bob prohaska
2021-04-16 02:38:40 UTC
Pondering what to do about a little-used HVAC unit dating from
the mid-1980's. It worked when I bought the house in 2008,
quietly stopped cooling in about 2015 and even when it worked
was used only a couple times per year, max. I do use the heat
a few months per year and that was successfully fixed for $600
recently. The compressor still runs and draws rated power.
A replacement of the whole thing was quoted at around $9k, in
part (I think) because of mandated duct insulation and sealing
work that's required. Given the sporadic use, I'm not sure the
extra work will pay for itself and access is lousy, so doing a
good job on the ducts will be difficult.
My gut reaction is to start by having the AC system recharged
after leak-checking. There's no reason to think the compressor
is faulty, though of course it's a risk. I'm thinking the leak
check will give some chance to test the compressor.
It's an R22 system, a Rheem/Ruud 4-ton plant on a 1600 sf house.
There are "drop in" R22 replacements, and reclaimed R22 is said
to be available. There's no hint about the quality of either.
I'm a little spooked by folks I know who have been having repeated
evaporator failures on brand-new installations. Thus my instinct
to preserve the existing system even though it's a bit inefficient.
At low usage, efficiency won't pay for many service calls. Annual
heat cost is around $500, cooling will probably be worth about the
same if I use it.
Thanks for reading, and any thoughts.
bob prohaska
the mid-1980's. It worked when I bought the house in 2008,
quietly stopped cooling in about 2015 and even when it worked
was used only a couple times per year, max. I do use the heat
a few months per year and that was successfully fixed for $600
recently. The compressor still runs and draws rated power.
A replacement of the whole thing was quoted at around $9k, in
part (I think) because of mandated duct insulation and sealing
work that's required. Given the sporadic use, I'm not sure the
extra work will pay for itself and access is lousy, so doing a
good job on the ducts will be difficult.
My gut reaction is to start by having the AC system recharged
after leak-checking. There's no reason to think the compressor
is faulty, though of course it's a risk. I'm thinking the leak
check will give some chance to test the compressor.
It's an R22 system, a Rheem/Ruud 4-ton plant on a 1600 sf house.
There are "drop in" R22 replacements, and reclaimed R22 is said
to be available. There's no hint about the quality of either.
I'm a little spooked by folks I know who have been having repeated
evaporator failures on brand-new installations. Thus my instinct
to preserve the existing system even though it's a bit inefficient.
At low usage, efficiency won't pay for many service calls. Annual
heat cost is around $500, cooling will probably be worth about the
same if I use it.
Thanks for reading, and any thoughts.
bob prohaska