I had a Goodman 3-1/2 ton heat pump installed some 10 years ago. At the time I knew nothing of the different brands available. About 5 years after the install the compressor goes out and it was repaired under warranty, no biggie, fast forward to yesterday, there is frost on the line that is insulated. i call the folks that have done my A/C install and repair and they promptly respond. The tech goes about pulling every cover there is on the unit and the filter, the filter is wet so that indicates a problem. He tells me that the capacitor is not operating up to norm and needs to be replaced, okay, there is also leaking refrigerant somewhere and once he has the capacitor in place he can charge the system and check. Long story short he put two pounds of refrigerant and a new capacitor

Diagnosis - 89.00
Refrigerant - 80.00/pound, 2 pounds- 160.00
Capacitor - 139.00

So 388.00 later and the system is still broke according to them. I just now got a call from them and it will cost an additional 1,524.00 to replace the coils. Guys this does not sound right. Who on here does this kind of work and can give me an honest answer regarding price?

Thanks

Unfortunately, that does sound right. I had a Goodman 3 1/2 ton unit too. My coils went out right before the warranty expired. It still cost me $500 in labor. The next year the capacitor went out but I replaced it myself. 2 years later, the coils went out again. This time we replaced the whole unit with an American Standard. We had nothing but trouble out of Goodman.

Capacitors can be bought on Amazon for $16. It is easy install. Refrigerant will need a license to add, but yea it is a little more expensive.

You are correct. I bought mine from Grainger for about $10-15 bucks. Easy to fix...saved about $150 dollars.

I do this stuff every day.

Assuming he did a leak check and found the evap coil leaking. which is extremely likely with Goodman equipment.

Everything sound like standard pricing to me. Pretty competitive I'd say, alot depends on if he's able to pump the system down and few other things.

Just because the coil is leaking, doesn't mean you have to replace it. I'd never recommend spending that chunk of change on a 10yr old Goodman unit. You could just run it and see how it does, it may leak down in a few months, if so that would require something more major or it may last a yr and you may just have to have it checked and charged every spring until you're ready to replace.

Sounds about right other than the capacitor.. they gotcha on that one
.. like was said above, in the future get the microfarad reading on the cap and buy online.

I had problem with goodman also. Inexpensive but bit me in the long run. Never again.

Had my Goodman since 2006. Only problem was mobile home subcontractor didn't install heat strips properly to breaker and heat wouldn't work. Kept tripping. Found reputable contractor and had fixed right including replacement of cheap thermostat. Haven't had problem since that repair. Heats great. A/c ok not as cool as I'd like in 90's of summer but works well enough. Once it breaks I'm getting a Trane.

Sounds like he cut you a deal since he didn't charge for the leak search. ( I'm Assuming he did one if he knew the coil was leaking.) They may classify the leak search in the diagnosis process, We don't.

In all actuality the price falls right in line with every legitimate company that I know.

I would never recommend replacing the coils in a 10 year old r22 system, Especially on a goodman.

Goodman evap coils are notorious for leaking. I ran across probably 5 different customers last week with coils leaking on Goodmans. They are having American Standards installed this week.

Did this guy even recommend to replace the system all together?

$650 in labor today for 2 guys and an hour of work today on our air conditioner. I know that gets split out and all but still outrageous in my book.

We got our goodmans in 2006 also. It was a constant issue. Always being serviced, always freezing up. New (to me) house has Rudd "achiever 12" units. They have been great

what a rip off, R22 refrig cost $13.oo a pound and a capacitor cost $35.00. They got you. Goodman unit is on the low end of AC equipt.

I will buy r22 at 13.00 a lb! Let me know when?
It is now 425-450.00 our cost and rising. If you think we can run a 40k truck with 10k worth of tools and supplies and come to your house to repair a system.....????
We always suggest that you bring your system to our shop and we will cut you a deal ; )

Last I knew R22 was way more than that!

You can buy a new one for 2800-3000 range. I have several Goodman's only had problems with one and was under warranty. R22 goes up and down. Little high on capacitor price.

Out of curiosity.. Those of you that think these prices are out of range, What do you think a fair price on this particular service call would be?

The A/C industry is a rigged crooked mess. Caps, typically are either good, or not. They are about $10 and can be changed out in about 2 minutes, so yea $139 is ridiculous. Everything about the heating and air business is crooked. If you go to a distributor, they won't sell you anything, unless you have a card. I could see not selling you a unit, or freon, but how about a register? Nope. Lowes sells registers, thermostats, and other ac stuff.

He didn't come out and suggest replacing it but he did say that in the future new systems will b required to use the new eco friendly refrigerant, made a comment that Goodmans were junk, okay did you know this 10 years ago when you installed it? I don't mind paying for quality work but it seemed that was high to replace the coils. Thanks for all of the replies. for now I am going to keep an eye on it and if it does this again I am going to try and replace the whole system.

Is getting your A/C worked on expensive? Yes it is but like TwoRs said you can't run a fleet of trucks worth 40-50 grand plus the tech's in them for peanuts just like the company you own or work for you have to make a profit.... If you want cheaper prices call the one man and a tool box guy but when it comes to HVAC you get what you pay for, I have been in and around the HVAC biz for 25 years and not a day goes by that we don't get a call to come fix what the one guy and a tool box tore up or couldn't fix...

The prices you paid were in line but he should have told you up front to just buy a new unit..

As with any industry, There are bad apples that give the good guys a bad rap. There are some great companies out there that give you your moneys worth. Just remember, you are not only paying for what they do, but for what they know.

I've worked for 2 different companies that alot of guys here would consider "high priced" companies, yet I never have a customer complain about my pricing. A good company will make sure that the customer feels took care of.

Air conditioning companies aren't cheap to operate, therefore they aren't cheap to call either, in most cases.

Side job Joe may be able to support himself and his truck by charging 30 bucks for replacing capacitiors, but legitimate companies simply can't operate like that. Most companies offer up front pricing, if you don't like the price then call side job Joe.