Select to search all Patches What to Do When Your Air Conditioner is Low on Freon When homeowners A/C doesn't seam to cool off the house the most common thought is "my air conditioner is low on Freon." Is that really the problem? Summer time is almost here. It is getting warmer outside and you will soon be using your a/c. The most common question by homeowners is "does my a/c need freon?". First thing is "Freon" is a trademark name byDupont. Freon is actually regrigerant of many types. Most common residential a/c systems use R-22. Saying freon is like saying Xerox instead of copy machine. I am going to call it Freon for now. People think because the air coming from there registers feels to warm, or there house isn't cooling off fast enough it must need freon.Freon should not leak from your a/c. Air conditioning systems are sealed and should never leak. This isn't like putting gas in your car. If freon has leaked there is a problem. You need to have a qualified HVAC technician repair the leak or else this will keep happening.

When an A/C gets low on freon it is very normal for the indoor coil to freeze to a block of ice. Then when that ice melts you will get water leaking in the furnace and on the floor. wall mounted air conditioning units for conservatoriesWater will damage the furnace and just make your problems worse. air handling units bradfordMajority of service calls for "my a/c is low on freon" turns out to be just a plugged air filter. car ac repair greenville scIt is important that you change your furnace filter every month if you use a standard 1" thick filter.Signs A/C is low on Refrigerant You feel low airflow coming from registers Air starts to feel warmer from registers Water on floor by your furnace Ice building up on copper lines from a/c to indoor coil

House takes longer than normal to cool off Now above are typical signs, but remember the majority of problems are something else beside low on refrigerant. Having your a/c cleaned and tested annually by a HVAC company can save you a lot of money over the years. One new fact to keep in mind is R22 refrigerant is in the process of being discontinued. 2010 all manufactures had to stop using R22 in there new equipment. As this happens the cost of R22 will keep going up. So if you have an a/c leaking this is just another reason you want to get it fixed so it doesn't happen again. New a/c units will typically cost 30% less to run and will use the new enviromentally friendly refrigerant called R410a.  Now in 2012 the EPA has reduced R22 production more than expected and this has caused the price to drastically rise. This post is contributed by a community member. The views expressed in this post are the author's. Registered users are welcome to post on Patch. More from St. Michael Patch

Daily Newsletter - The latest St. Michael news delivered to your inbox every morning Breaking News Alerts - Real-time updates on breaking stories in St. Michael By clicking "Subscribe", you agree to have read our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.A very large number of homeowners will turn their air conditioner on this summer and experience the same thing: the outdoor unit kicks on, the indoor fan blows air, but the air coming out of the vents is not “blowing cold”.  While there can be a number of different causes, a large percentage of units are low on refrigerant.Years ago, adding a pound or two of refrigerant was an inexpensive way to get you by.  In fact, this became part of a yearly maintenance for some.  Today, Bill Brown with Paramount Heating & Air Conditioning, in Worthington, OH explains why the choice to add refrigerant isn’t as simple today.If your system is low on refrigerant, it is because you have a leak. Refrigeration systems are completely sealed and they do not “use” refrigerant but rather “re-use” it.  

The magic of the refrigeration cycle is that it allows 5 lbs of refrigerant to cool your home for 20 years, providing it is well installed, maintained, and doesn’t lose its refrigerant charge.As an air conditioning contractor, once we inform a homeowner that their system is low, we hear a few common questions and would like to address them:Should I just add refrigerant today?There are three things to consider before adding refrigerant to a system:  System age, refrigerant type, and how much refrigerant is needed.System Age- If  your air conditioner is less than 10 years old, and well maintained, it should have a good deal of life left.  Time spent locating and repairing a leak, plus a recharge could yield 5-10 more years of operation.  If the system is beyond 10 years, it may be a better investment replacing the system. The new system will have a 10 year warranty, the new refrigerant, R-410a or “Puron”, and, of course, no leaks.Refrigerant Type- Most systems installed before 2008 have R-22 refrigerant.

This type of refrigerant has been marked for phase out due to that fact that it has ozone depleting characteristics.  After January 2010, HVAC manufacturers could not ship units with R-22.  In 2020, refrigerant manufacturers like Honeywell and Dupont will not be able to make any new R-22 for service, so you can expect prices to be astronomical by that point, perhaps hundreds of dollars per pound.  If your system contains R-22, prices can be more than $75 per pound today.  Systems installed as early as 2004 may have R-410a refrigerant.  Since HVAC manufacturers have standardized on this type, the prices are much lower per pound than R-22.  For the most part, if your system has the newer refrigerant, it is also new enough that locating a leak, repairing, and recharging is probably a good investment.How low is your system?- The majority of residential systems contain between 4-7 lbs of refrigerant, however some contain as much as 15 lbs.  Typically when we arrive to a customer’s home who is complaining of reduced cooling, their system charge is a ½ of the total charge or lower.