Homeowners have a lot of questions about refrigerant. Most people know that it’s a material used for air conditioning in cars, homes, and buildings, but they don’t know much beyond that. Why would they? It’s not like we’re ever told about refrigerant in our high school chemistry classes, so it can be hard to find out more information when things aren’t easily presented to us.
We’re here to change that! We’re going to talk about the major questions we get about refrigerant. We’ll tell you our advice from an industry expert’s perspective and we’re also here to help you with any HVAC work you might need. We provide affordable AC repairs in Wellington, FL and we can absolutely patch a refrigerant leak and recharge the system.
If you’re struggling with your refrigerant, or you think you’ve got a problem with your air conditioner’s refrigerant, don’t hesitate to call us and keep reading this blog!
What Is Refrigerant?
Refrigerant is a colloquial term used to describe the material in your air conditioner that performs the cooling process. This material when evaporated, draws heat into the system with it, and when it condenses, it disperses the heat in another location. This is effectively how a refrigerator or air conditioner works, by moving heat from one location to another until the desired temperature is met.
Most refrigerant in air conditioners these days is “Puron,” also known as “R-410A” and it’s a hydrofluorocarbon.
Does My AC Use Refrigerant As Fuel?
Nope! When your air conditioner is installed, it’s set up with the right amount of refrigerant to last for the entirety of its lifespan. Therefore, when your AC needs more refrigerant, there are two things to consider.
- Your air conditioner has a refrigerant leak and it needs to be patched and recharged.
- Your AC unit was installed incorrectly with the wrong amount of refrigerant and it needs to be fixed.
How Do I Know If My AC Is Leaking Refrigerant?
Refrigerant leaks are pretty common in air conditioning systems, and our team can help you get back on the right track. Here are three common ways to detect a refrigerant leak.
- Bubbling or hissing noise. If an air conditioner is bubbling or hissing, this is the sound of gaseous refrigerant leaking out of the refrigerant line, or oxygen bubbles leaking into the liquid refrigerant line.
- Lukewarm air blowing in through vents. When your home won’t cool down and your vents are sending lukewarm air into the rooms, this can be the sign of a refrigerant leak. The blower motor is still pushing air into your home, but that air isn’t being treated by the cooling process because there’s not enough refrigerant to draw heat.
- High energy bills. An AC with low refrigerant levels will have trouble running efficiently.
Is Refrigerant Dangerous to Inhale?
Yes and no. Directly inhaling refrigerant isn’t bad, because Puron as a material isn’t toxic. However, refrigerant is denser than air, so it can push oxygen out of a room which can lead to cases of suffocation. Make sure you get your refrigerant leak patched and repaired by a professional to avoid any health or safety risks.
Contact Seaside Air Services to get your system repaired by our experts!