R22 low, but no leak - total cost estimate to "top off"? (NoVA) (floor, air conditioning)
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[Pardon length - full explanation necessary, IMHO]
Background:
Awhile back an AC tech replaced a (bearing failing) blower motor in my home AC unit (inside air handler). Before he did this he mentioned he didn't have a direct replacement in stock and said/asked-if he could replace it with a lower-RPM motor...my response pretty much was "uh...ok!" because I didn't know a darn thing about air conditioning. After changing it out he also said "I'm going to bleed off some coolant to compensate for the lower speed" to which I simply didn't respond at all.
Well...time passed (literally years) and eventually I noticed that, after a period of cooling, air flow was somewhat reduced - turning off the AC resulted in the condensation sump pump working overtime and, to my dismay, leakage around the inside air handler (down the sides, on the floor around the unit). Because this is an appliance in a basement utility room I rarely see nor think about, it took awhile for me to notice the water. It took longer still for me to figure out the evaporator inside the air handler was freezing up just like an old freezer and what I was doing by turning off the AC (but not fan) was simply defrosting it.
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Foreground:
It's The Internet Era now and everything is online, including symptoms/solutions for just about everything complete with videos, too. Searching for "AC freezing" pretty much immediately pointed the finger at either "low airflow" or "low coolant charge". Low airflow I directly addressed by (1) making sure the air filter was new (we change it every month) as well as removing a panel and making sure the evaporator was visibly clean with air passing through it "satisfactorily" and, most importantly, (2) buying and installing the CORRECT high-RPM blower motor (under the assumption that low airflow WAS the problem). The correct blower motor pretty dramatically increased airflow (about 33%!). Unfortunately, airflow was nicely quite robust now but the freezing was still happening (MAYBE somewhat slower to occur but water leakage on defrost just as bad).
After sadly thinking about the problem again I finally remembered that, years earlier, the tech said he was going to bleed off coolant...it was an "Aha!" moment...
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So that's the whole story - I now believe the problem with my AC is low coolant charge and the very simple fix is to just bring the coolant level to the amount that is supposed to be in the system to keep the temperature from dropping to the freezing level.
There isn't a LEAK (as every hit on the 'net said was the cause of low coolant), there was just a bad decision by a long-gone "tech".
Question: Is there any nice diplomatic way to convince an AC service firm out there that I have a low coolant situation and NOT a leak nor low airflow and all I want is to bring the coolant charge to where it's supposed to be? If that IS possible (instead of being considered a clueless homeowner and the techs will do whatever THEY want to do anyway), what's an estimate of the service charge ($100-$200?) and the cost for the cololant itself ($50/pound?). Has anyone out there in reader land experienced such a situation?
Actually, we call it "refrigerant' rather than "coolant". Who put the last fan motor in? He probably could have topped off the charge if indeed that's what it needed. Its a little strange to me to blow some of the charge, which is unlegal BTW, to compensate for lower air flow. Call another tech and explain to him whats been done and let him work it out.
There is no "topping off" or "bleeding off" refrigerant. The former is a term used by someone who doesn't know what they're doing and the latter is illegal.
What's the make and model numbers of your HVAC system?
Just explain what happened, what you have found, and what you want done. They work for you.
When I have work done I write up a "squawk sheet" that outlines the issue and any things I have noticed. This way you can put thought to paper and organize it in an easy way and they can reference that.
I did - it was a simple exchange. I have no hesitation to fix an appliance that has "gone wrong" especially when it's just an easy "swap" as this was. The direct-replacement part(s) were readily available online, the swap was trivial. The increased airflow from the original-spec 1375 RPM motor I installed compared to the 1000-ish RPM motor the original "tech" put in is readily apparent. If it were legal and cost-effective I would simply top-off the coolant myself - but it's neither so I will use someone with the proper equipment and the certification.
Quote:
Its a little strange to me to blow some of the charge, which is unlegal BTW, to compensate for lower air flow.
