The following videos were shot by myself while inspecting the heat pumps that cool/heat our 2 story home. I hope that the information will be useful to you in some way, and hope that it will help you understand and maintain your home air conditioning system. I'll make more when time permits. Enjoy!
Finding a leak in an air conditioning system
Have you ever owned an air conditioner that needed refrigerant added to it each year to perform as needed? I think all of us have been there, and wanted to post about this very situation that currently exists at my house. Although the average homeowner doesn't possess the tools needed to perform the job i'm about to show, i'm hoping that it'll at least shed some light on the common problem.
The first thing you should know, is that refrigerant (commonly referred to as "Freon") never wears out. The only time it must be replaced or added to, is when the sealed system is opened - due to a compressor changeout, filter/drier replacement, complete relocation of a split system, and of course a leak in the system components and connecting copper tubing.
Finding a leak can be difficult at times - finding a tiny leak can be REALLY difficult to find....Well, what I have is the latter of the 2, which is the most difficult to locate. However, it's no problem at all if you can determine the general location of it...
2 comments:
Very informative. Quite a complex system really.
I clean our condenser every year. I take the top off and spray from the inside out. Is that how you go about it?
Our evaporator coil is in the duct work just above the furnace. You got me thinking it should probably be cleaned, it hasn't been touch since it was installed in 2003. Do they need much cleaning?
Dan - i'm glad you liked the videos! Typically, a person can use a watwr hose to just spray the condenser coil out, but the indoor evaporator coil usually requires a foaming cleaner to get the dirt out. Keeping your filter changed out is the best way to keep it clean.
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