A coil not capped off

[dvantuyl]

I know all the fuss about keeping the AC system totally sealed but what might I run into using a coil that has been sitting for a bit with the lines open?

[cjpwalker]

How long is a bit? What refrigerant (what oil)? What could you run into: air, moisture, corrosion, sand, dirt, insects/webs, a dog could have come along and peed in it...

If you have to use it I suppose you could flush it out with some liquid r22 (pull the txv or piston first, and recover what you are flushing with), then evacuate to 500 microns, then break the vacuum with a positive nitrogen charge.

[Kevin O'Neill]

Is the coil new or used. If used, you don't know what contaminants are in there from the old system. I would scrap it.

If new, how open? Pinhole or the pipes wide open? Was it indoors or outdoors?

[dvantuyl]

It was outside-lines wide open........whats the worse that would happen....it leaks in 2 months?? I already planned on flushing the crap out of it.

[Kevin O'Neill]

Insects could have deposited stuff in it. Contamination il the problem. I would scrap it. Flushing may not be enough. Why did you leave it open outside?

Or dit you buy it as a good deal? If so, it wasn't.

[dvantuyl]

I bought a 1 yr old Goodman 3 ton......he basically threw in the coil that he was using with it but I was trying to avoid spending another 2-300 dollars. Condensor did have the valves closed. I think the installer that pulled it assumed the only thing worth any value was the condensor.....he did have some electrical tape on the lines of the coil but it wasnt sealed very well.

[Kevin O'Neill]

I have never seen the value in used equipment. It will likely bite you in the A$$. Why ask if you are going to do it wrong any way?

Good luck. You will likely need it.

[dvantuyl]

Well the way i c it, its kinda like when u go buy a used car.....save a butt load of money and yea it might need $3k worth of work n a year but thats still a a a whole lot cheaper then buying new!

[big sky hvac]

Well the way i c it, its kinda like when u go buy a used car.....save a butt load of money and yea it might need $3k worth of work n a year but thats still a a a whole lot cheaper then buying new!

HVAC equipment is not like buying a used car. Most people that buy a used car or even a new one, don't keep them much longer than 5 years. When people have new hvac equipment installed, they expect it to last for 30 years without doing any maintenance on them. When you buy a furnace or a/c, you are adding value to your home. If you spend $7000 for a new system and your home is worth $250,000, that isn't a whole lot of money compared to the value of your home. People spend a lot more money on their vehicles than their homes and the vehicle is depriciating while they're driving it. How many times do you see a car or truck drive by with $2000-$3000 worth of rims and tires on it and the car they're on is only worth $750.00?! You'll only end up spending more money in the long run after the compressor burns up. Now you're hiring someone to come back out and install another a/c when you could have just bought a new one and been done with it.

[martyinlincoln]

Worst that could happen is it ruines the system. Since the guy threw it in for free you're not out anything so scrap it.

[dvantuyl]

But.......other then the chance of crap left n it after flush-is there anything that could happen to the internals of a coil with the lines left open to the enviroment??

[t527ed]

if its a DIY job i'm sure there will be bigger problems, i say go for it....

[dvantuyl]

It is a DIY i have quite a bit of experience n r34a and some in r22 just never ran across this situation.