We’ve got problem with our air heat pump system. I don’t know if there are any HVAC experts around, but I wouldn’t be surprised at this place. Personal anecdotes are welcome as well. . .
Out heat pump system is 22 years old, original to the house (we’ve been here 3 years) and it has just started leaking condensation at a pretty high rate. I checked all the drain lines myself and they seemed to be clear, so I cleaned up all the water with a shop vac and called a repairman. He agreed the drain lines were clear, but after some further checking stated that the condensation tray must be cracked or corroded. The condensation water appears to be leaking from several places around the lower part of the evaporator heat exchanger, rather than one point.
The repairman said that parts would not be available for a unit that old, and that the only recourse for fixing this problem would be to replace the unit. The unit is old and surely pretty inefficient (and also loud!), so I can see there may be a significant benefit from a new system in terms of the utility bills. But is it really true that there is no way to repair this?
If we need to replace the system with a new one, what kind of costs are we looking at? It’s a 2-story 1400 square foot house built in 1987 and we’d like to get a reasonably efficient new unit, but we don’t need anything too fancy (no zoned systems or anything). I know there are tax credits available for certain systems, so that may be an incentive to go with a better unit.
Can anyone tell me their opinion on the repairman’s verdict? Can anyone help me figure out what kind of cost outlay we are going to be facing for a new unit?
If the condensate pan is leaking and can’t be repaired, then the only portion of the system that needs to be replaced is the evaporator coil. That should be the first option your service company offers you.
I just priced all the equipment for a 3 ton heat pump and I believe the coil was around $250. That’s a wholesale price. I’d expect professional replacement to run 3-4 times that. Area has a great deal to do with prices though, both labor and material/equipment.
Efficiency is a consideration, but the only way to improve it is to replace the whole system. That will be expensive. I’d say the price will start at about $5000 for installation of new equipment at the lowest efficiency available and go up as efficiency ratings go up.
There may be tax rebates available for improving energy efficiency of your home.
2009 is the last year to buy new equipment with R22 refrigerant. In the future you may be forced to replace the whole system and also the refrigerant piping.
Do you happen to know anything about parts availability for older systems (Trane, in this case)? The repairman stated that parts would not be available for the system and that’s why the whole thing would need to be replaced. The system does work though , even if the efficiency is lower than new systems, so it’s a case of one particular problem component. I would have thought that parts would be at least somewhat standardized so that replacing just the evaporator would be possible. Replacing the entire system seems like overkill to me too.
I’m trying to get some additional opinions from other companies as well, but I thought I would be able to get some good info from the Dope. Thanks for your input!
You wouldn’t think so, right? But the way this system is configured, you simply can’t get to the tray to even look at it directly. The indoor components of the system are inside a small utility closet, and it looks like the only way to get to it would be to pull the system out or to punch through the wall on the other side of the system.
I’ve got a big bucket under the leaking area for the moment . . . :dubious: If anyone has patched a condensation tray up before, let me know! I was joking with my wife that I’d just get in there with some duct tape and chewing gum and fix it right up, but I honestly can’t see how to fix it myself.
By removing the evaporator the condensate tray sould be accessable. (No small job). Depending on the damage will determine if it can be repaired, but some sort of patch should be able to make.
Or replacing only the evap.
go to any pro web site and the one thing that is always repeated is “get at least 3 bids” and insist on an explaination. Goos luck.
I can find out. Shoot me the model and serial off the evaporator.
As to repairing the pan. Very hard to get access to, you might have to remove the coil, which would require recovering refrigerant. You might be able to patch it, with epoxy or something, but nothing to keep cracks from continuing. Its a pretty rare problem since plastic pans came into general use. It IS plastic and not metal?
Actually, I have no idea if you can lift the a-coil and slide the pan out. That would be the ideal way to replace it. If so you could also look into patching it.
I’m am HVAC guy, and quite coincidentally I received a call yesterday from someone who found me on craigslist and has the exact problem you have.
He was told by another HVAC guy that a new evaporator was $1500. (we would have replaced the evaporator for around $900)
The evaporator is connected with a drain line and 2 copper tubes called the “lineset.”
In the instance, I cut the sheetmetal off the front and slid the evaporator out enough to fully expose the evaporator and the pan it sits in. I did this today.
The pan is “connected” to the coil with 4 screws. I removed the screws and I will turn the pan into my sheetmetal fabricator Monday and he will fabricate a new pan exactly like the existing one. In time, it will too will rust out.
In 20 years.
The cost to the customer?: Probably $300 with labor.
*
Sometimes* the best decision is top get a new evaporator, or even a new system. However most manufacturers sell replacement drain pans so I can tell you that often pans are available (for the exact reason you need one!)
In other cases replacement pans are no longer available due to the unit’s age. In those instance they often can be fabricated. We’ve done it many times.
There is also a product called “Pancrete” that is awesome, but I don’t think it’s for the inexperienced.
ETA. I googled “Pancrete” and the first 4 or 5 links from the top are good. It is apparently available in small quantities.
If you’re the handy type, you may try it. We’ve used in [extremely] large quantities and we love the stuff.
If after you inspect the pan you see it’s condition, you may choose to use this stuff. I would bet, however, most residential contractors have never heard of it.