A friend contacts us about his 14 year old HVAC System and is asking when the right time to consider replacing it might be. In the past few years they have had a few repairs including a Capacitor on their outside unit and a circuit board on their inside unit.
They recently got a quote from someone, they didn’t say who but it was probably door to door and they wanted $12,000 for a whole new system installed. In my opinion that might be a good price for the units and the work but it is way out of line for a unit that is currently working well.
On thing they were worried about was that R22 which their system runs is being phased out of the next few years but service calls can still be made for the next 10 years on these systems. At that point their system will be in the 25 year old range and they probably will have to do some replacements or repairs. However even after these units can’t be serviced with R22 it does not mean that a working system can’t live on for many more years. That last part is important to remember.
Replace Your HVAC Unit or Convert Your R22 AC To R404 R407 Or Another Refrigerant
As R22 is being phased out manufacturers are testing alternative refrigerants but most of these products require most of your system to be replaced. The new refrigerants run at a higher pressure and some of them are more caustic so your compressor, TXV Valve, Drier and other parts on your inside unit may need to be replaced. If you are having that much equipment replaced then you should also replace your copper lines. It makes no sense to replace hundreds of dollars of equipment and not a $50 line.
On the other hand some people have had success by replacing some of the parts in their outside unit and using their evaporator coil inside their house. The problem is the higher pressure can mean your coil will leak in a relatively short time. It will also mean that you have reduced cooling capacity as the new refrigerants are not quite as good as R22.
If you have a small home you should be ok. If you have a large home or a business you are probably better changing everything out at the same time.
This is where the decision comes to whether you should buy all new or just replace all the parts. At that point replacing all the parts won’t give you the warranty that new units will so check your warranty and make that judgement yourself.
Do You Really Need To Replace Your R22 Air Conditioning Unit?
NO! absolutely not. If your unit is working properly it can last for many years to come. The problem will be when it needs servicing and the parts and refrigerant is not available but that shouldn’t be a problem until 2030.
At this point if you expect to stay in the home that long you should simply start saving for the repair. Get a CD at your bank and as your terms come due you can add to that CD or create a new one with additional money from your savings account. This will give you quick access to your savings and actually you should have enough money set aside to at least offset the immediate costs of one big repair whether its your HVAC system or something else. Its an Emergency Fund and it means you won’t be cutting back on dinner to pay for a big bill that hits you out of nowhere.
Final Note
Planning is really important when you are considering replacing or repairing a large and expensive item in your home. Knowing all of your options and understanding reasonable estimated costs for these repairs is something that a home owner needs to research on an ongoing basis. Keep up with new technologies and most important set aside an emergency fund so you aren’t hit with a big bill that might mean getting money out of your retirement savings and paying a penalty for its withdraw.