Greetings,

My 1986 Lunaire 12K BTU package air conditioner finally went down the
other day, and I made a call to a local marine a/c shop to get an
estimate on a repair. If the compressor is bad, it'll run $1,100 to
repair it. If the reversing valve is bad, that'll run $700. If both
are bad, the guy said it wasn't worth repairing.

I had done a brief search on the web prior to making the service
inquiry, and found that brand new package units can be had for $1,200
or so, so I fell out of my chair when he gave me a quote to repair my
existing unit.

Something just doesn't seem right here.....$1,100 to replace a
compressor the size of a football??????? How difficult can it be to
sweat out a few joints, and solder in a new compressor, and how much
can the compressor cost? Certainly not twice the cost of a 5-ton home
unit!!!!!!!!!!

Before I spend 2 hours on the phone chasing down quotes, does this
seem in line?

Thanks!

"Submariner" wrote in message
news
Something just doesn't seem right here.....$1,100 to replace a
compressor the size of a football??????? How difficult can it be to
sweat out a few joints, and solder in a new compressor, and how much
can the compressor cost? Certainly not twice the cost of a 5-ton home
unit!!!!!!!!!!

Was that quote the price for if you brought the unit into their shop, or if
they did the work on your boat?

Back in high school I had a part time job working at an appliance repair
shop. I went on a few house calls with the service man, usually to do the
lifting and toting. We avoided doing any real work at the customer site, it
just wasn't worth it. At the shop you have everything you might possibly
need, at the customer site you will always be needing the one thing you
didn't bring.

As for the work involved, there is a little bit more than what you
described. If the unit still has Freon in it then they will need to suck it
out and properly dispose of it. Gone are the days that they could just let
it escape and not worry about it. If the unit already has a Schrader valve
then it isn't too hard, otherwise they need to start by attaching a saddle
valve, then attach a vacuum pump and put the Freon into a suitable
container.

The Freon they suck out could still be good, IF it isn't contaminated.
Given that it just came out of a unit with a failed compressor reusing the
Freon without cleaning it up first would be very risky. I understand that
there are places that will take the used Freon and clean it up, but I would
expect that would cost more than new Freon. Anyway, there is a
disposal/cleaning charge to contend with.

After the old Freon is out then the tubes are cut and the old compressor
removed. Fairly simple job, at least when the unit is sitting on a bench. If
the unit is in some out of the way spot on your boat getting that compressor
out can be a bitch.

For a unit like this the new compressor needs to be an exact match, as they
don't leave much spare room. While "a compressor" might not cost much, the
"exact compressor" would probably cost a lot more.

There is another part that needs to be replaced as well, which is the
drier/filter. Moisture is deadly to a refrigeration system so they have to
make sure there isn't any in the system. The drier gets put inline with the
compressor and contains a chemical to trap and contain any moisture. A good
repair shop will replace this as well, otherwise your unit will fail again
in short order.

Once everything is connected back up then the air has to be pumped out.
Connect a vacuum pump up and let it run for a while, the longer the better.
The longer (and deeper) the vacuum is held the more moisture will be
removed, which will really improve long term results. It would be nice to
leave it on for several hours; easy in the shop, not practical in your boat.

Now you refill and check for leaks.

This process would take an hour or more at your boat, but would have
required several hours of the service man's time (travel time, preparation,
etc.) You are paying for not only the service man's wages but for all the
equipment that is tied up just sitting in his van. Not only the equipment
you see being used but all the other items that he brought along just in
case he needed them.

Any repair operation has to factor in mistakes. Everybody makes them, and
they can't stay in business if they don't account for them. Maybe they get
the new compressor in and then discover it was something else. Maybe they
destroy the unit in the process. Maybe the customer turns out to be a dead
beat and never pays. Part of what you are paying for is all the worst case
scenarios that happen.

Bottom line: It generally isn't worth repairing a "self contained"
refrigeration unit (A/C, refrigerators, etc). If you can pick it up and
carry it off, take it to a proper disposal station and go buy a new one.


Rod McInnis

On Tue, 30 Mar 2004 17:09:36 -0800, "Rod McInnis"
wrote:

Bottom line: It generally isn't worth repairing a "self contained"
refrigeration unit (A/C, refrigerators, etc). If you can pick it up and
carry it off, take it to a proper disposal station and go buy a new one.


Rod McInnis


I'm gearing more towards replacing the unit. It's 20 years old, so a
leak in the evaporator is probably imminent, as is a failure of the
fan motor and controls at some point in time.......Even if I replace
everything myself, I'm looking at $300 in parts alone. If one of the
other parts fails, then add $200 here, and $200 there, and I'm over
half way to a new unit with digital controls, better fail-safe
mechanisms, a dehumidifying circuit, etc.

Indeed, there's more to it than just replacing a component; removing
the refrigerant, removing the old compressor, installing the new
compressor (and possibly the reversing valve), vacuuming the system
down, charging it, etc. This quote was for carry-in service by the
way.

I priced the compressor: $238 for the identical replacment. The
reversing valve: $78. So $300 for parts, against $1,800 for the
service if both parts were replaced. $1,400 for a few hours labor is
pricey. Perhaps I'm in the wrong business.......... 8)

Thanks for the input...........

"Submariner" wrote in message
...
On Tue, 30 Mar 2004 17:09:36 -0800, "Rod McInnis"
wrote:

Bottom line: It generally isn't worth repairing a "self contained"
refrigeration unit (A/C, refrigerators, etc). If you can pick it up and
carry it off, take it to a proper disposal station and go buy a new one.


Rod McInnis


I'm gearing more towards replacing the unit. It's 20 years old, so a
leak in the evaporator is probably imminent, as is a failure of the
fan motor and controls at some point in time.......Even if I replace
everything myself, I'm looking at $300 in parts alone. If one of the
other parts fails, then add $200 here, and $200 there, and I'm over
half way to a new unit with digital controls, better fail-safe
mechanisms, a dehumidifying circuit, etc.

Indeed, there's more to it than just replacing a component; removing
the refrigerant, removing the old compressor, installing the new
compressor (and possibly the reversing valve), vacuuming the system
down, charging it, etc. This quote was for carry-in service by the
way.

I priced the compressor: $238 for the identical replacment. The
reversing valve: $78. So $300 for parts, against $1,800 for the
service if both parts were replaced. $1,400 for a few hours labor is
pricey. Perhaps I'm in the wrong business.......... 8)

Thanks for the input...........


The Freon is going to cost you a big bunch. $$$ per ounce.
Bill