How much Freon?

Hank99 · 08-02-2009, 04:17 PM

I had an A/C repair guy doing some work on an older 2.5T Trane, and he said my R-22 Freon was low, with a pressure reading around 45. Said it should be about 75. It was blowing cold air, but I figured since he was there anyway, he might as well bring it up to proper level. I was shocked when he handed me a bill for $250 to put 12.5 lbs of Freon in. I was expecting 2-3 lbs max. Does 12.5 lbs seem possible, or am I getting ripped off?

Hank

Plumber101 · 08-02-2009, 04:31 PM

On the condenser there is a sticker that showes model and serial along with some tech info.

Also there is a listing on the amount of freon for the system that includes condenser, coil and 15 ft of line set.

It may change a little for a longer or shorter line set. Probably be around 70 oz

12.5 lbs is proably twice what your system is.

jeepgrady · 08-02-2009, 05:32 PM

I have had many problems with my ssytem since it was installed several years ago in a new home. I was never satisfied with both the heating and cooling capabilities. Numerous techs came to work on the problems. After not having any confidence in all of the techs that came out, I tried a different company.

They checked the freon on my 410 HP the other day. They said that the system should take about 17 lbs. Well, upon checking, he found it short by 7.5 lbs.

Low and behold, now my system is finally working as designed.

biggles · 08-02-2009, 06:41 PM

45 PSI running on the suction is slightly short it the filter coil and squirrel on the fan are clean....2 or 3 lbs was right on from your view of it....question is did he actually put in enough to bring it to 75PSI or charge you for freon he didn't install...the pressure on the suction guage is controlled by the return going over the evap coil in the air handler and the days outside temperature.if the house was warm to hot you might call for 75PSI on a call for cooling....did he do anything resembling a leak check 15lb charge total on a resisdential would be typical

qbert · 08-02-2009, 06:57 PM

You must have a long lineset or a bad tech.

hennyh · 08-03-2009, 04:09 PM

First of all, I'd be surprised if the total capacity of this system was 12.5 lbs. Secondly, did $250 represent the total bill?

If $250 was the total, then that sounds reasonable for a fairly quick service call where a few lbs of R-22 was added. Maybe he made a paperwork mistake.

Did he, or will he, perform a leak test? If refrigerant is low then it either wasn't corrrect from day 1 or the system has a leak. (refrigerant doesn't get consumed!) A leak check should always be done if refrigerant is low.

Sometimes a tech. will "gas and go" to get you some immediate cooling relief if they're real busy but they should always followup with a more extensive leak check.

matrixunloaded · 08-26-2009, 05:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hank99

I had an A/C repair guy doing some work on an older 2.5T Trane, and he said my R-22 Freon was low, with a pressure reading around 45. Said it should be about 75. It was blowing cold air, but I figured since he was there anyway, he might as well bring it up to proper level. I was shocked when he handed me a bill for $250 to put 12.5 lbs of Freon in. I was expecting 2-3 lbs max. Does 12.5 lbs seem possible, or am I getting ripped off?

Hank

We had a 5T Day & Night (Carrier) compressor need servicing and called the company that we have used for years and whom have always seemed HONEST. The leak was from the dryer and it had rusted though the other pipe (the cold one) beneath it. I had turned off the unit when it was not cooling. Here's the bill that just came today:

1.5 hours labor $126.00 (Found unit flat on R-22 charge; found leak @ liq. line (unreadable); fixed leak, checked and vacuumed; added freon and cycled a/c w/ no other problems. Rinsed all 3 condenser coils.

Parts: 14 lbs R-22 $280.00;vacuum pump usc(?) $10.00; torch kit $10.00; 3/8" line dryer $29.90

Total: $473.12 (with $27.22 tax and R-22 billed @ $20/lb).

Hope this helps!

BTW, the contractor side of the site seems to have BS that this could run much higher per pound, which sound ludicrous.

hennyh · 08-26-2009, 06:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by matrixunloaded

We had a 5T Day & Night (Carrier) compressor need servicing and called the company that we have used for years and whom have always seemed HONEST. The leak was from the dryer and it had rusted though the other pipe (the cold one) beneath it. I had turned off the unit when it was not cooling. Here's the bill that just came today:

1.5 hours labor $126.00 (Found unit flat on R-22 charge; found leak @ liq. line (unreadable); fixed leak, checked and vacuumed; added freon and cycled a/c w/ no other problems. Rinsed all 3 condenser coils.

Parts: 14 lbs R-22 $280.00;vacuum pump usc(?) $10.00; torch kit $10.00; 3/8" line dryer $29.90

Total: $473.12 (with $27.22 tax and R-22 billed @ $20/lb).

Hope this helps!

BTW, the contractor side of the site seems to have BS that this could run much higher per pound, which sound ludicrous.

That tech. must be real good. 1.5 hrs to diagnose the leak, repair it, braze on a new drier, leak test, vacuum, charge, checkout system and clean coils.

Hang onto that company!!

SULTINI · 08-26-2009, 06:51 PM

Sounds like a lot of freon flying around. Some of the units seem to be on the high side as far as freon goes.

matrixunloaded · 08-27-2009, 09:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SULTINI

Sounds like a lot of freon flying around. Some of the units seem to be on the high side as far as freon goes.

The 5T Day & night came from the factory with 7 lbs 8 oz according to the sticker. It took 14 lbs to refill from "flat". However, the distance between the compressor and the furnace/fan is approximately 100'. Would that account for almost double the R-22?

hennyh · 08-27-2009, 10:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by matrixunloaded

The 5T Day & night came from the factory with 7 lbs 8 oz according to the sticker. It took 14 lbs to refill from "flat". However, the distance between the compressor and the furnace/fan is approximately 100'. Would that account for almost double the R-22?

It depends on the size of the lineset. I'd guess a 5T unit with a 100' run is using 1/2" diameter liquid line. (The factory refrigerant spec probably assumes only a 15' run. )

A 1/2" line for an additional 85' is probably calling for a correction factor of about +1.2 oz/ft. That's an additional 6.4 lbs of gas. That comes up to approx. 14 lbs.

If the tech. had his thumb on the scale he wasn't pressing very hard.

Like I said earlier, I think your tech. is a "keeper". You might want to get him drunk, get him laid and send his kids presents at Xmas.

mdhvac · 08-19-2011, 10:12 PM

You have probably been ripped off! But seeming you only paid $250 is high but not bad considering most these companies now charge you $150 just to come out. Depending on where you get freon, you get charged about $10-$20 a pound for it and then labor. If you would have called a real professional, you would have been charged for about $10 a pound and $50 for the service. But they just don't make professionals like they used too,

Master of Cold · 08-19-2011, 11:13 PM

If the OP (hank99) has a Trane XL1400, I can see that unit taking 12 pounds. Those things were refrigerant hogs. I know the 5 ton unit takes 19 pounds, add 100 feet of lineset for 2nd floor unit on the other side of the house, and you just bought a whole can of green gas.

**beenthere** · 08-20-2011, 12:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mdhvac

You have probably been ripped off! But seeming you only paid $250 is high but not bad considering most these companies now charge you $150 just to come out. Depending on where you get freon, you get charged about $10-$20 a pound for it and then labor. If you would have called a real professional, you would have been charged for about $10 a pound and $50 for the service. But they just don't make professionals like they used too,

And you can't buy a big house for 42,000 dollars anymore either.

You revived a 2 year old post.

Master of Cold · 08-20-2011, 12:41 AM

I bet you can buy a house for 42k..go to detroit and get 2 for that price.