Air Conditioning System Change Out-Can I Use My Old Refrigerant Piping?

If you are contemplating the decision to change out your air conditioning system, then I suggest that you look into the facts about R-410A. There are many people that know refrigerant by one name, FREON. The name has been identified as the fluid that technicians install in your air conditioner that causes the system to get cold.

When I did service and repairs, I used to get a lot of calls from people who would say " Hey I think I'm a little low on Freon, or how much to recharge the Freon or hey I have a Freon leak. They were talking about a Brand name, used to identify the refrigerant R-22 and it came in a green jug.

Refrigerant 22 is on the phase out list and that phase out begins in 2010-the phase out date was amended in 2007 and the phase out by percentages will increase at a much higher rate. See this site for more information. http://www.epa.gov/ozone/title6/phaseout/hcfc.html

The replacement refrigerant for R-22 in residential air conditioning systems is R-410A. The two refrigerants are not compatible. There are significant pressure differences between R-410A and R-22. A system that was designed for the pressures of R-22 can not handle the higher pressures of R-410A.

There are a few very good reasons why the copper lines should be changed out when you change your air conditioner. Refrigerant 22 the old stuff uses a mineral oil, that breaks down into carbon at extremely high temperatures. The new stuff R410A has a synthetic oil, man made, that can handle much higher temperatures. The old refrigerant piping in your home will have mineral oil deposits through out the piping, because the oil molecules circulate wit the refrigerant molecules through out the system and they separate at lower temperatures. Deposits or little puddles of mineral oil will be found in the old piping. If the old piping is used with the new refrigerant, that old oil will circulate through the new system and the old oil will break down due to the extreme temperatures and pressures of the new 410A system. The old oil will break down into carbon and cause damage to the metering device, plug the screen, and cause undue wear and deposits inside the compressor walls.

The carbon deposits can also attach to the inside walls of the condenser and the evaporator and cause a drop in efficiency by acting as an insulator. Mixing the old with the new is a bad idea.

Other reasons for changing out the piping include, that you don't know what kind of garbage may be floating around in the old piping, sometimes you buy a house that has a fairly new air conditioner, but the house may be really old. You don't know why the original air conditioner was changed out, perhaps it was a compressor burn out and possibly there may be contaminants left over from the first compressor, or maybe there is a light acid build up that caused the original compressor to burn out.

You don't know if the old system had moisture in it and moisture is very destructive to an R-410A system.

Bottom line is that the copper piping needs to be changed out when you change your air conditioner and any sales person who says "oh we can just blow the old refrigerant lines out, or we can flush them out should read a little further into the technical aspects of 410-A but certainly do not let anyone install a new 410 A system on your old refrigerant piping, make them change it out at the same time.

Good luck

John