Air Conditioner replacement

polkatese

Guys,

Question for the air conditioner experts: One of the central condenser units that I have in the house has been on the Freon diets every year, for the past 3 years. I am getting to the point of considering replacing the condenser, if that what is the problem. However, the AC technician has suggested a diagnostic check of the system (the downstair system which is the one has the freon problem), which is supposed to cost $200, as opposed to replacing the condenser outright ($1800). His thoughts was it could be leak in the air duct system. What do you think?

Secondly, I am curious if there is any advantage to install commercial grade condenser, such as the one that normally is used for office environment. My uneducated thought is that it would be cooling my living room/family room in no time, as opposed to the one I have now (.5 ton). FYI, downstair area is approzimately 1500 sqft.

TIA

treitz3

First off, I hope I'm reading you right. Second, I am not an expert on A/C, but if a serviceman comes to your house saying that you need a diagnostic check for a freon problem and then he goes on to say that he thinks it's in the vents, you need to hire someone who knows about A/C systems.

Refer to a professional for the rest.

Bill Ayotte

Ah.......I am no expert, but I have read into some of this stuff, and a .5 ton unit seems way too small for a 1500SF area....That poor unit could be overworked. I would have the guy come out and look at it, just to eliminate the leak possibility...If it has happened for the past three years, I am kinda surprised that no one that came out to your house has looked into the situation farther than it needing refrigerant....

Bill Ayotte

I don't know about the "leak" in the air vents, but I know that a return that is too small for the size of the unit will cause major problems.....I had that happen. I would look into a larger unit if you decide to replace it....To be honest, a leak in a return line would be a good thing.....It would bring warmer air into the system....eh.

disneyjoe7

.5 for 1500 sgft. :eek: I know different areas of the world have different rules for sizing ac units, but compare that to my 5.0 ton for 2350 sgft.

Bill Ayotte

disneyjoe7 wrote: »

.5 for 1500 sgft. :eek: I know different areas of the world have different rules for sizing ac units, but compare that to my 5.0 ton for 2350 sgft.

I was thinking the same thing....The house I was in here was 1800SF and it was a 3.0 ton unit.....SO......

joeparaski

When you say that your system has been on "Freon diets" every year, then I am assuming that you mean that you have been adding freon to the system. This means that you have a leak somewhere. Considering replacing the condensor is NOT the solution unless you KNOW that the condensor has a problem. You just don't "guess" these things.

I don't know anything about A/C systems for the home, but they must be similar in operation to car A/C systems. In car systems, a "dye" is injected into to the system along with the freon, this dye turns a flourescent green at the point of the leak, and with a black light or with freon "sniffing" equipment, the leak is found and the part is replaced.

Spending $200 for a diagnostic check is not expensive, it's the repairs that are expensive. You need to hope that the repair could be as simple as tightening a connection. If the cooling in the house was adequate when the system was working, then there is no need to go to a larger condensor, if it ends up being a condensor at all.


As a side note.....I remember talking to one of my customers about industrial A/C systems. He had a company which did installation and repairs. Apparently, it is not uncommon for unscrupulous repairmen to purposefully allow a small amount of freon to leak from a connection so they can go back the following year for service work.

Have the repairman explain to you EXACTLY what the problem is. If it is a leak (most likely) he should be able to visually show you where it is.

Hopefully you will get an honest technician to check out your system. If you have any doubt, get a second estimate from someone else. At this point, it's not about price shopping, it's about getting an honest diagnostic into what the problem is.

Joe

Bill Ayotte

I have a Type II refrigerant cert, and I don't think they do the dye in home systems.....He should use something called a sniffer, basically it is something that "sniffs" for refrigerant...They are pretty sensitive and should be able to pick up anything you have leak wise, if there is one....If you had a leak though, I would think that you would have a problem every spring as well, when you first start to use the unit, because it would leak out over the winter anyway....Like I said above, the size of the unit is suspect to me....

Frank Z

Checking for leaks with a dye is a bit of over-kill for a residential system. I use it as a last resort only.

If the system is more than 10 years old then replacing the condensing unit and the evaporator makes sense.

Commercial Grade condensing units? They are the same as what you have at your house.

AALEE

Some novice advice...comfort is worth 1,800 if the system is bad. I am not a salesman but check out Daikin, they offer a heat pump system that can handle 5 zones from one unit. That's right, five seperate zones/temps from one unit. New to US but used in Europe and now on our market reasonably priced. Just some friendly thoughts.

Bill Ayotte

If you replace your unit, make sure it is a R-134a unit or some hybrid of that sort....That is one of the few enviro-friendly refrigerants available at the moment....It will be a lot less expensive to service down the line if you go this route...