HVAC Unit. Repair leak or replace?

[mtnsmith]

https://highperformancehvac.com/copper-aluminum-coils-condensers-evaporator-coils/

Unbeliveably informative!!

 

[mtnsmith]

Refrigerant has oil in it. I don't underatand what he is saying

The sealed compressor unit has about a pint of oil in it an the pump is almost submerged in the oil. I took an old one apart years ago.

 

[harrycalahan]

Refrigerant has oil in it. I don't underatand what he is saying

If refrigerant has oil in it, its because it was added. Refrigerant by itself is just a gas.

 

[Bushwhacker]

Compressors have a lot of oil in them. It's a close system so it will always retain the oil.

Chances are it's in the coil. 90% of the time it is. If you replace the coil might as well replace the condenser as well so they are both 410 co.pliant.

 

[Mr. Goodbar]

The sealed compressor unit has about a pint of oil in it an the pump is almost submerged in the oil. I took an old one apart years ago.

Yes a hermetic sealed compressor but never heard of a residential one needing oil change. A compressor has moving parts in it and need lubrication no doubt oil is in compressors, not denying that. Just don't understand what that guy was trying to say that's all

 

[Smiley]

So did they replace the entire air handler/heat exchanger/furnace as well? And I’m assuming they ran new suction/refrigerant lines and not reused the existing?

They did not replace the line set. It was a short run.

 

[Jeddak]

Captdave is still around. He installed a new unit for me 2 years ago, and helped out my coworker 2 weeks or so ago.

 

[Mr. Goodbar]

If refrigerant has oil in it, its because it was added. Refrigerant by itself is just a gas.

Yes, i ain't the best at explaining it or using proper terminology lol small amount of oil from the compressor flows with the refrigerant since the oil is lubricating moving parts in the compressor. Oil will always be in the system

 

[above_all]

Our 11 year old Bryant unit stopped working last Thursday. Tech came out on Friday and replaced the giant capacitor. He also showed us a service bulletin Bryant put out on our compressor that indicated some units were faulty and would be replaced under warranty if the unit were 10 years old or less.

Monday night the unit stopped again. Tuesday the tech said the compressor had crapped out. We got two bids for a replacement system (five stage variable speed outside unit, evaporator coil and wifi thermostat). It's 19 SEER and is only 56 db when running. Had it installed yesterday.

Today's evaporator coils only last 13 to 15 years. We run the AC hard and have two to three Golden's in the house. We probably can't change the filter enough. Dirty filter makes a compressor work harder.

House is 25 years old. We've been in it 21 years. First unit lasted 14 years, second lasted 11 years. I will be changing filters frequently with this new unit.

 

[Granite3]

Sounds like the coil is leaking, your HVAC guy can replace the coil, just time and money. Compressor is on borrowed time at this point, there is a reason compressor warranties are 5 years.

So, ~$1500 to replace coil and get running for another year or 2 OR $4k to get it squared away for the next 10, with cheaper power bills to boot. Go with a variable speed fan as well.

Just did this for my mom, and I sell a lot of commercial refrigeration.