First off, I thank Willis Haviland Carrier for inventing air conditioning in 1902.
Our central air conditioning system is working again. The repair guys came Friday afternoon. They found two problems:
- We were out of freon coolant, or specifically, “Refrigerant 22”. To replace, it cost us $4 per ounce, and $270 for replacing 4 lbs. of the stuff.
- Our air filter was filthy, which I hadn’t been replaced in years, as I didn’t know how or where. If I had a manual……
So yeah, whatever. More refrigerant, replaced air filter (which I ran out and bought from Home Depot), labor, and taxes. The house is comfortable again.
so out of curiousity, how long will the 4lbs last you?
I asked him about that. He said you generally never have to replace the refrigerant, so there might actually be a slow leak. I think we had this done in 2006, so if that is the case, 3 years.
If it is sooner, then we need the guy to come in, spend a few hours to open up the unit, and find the leak. He said it would be costly — $500 or so.
Since our unit is reaching the twilight of its years, I asked him about how much a replacement would be. To replace everything that should be replaced, it would run us between $6000-9000.
I went, “Oh.” Homeownership is not cheap.