How To Change Freon In Window Air Conditioner

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It'southward possible to add Freon to your air conditioner unit of measurement yourself, but you'll demand some general knowledge about ACs and a few specific tools to practice it correctly. The procedure can be unsafe, and so hire a qualified professional if you experience unsure nearly what to practise. Get-go past diagnosing the problem to make sure low refrigerant is the upshot. Once confirmed, then brand sure the within of the air conditioner is clean before you lot begin. You'll need a refrigerant gauge ready with 3 valves and a canister of R-22 or R410A refrigerant to proceed.

1
Check for vents bravado warm or room temperature air. This is a tell-tale sign that your unit needs a refill of refrigerant. However, a cleaved thermostat may cause the aforementioned problem. If it's a refrigerant issue, the air temperature will steadily grow warmer over time because your unit is slowly losing refrigerant.^[1]
- If a broken thermostat or other effect is causing the warm air, the temperature of the air will probably spike or fluctuate.
ii
Look for ice on the coils. Peek through the front window of the AC unit to inspect the pipes inside. If the pipes and coils look frosty or water ice-covered, this ways y'all're experiencing a leak and slowly losing refrigerant. The leak needs to exist repaired by a qualified HVAC technician or you lot'll continue to experience the same problem.^[2]
- Adding refrigerant without fixing the leak may farther impairment your Ac unit.
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3
Look for water accumulation on the floor nigh your furnace. Audit the expanse effectually your furnace. If you lot come across water pooling around information technology, this indicates condensation. Your coils were most likely icy, and at present the ice has melted around the furnace area.^[three]
- The water can damage your furnace and compound your problems, and then information technology's best to have a qualified HVAC technician come out to inspect the issue.^[4]
iv
Have a qualified HVAC technician repair any leaks. Ac units are sealed tightly and the Freon should never leak. If yous need to refill refrigerant, yous probably have a leak. Yous will continue to experience the same issues until the leak is addressed.^[5]
- Calculation more than refrigerant is a quick fix, but eventually this will damage your unit.
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1

Schedule or perform routine maintenance before adding more Freon. Your Ac'south air filter, blower wheel, evaporator coil, and condenser curl demand to exist cleaned earlier you lot "charge" your unit of measurement with more refrigerant. Calculation more refrigerant to a unit with muddy parts can damage the AC.^[6]
2
Choose the right refrigerant for your unit. Putting the wrong refrigerant in your unit can cause combustion, injury, and property damage. Check your Ac manufacturer's operating guide to find out which refrigerant your unit needs. If you don't accept the operating guide, check the electrical control box or the unit of measurement's cabinet for the information. The 2 about common refrigerants are R-22 and R410A.
- R-22 is mostly used in older units and is slowly being phased out considering it is an ozone depleting material.^[7]
- If your AC is leaking R-22, it'south of import that yous get the problem fixed equally before long as possible. Since R-22 is in the process of existence discontinued, the price for it has skyrocketed and will only go on to get higher.^[8]
3
Protect your eyes, skin, and lungs when working with refrigerant. Wear safe goggles and thick gloves when handling Freon. Never directly inhale any refrigerant; doing then can lead to sudden death. Some refrigerants are particularly hazardous and require respiratory protection -- read the packaging for more information.
- If you go Freon on your skin, rinse the area with water and seek medical treatment immediately.
- R-717 and R-764 refrigerants are extremely irritating to the eyes and lungs. R-717 is flammable. Handle with caution.
4

Make sure the outside temperature is above 55°F (12.vii°C) before proceeding. Liquid Freon will automatically seek the coldest area of an enclosed Air conditioning unit of measurement between the furnace scroll and the outside condensing unit. When outdoor temperatures are under 55°F, the coldest area of your system will most probable be the outside unit. The Freon volition not carry properly in these conditions.^[9]

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1
Consider having a professional perform this procedure. Information technology is highly recommended that a qualified professional refill and recharge your Air-conditioning unit of measurement. The process itself is dangerous, and if done incorrectly, you tin damage your unit of measurement. Homeowners are permitted to add refrigerant in the U.S., only the Environmental Protection Bureau (EPA) requires that anyone you hire to practice the job have a professional certification.^[10]
- Continue with caution if you make up one's mind to exercise this yourself. Improper handling of refrigerant can cause injury, death, explosions, and property damage.
2

Plow off your AC unit at the thermostat and billow. Go to the thermostat that operates your air conditioner. Plough it to the "off" position. Your unit of measurement volition either accept a fused disconnect or circuit breaker fastened to it. If your unit has fuses, disconnect them. If your unit has a excursion billow, turn the breaker off.
3
Hook up the refrigerant gauges to the valve connections. There are 3 valve connections attached to your unit'due south hardware, with a valve on each side (left and right). Adhere the gauge with the blue hose to the low-pressure level valve on the left side. Adhere the gauge with the red hose to the high-pressure valve on the right side.^[11]
- Go out the heart valve open for now; that is where you'll connect the yellowish hose to feed the refrigerant into the system.
four

Turn the AC unit dorsum on and look about xv minutes. After you turn the AC back on, the unit will need to run for several minutes so that information technology can stabilize itself. You won't get an authentic reading on the refrigerant gauges until the Ac has stabilised.
v
Open up the canister of refrigerant by twisting the spout on the lesser. Adhere the yellow hose to the refrigerant canister'due south valve and attach the other end to the middle valve connectedness on your gauge. There will exist a pocket-sized knob on the lesser of the refrigerant canister. Twist it several times to open the refrigerant.^[12]
- The center valve is the one between the blue and ruby-red valve connections.
6

Open the bluish low-force per unit area valve on the left side. Open it for a few seconds, then close information technology. Open it for a few more seconds, then close it again. Continue doing this. Y'all want to slowly allow modest amounts of the refrigerant into the unit of measurement at a time until you reach your target subcooling temperature.
7
Watch the gauge until you reach the target subcooling temperature. The target subcooling temperature is stated on the outdoor unit rating plate. Utilise the gauge to monitor the temperature and so you know when to close the valve.^[13]
- For example, the rating plate might say something similar "10 degree TXV sub-cooling."
8
Plough off the valve and disconnect the gauge set. Once the target subcooling temperature is reached, plow the valve all the fashion off. Twist the knob on the refrigerant canister to finish refrigerant from going into the hose. Disconnect all of the hoses and the judge ready from the Air conditioning unit.^[fourteen]
- Since the unit is running during this procedure, there's no demand to restart your unit after calculation refrigerant.
9
Perform an electronic leak examination to ensure safe performance. You tin can purchase an electronic leak detector at well-nigh home improvement stores and online. Each detector is slightly different, just in full general y'all just need to run the tool forth the refrigeration components to scan for a leak.^[xv]
- If you don't experience qualified to do this yourself, take a certified HVAC technician come up out to test the unit for you.
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Things You'll Need

R-22 or R410A refrigerant
Refrigerant judge set
Blue, carmine, and yellowish hoses
Electronic leak detector

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Commodity Summary X

Before you add together Freon to an AC unit, brand sure to clean the air filter, blower wheel, and coils to ensure your unit is running smoothly. And so, put on some gloves and safety glasses to protect yourself from the Freon and plow off your AC. After information technology is off, hook upward the refrigerant gauges to the valve connections. Plow the AC back on and expect fifteen minutes so you can get an accurate reading on the gauge. Then, twist the spout of the bottom of the canister to open the refrigerant and permit information technology fill until you reach the target subcooling temperature To larn how to stay rubber while using Freon, proceed reading.

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