Please settle this, once and for all on AC?

Question

Would a competent engineer, HVAC tech or some other qualified person please verify for me .... that the "your system is low on freon" is just a ploy or a simpletons view of a larger problem. I understand that the freon system in any cooling machinery is a closed and sealed one. therefore, it cannot "lose" its freon. if it is losing freon I have been told that there is a leak somewhere in your system ( a larger problem). I would appreciate being straightend out on this, and would like to know what your qualifications are to answer please....thank you very much!!!

Answer 1

You are correct. Your system should not loose freon unless there is a leak somewhere. Huge systems (grocery stores, etc) which are older will start to loose freon, but only because there is a leak somewhere, and it's cheaper for them to add additional freon than to try and find the leak in the miles of piping. A home AC system has much shorter lines, and any loss of freon should be easy to find - and fix. Adding freon is a lazy service-persons way of temporarily fixing the complaint, (and insuring his future business). If it was a natural gas leak, would he have the same attitude? Find the leak and repair it.
(I am a city building/ mechanical inspector- 18 years)

Answer 2

freon is a gas and u can loose some of this thru sweating of the line set over time...u should not have to replace or charge the system but about every 3 years...if ur charging the system every year then yes i would say u have a leak in ur cooling system.....easy for a tech to check, they will disconnect the line set( what the freon travels thru) at both ends.....fill it with a more stable gas and put it under pressure.....install a pressure gauge on one end and check it every 3 hours.....if it holds then line set is good...other its not! ...could be a leak in the compressor......again they will put this under pressure and test it.........

lic. gen. contractor

Answer 3

freon cannot be used up. or escape from a sealed system unless it is leaked out

Answer 4

The closed system can have a slow leak that is too small to detect. (This is similar to adding air to a car tire once a year. The tire loses pressure over a year but does it have a leak and need to be fixed? ) When the leak gets big enough to detect then you can fix it.

Answer 5

I'll never try to answer a question like that again on here! Nobody takes me seriously. Call a professional!