How Do You Add Freon To A Window Air Conditioner

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Information technology'southward possible to add together Freon to your air conditioner unit yourself, just y'all'll need some general knowledge about ACs and a few specific tools to practice information technology correctly. The process can exist dangerous, so rent a qualified professional if yous feel unsure nigh what to practice. Start by diagnosing the problem to make certain low refrigerant is the event. Once confirmed, so make sure the inside of the air conditioner is clean before you begin. You lot'll need a refrigerant approximate ready with three valves and a canister of R-22 or R410A refrigerant to proceed.

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Check for vents blowing warm or room temperature air. This is a tell-tale sign that your unit needs a refill of refrigerant. All the same, a broken thermostat may cause the aforementioned problem. If it's a refrigerant issue, the air temperature will steadily grow warmer over time considering your unit is slowly losing refrigerant.^[i]
- If a cleaved thermostat or other outcome is causing the warm air, the temperature of the air volition probably fasten or fluctuate.
ii
Look for water ice on the coils. Peek through the front window of the AC unit of measurement to inspect the pipes inside. If the pipes and coils look frosty or ice-covered, this means you're experiencing a leak and slowly losing refrigerant. The leak needs to exist repaired by a qualified HVAC technician or you'll keep to experience the same trouble.^[2]
- Adding refrigerant without fixing the leak may further impairment your AC unit of measurement.
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3
Look for water accumulation on the floor nigh your furnace. Audit the area around your furnace. If you lot encounter h2o pooling effectually information technology, this indicates condensation. Your coils were nearly probable icy, and now the water ice has melted around the furnace area.^[3]
- The water can impairment your furnace and compound your problems, so it's all-time to have a qualified HVAC technician come out to inspect the issue.^[four]
4
Have a qualified HVAC technician repair any leaks. AC units are sealed tightly and the Freon should never leak. If you lot need to refill refrigerant, you probably accept a leak. Yous will continue to experience the same issues until the leak is addressed.^[5]
- Adding more refrigerant is a quick fix, simply eventually this will damage your unit.
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1

Schedule or perform routine maintenance before adding more Freon. Your Air conditioning'southward air filter, blower cycle, evaporator coil, and condenser scroll need to be cleaned before you "accuse" your unit with more refrigerant. Adding more refrigerant to a unit with muddied parts tin can impairment the Air-conditioning.^[6]
ii
Cull the correct refrigerant for your unit. Putting the wrong refrigerant in your unit can cause combustion, injury, and property damage. Check your Air-conditioning manufacturer's operating guide to find out which refrigerant your unit needs. If you don't have the operating guide, cheque the electrical control box or the unit of measurement's cabinet for the data. The 2 about common refrigerants are R-22 and R410A.
- R-22 is mostly used in older units and is slowly being phased out because information technology is an ozone depleting textile.^[7]
- If your Ac is leaking R-22, it's important that you become the problem fixed as shortly every bit possible. Since R-22 is in the procedure of being discontinued, the price for information technology has skyrocketed and will only go on to become higher.^[8]
iii
Protect your eyes, peel, and lungs when working with refrigerant. Wear condom goggles and thick gloves when treatment Freon. Never direct inhale any refrigerant; doing so can atomic number 82 to sudden decease. Some refrigerants are particularly hazardous and require respiratory protection -- read the packaging for more data.
- If y'all get 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 circumspection.
4

Make sure the outside temperature is above 55°F (12.vii°C) earlier proceeding. Liquid Freon will automatically seek the coldest area of an enclosed AC unit betwixt the furnace coil and the outside condensing unit. When outdoor temperatures are nether 55°F, the coldest area of your organization will most probable be the outside unit. The Freon volition not deport properly in these weather condition.^[ix]

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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 AC unit. The procedure itself is dangerous, and if done incorrectly, you can damage your unit. Homeowners are permitted to add refrigerant in the U.S., simply the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requires that anyone you lot hire to do the job have a professional certification.^[10]
- Proceed with caution if you make up one's mind to do this yourself. Improper handling of refrigerant tin can cause injury, death, explosions, and property damage.
two

Plough off your AC unit of measurement at the thermostat and billow. Become to the thermostat that operates your air conditioner. Plow it to the "off" position. Your unit will either have a fused disconnect or circuit breaker attached to information technology. If your unit of measurement has fuses, disconnect them. If your unit has a circuit breaker, plough the breaker off.
3
Hook upwards the refrigerant gauges to the valve connections. There are three valve connections fastened to your unit's hardware, with a valve on each side (left and right). Attach the gauge with the bluish hose to the low-pressure valve on the left side. Adhere the guess with the red hose to the loftier-pressure valve on the correct side.^[11]
- Leave the center valve open for now; that is where you'll connect the yellow hose to feed the refrigerant into the organization.
four

Plough the Ac unit of measurement back on and wait almost fifteen minutes. Afterwards y'all turn the AC back on, the unit of measurement will need to run for several minutes so that information technology can stabilize itself. You lot won't get an authentic reading on the refrigerant gauges until the Ac has stabilised.
5
Open the canister of refrigerant by twisting the spout on the bottom. Attach the yellow hose to the refrigerant canister's valve and attach the other end to the centre valve connection on your gauge. There will exist a small knob on the bottom of the refrigerant canister. Twist it several times to open the refrigerant.^[12]
- The center valve is the ane between the blue and red valve connections.
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Open up the blue low-pressure valve on the left side. Open it for a few seconds, and so shut it. Open it for a few more seconds, then close information technology again. Continue doing this. Yous desire to slowly permit minor amounts of the refrigerant into the unit of measurement at a time until you attain your target subcooling temperature.
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Picket the gauge until you reach the target subcooling temperature. The target subcooling temperature is stated on the outdoor unit rating plate. Use the gauge to monitor the temperature so you know when to shut the valve.^[13]
- For example, the rating plate might say something like "10 caste TXV sub-cooling."
8
Plough off the valve and disconnect the gauge set. In one case the target subcooling temperature is reached, turn the valve all the way off. Twist the knob on the refrigerant canister to stop refrigerant from going into the hose. Disconnect all of the hoses and the estimate set from the AC unit.^[14]
- Since the unit of measurement is running during this process, there's no need to restart your unit later on adding refrigerant.
9
Perform an electronic leak exam to ensure safe operation. You can purchase an electronic leak detector at virtually home improvement stores and online. Each detector is slightly different, just in general you just demand to run the tool along the refrigeration components to scan for a leak.^[15]
- If you don't feel qualified to practise this yourself, have a certified HVAC technician come out to test the unit of measurement for you.
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Things Yous'll Need

R-22 or R410A refrigerant
Refrigerant estimate set
Blue, red, and yellow hoses
Electronic leak detector

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Article Summary 10

Before you add Freon to an AC unit of measurement, make sure to clean the air filter, blower cycle, 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 plough off your Ac. Later on it is off, claw up the refrigerant gauges to the valve connections. Turn the AC back on and wait 15 minutes and so yous can get an accurate reading on the gauge. Then, twist the spout of the bottom of the canister to open the refrigerant and allow it fill until you reach the target subcooling temperature To learn how to stay safe while using Freon, proceed reading.

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