Air Conditioner Refrigerant Leaks In Lexington

Refrigerant is an essential component of the air conditioner in your Lexington home or business. It cycles through the system, working to make heat exchange possible in order to cool your indoor spaces. Below are a few things you should know about the refrigerant in your system, and how to spot a leak.

1. Refrigerant should never leak

Refrigerant switches from liquid to vapor as it cycles through your air conditioner, pulling heat from indoors and dispersing it outside. It should always remain enclosed within the system – if refrigerant escapes, there is a leak present. Low refrigerant levels can damage your cooling system, and the leaking refrigerant may be harmful to the environment. Signs that point to a refrigerant leak include:

• A hissing sound coming from the system
• Ice on the coolant lines
• Warm air coming from your vents
• Your home takes longer to cool down

2. Work with a skilled technician

To protect your system and the environment, only have repairs performed by a qualified HVAC technician. A qualified technician can properly fix your system leak and recharge the system’s refrigerant so that it will operate properly.

The right type of refrigerant must be added to replace lost refrigerant in order for your system to work properly. Most older air conditioners use R-22 refrigerant, commonly called Freon. Freon is actually being phased out for air conditioner use, and is being replaced by R-401A refrigerant, which is safer for the environment. New air conditioners already use R-401A, and due to the phase out, R-22 is becoming harder to find for recharging cooling systems. If your system is older, it may be the right time to upgrade to a system that utilizes R-401A.

The Environmental Protection Agency has standards regarding the disposal of refrigerant; only those certified by the EPA can properly dispose of air conditioner refrigerant.

If you are seeing the signs of a refrigerant leak in your Lexington air conditioner,it’s time to call Climate Control. Our NATE-certified cooling specialists are trained to safely work with air conditioner refrigerant and will provide you with quality system repairs.