R22 gas pricing

[fatwallet21]

the tech just came in and said the AC unit is leaking water and has lost all the charge. He recharged with 6 lbs and said because our unit is 6 yrs old and has old spec charge R22 instead of R14, the gas is expensive. He charged $ per lb and I ended up paying $ just for the recharge Looks like I am completely ripped off... Is this a correct price?

[beenthere]

Sorry, we don't talk prices here. So price questions are not allowed.

[beenthere]

The bigger question is. Did he find and fix the leak, so you don't end up paying for more R22 again.

[fatwallet21]

yes, he found the leak in some condenser that is outside our house (in the backyard).... not sure how that part is related to the leak inside the unit which is inside the house and on the 2nd floor...

[beenthere]

The condenser and indoor unit are connected to each other by the refrigerant lines. When the charge is low, the indoor coil can freeze up, and cause water to leak out. A leak in the outdoor unit would cause the system to be low on charge.

So he did fix the leak?

[fatwallet21]

yep, he replaced the outside unit's part that he said was rusted

[beenthere]

He should have given you the price of repair and recharge up front before doing the work. And then you could have decided if you wanted it fixed. Or if you wanted to replace the system with an r410A unit. As after this year, R22 will skyrocket.

[martyinlincoln]

R22 costs 5 times what it was a few years ago and is going to be much higher. Repairs can be a budget buster for sure.