Angie's List too, to see how much weight you want to give to his opinion. If the leak is in the "indoor" Evaporator coil, the cost to replace the coil, if not covered by a ten year parts warranty( you should check warranty), is far greater then 50% of a new system.

These coils are not repairable , in most cases, there are numerous pin holes from Formicary Corrossion, and more on the way.The tech should and may have indentified the leak, if not ask that they do so.Most all new systems will have a 10 year parts warranty, though it must be registered with the manufacturer to be valid.Check out Carriers new Green Speed system, terriffic system, much lower utility bills.As always find the best contractors on Angie's List! One thing I did not mention directly, but is in the referenced discussions on R22 (Freon) under the HVAC category, is that refilling your system will cost from $100+ to several hundreds of $, because of the rapidly rising price of Freon. Therefore, unless the tech is certain he has found and totally fixed the leak (by using an inert gas pressure test after the repair and BEFORE refilling the system with Freon), then you could end up sinking a hundred or two in repairs, and a hundred or few in Freon that would just leak back out if there is an unidentified leak.

Therefore, that might weigh on your decision on whether to repair or get a new system.That is why a quality, reputable, HONEST contractor is vital - an honest craftsman will explain your alternatives and truthfully say what he would do in your position, and give you honest pricing for the alternatives, not just give you one choice to take or leave.You are here » Common Air Conditioner ProblemsPosted June 17th by We have all experienced this, either first hand or from a friend telling us about their experience. But how does a freon leak occur? When a freon leak happens, where does it go? Is a freon leak safe for the environment? Can a freon leak be repaired? All of these questions (and more) often arise with home ownership. In the heating and air conditioning trades there has been a common misconception that freon leaks often and needs to be “topped off” from year to year. Many homeowners believe that a freon leak is what is causing their system to not turn on during the hot summer months.

Like air in a car tire, when it’s low it needs to be filled up. However, if the hole isn’t addressed, then the air will continue to leak out and cause other problems with the vehicle. The same is true regarding a freon leak. Once a freon leak occurs, a service technician can add more to correct the charge but until the cause of the leak is diagnosed and resolved, the freon leak will continue. In many instances, freon leaks will gradually get worse as time goes on. Leaks often start out as “pinhole leaks”. The industry has coined these as “champagne leaks” because the freon leak will often show up as tiny bubbles. A freon leak will often show up in the evaporator coil. This is the most common spot. The freon is mostly a superheated gas while in the evaporator coil and can therefore leak from smaller holes. Freon is part gas and part liquid, depending on where the chemical is in the process and in the system. When freon leaks as a liquid, this often occurs outside. This is a more uncommon place for a leak to show up and will often cost more when it does.

Freon leaks are unsafe for the environment because of the capability to deplete the ozone layer. More important than that though is the possibility for freon to enter the airflow inside the interior of the home. This chemical can be sensed by some and will often report a foul-smelling odor coming from their hvac system when it kicks on. All that being said, the common idea that freon leaks over time is a myth and is simply not true. The system does not consume the freon over a period of time. Nor does it get absorbed into the copper tubing. The only place for the freon to go is out- through a leak in the system. One of our past articles dives into WHY some service companies would say the freon is bad… A freon leak can happen from a variety of different methods. I’ll cover the most common ones here.What about a lesser known cause? This corrosion will advance at quicker stages when their is more moisture present on the evaporator coils. Moisture develops from the air traveling across the coil and being condensed-just like rain clouds in the atmosphere.

Undersized ductwork or dirt filters can cause a freon leak to develop at quicker rates. The long term solution is to insist that evaporator coils made from all-aluminum be installed in your home. Trane began manufacturing all-aluminum coils in 2005 and have great success with this material. Through extensive testing and engineering, Trane has found that aluminum is resistant to formicary corrosion. They carry exclusive patents on their all aluminum evaporator coils and a wise choice when needing to install a new coil. We have been testing repair methods that allow a freon leak to be temporarily taken care of but not permanently resolved. We have not found enough success in our early testing to offer this as a recommended repair solution for our customers. In most cases the most permanent repair solution is to replace the entire evap. coil instead of trying to weld the pinholes throughout the system. Welding a small leak can cost several hundreds of dollars and most of the time more leaks will show up later;

costing more money in the long run. Trane coils are the best long-term solution if you want to avoid any freon leaks in the future. I think we can all imagine lots of ways to spend our hard-earned cash instead of dumping it into freon and evaporator coils… What to do if your air conditioner is leaking freon Our service technicians will locate the leak of the freon, upon your approval, and will then provide options to repair. If the leak can be repaired as a cheaper solution, we will provide you the cost. If more work is entailed, we will let you know all costs upfront before proceeding on the work. Our goal is to fix something once and for all. We always look for the root cause and seek to address that before repairing parts… Our service technicians have a variety of methods available at their disposal, such as: If you think your system is low on freon or is leaking, look at the repair history of the unit. Often times your air conditioner will have oil stains around the service ports outside if it is leaking freon.

If the freon leak is in a tough spot, it can sometimes cost $1000’s to have the issue resolved. That being said, we guarantee to provide you with options for getting your system resolved for what works for your budget. Take immediate note of any changes in operation from season to season. Since you live in the home, you are the best judge of how well your system is working. Also, if you notice ice buildup around the copper tubing outside, this can often mean that your air conditioner has lost freon during the season and should get looked at immediately by one of our professional service technicians. The best action is prevention- our annual maintenance plans can keep you cool during the hottest months and avoid costly repairs from failures. Call us today and see how our award-winning service can save you so much money. Learn more about our Furnace and Air Conditioning Maintenance services. Is your Home Protected from Carbon Monoxide? 3 Ways for Homeowners to Maintain their Water Heaters