Dr. Venkman said:
It died. Flood insurance adjuster claims it - $2500. A/C tech says it's R22 so the evaporater cool needs to be replaced too - $4800 total. I call adjuster back and he says insurance only covers what the flood waters touched. Is this correct?
Dr., technically this would be correct according to "the fine print".
I found this
link:
Quote:
Replacing an R-22 compressor or the outdoor unit (which contains the compressor) is a good, low cost way to get your A/C system running again without changing the indoor system (which contains the cooling coil, the blower and often is integrated with a gas furnace or other heating system). This approach can save some money, if the indoor components are still in good shape and you can find the R-22 outdoor replacement parts along with the R-22 refrigerant. Many people have decided to do this and many contractors support this approach. We think this repair will continue to be a viable, low cost repair option, at least through 2016 and maybe longer as long as parts are available.
Some other low cost replacement options should be emerging even after the R-22 availability dwindles. Many R-22 indoor coils built since 2006 were designed to be compatible with R-410A, which means a homeowner can keep the indoor equipment but upgrade to a newer outdoor unit and metering device. There are some extra parts and steps involved but it should still be lower cost than a total system replacement. Unfortunately, just like with the R-22 outdoor replacement option mentioned above, the overall efficiency of the system typically will not improve when only the outdoor equipment is replaced.
Your technician may not deal with the older technologies, but there are some that do...check around a bit. I know that Goodman (a manufacturer) still makes R22 Condensing units. and that may be a solution for you. Also Trane, that I can quickly dig up.