I think the same way...NOW...and have already cursed myself for not paying attention and THINKING about what that tech (and any future tech) decides incorrectly to do (however, note that I'm a computer guy, not an AC tech guy, so totally lack any training about such things - this mistake happened well before an organized Internet so simple Google searches were not possible to figure things out myself); you can assume I would require same-spec everything from now on. W.r.t. the illegal "bleeding", I certainly could suspect he actually did let the coolant leak to the atmosphere but I didn't watch what he did so can't belatedly accuse him of doing that; maybe he recycled what he "bled" off - I doubt it, though and, actually, not even sure it WAS illegal at the time.
But, in any case, I strongly suspect that one-time "bleeding off" of coolant is the root cause of my current problem of AC freezing, NOT an ongoing leak.
[please substitute "refrigerant" for "coolant" whereever I have used it]
There is no "topping off" or "bleeding off" refrigerant. The former is a term used by someone who doesn't know what they're doing and the latter is illegal.
Though your response is appreciated, note that exactly what I want is "charging my system with refrigerant to the level of charge it is supposed to have from the reduced state of charging it currently has" which, in layman's terms, would be "topping off".
As far as the "tech" who replaced the blower motor with a reduced-RPM motor and "compensated" for that by purportedly "bleeding" off refrigerant, I'll leave that up to you and other readers to decide if he knew what he was doing.
Just explain what happened, what you have found, and what you want done. They work for you.
When I have work done I write up a "squawk sheet" that outlines the issue and any things I have noticed. This way you can put thought to paper and organize it in an easy way and they can reference that.
I like the idea of the squawk sheet - as we can see from at least one of the replies, a simple descripton of what HAS gone down before can be misconstrued as a clueless homeowner whose words should be ignored while the hired tech decides for himself what to do.
Though your response is appreciated, note that exactly what I want is "charging my system with refrigerant to the level of charge it is supposed to have from the reduced state of charging it currently has" which, in layman's terms, would be "topping off".
As far as the "tech" who replaced the blower motor with a reduced-RPM motor and "compensated" for that by purportedly "bleeding" off refrigerant, I'll leave that up to you and other readers to decide if he knew what he was doing.
And the make and model numbers? I was about to attempt to help you know exactly where your HVAC system should be charged. It's a critical charge, too, if it has a piston-type metering device. With a 1/4 oz. If you happen to have a system with an expansion-type metering device the charge is not that critical but still important.
You could always use generic terms but what we need to know is the size of your system, the amount of airflow it's currently moving (something you probably won't know but that your tech should be able to find out for you) and the indoor humidity level, ambient temp. and outdoor ambient temp.
I wasn't trying to talk down to you. I just thought you might want to know the things I mentioned for the future.
I like the idea of the squawk sheet - as we can see from at least one of the replies, a simple descripton of what HAS gone down before can be misconstrued as a clueless homeowner whose words should be ignored while the hired tech decides for himself what to do.
Yes, people like to dismiss others when they don't use "correct" industry jargon and instead of focusing on the problem, focus on the use of non-standard terminology, it's just human nature.
Just remember that the single biggest barrier to communication is a lack of a common core of knowledge. Getting the words/phrases correct will not only help in communicating to the tech but also show them you have done some research, which is a good thing.
And the make and model numbers? I was about to attempt to help you know exactly where your HVAC system should be charged. It's a critical charge, too, if it has a piston-type metering device. With a 1/4 oz. If you happen to have a system with an expansion-type metering device the charge is not that critical but still important.
You could always use generic terms but what we need to know is the size of your system, the amount of airflow it's currently moving (something you probably won't know but that your tech should be able to find out for you) and the indoor humidity level, ambient temp. and outdoor ambient temp.
I wasn't trying to talk down to you. I just thought you might want to know the things I mentioned for the future.
At this point the only thing knowing the exact charge level (printed on the placard on the unit) would be useful is if the system was pumped down and refilled. Will the new tech do that? Probably not, takes too much time.
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