Refueling the air conditioner with your own hands - the task is rather complicated, so it is always advisable to call specialists, if possible. If you are determined to act on your own, stock up with all the necessary attributes and patience. The most important thing is to choose the correct brand of refrigerant and listen to the advice of specialists. But first, figure out why you needed refueling.

Why is the amount of refrigerant in the system reduced?

Even with proper installation and operation, the amount of Freon in the air conditioner is gradually decreasing. Usually part of it is lost through copper tubes located between the outer and inner blocks. This is very slow, so refueling is not often required.

Another thing is if the tubes were damaged. For example, when transporting or installing an air conditioner in a new location. Here, no refueling will help, if not eliminate the cause of the leak.

Symptoms of a shortage of refrigerant in the system:

• The room is almost not cooled or cooled badly;
• frost appeared on the external block of the air conditioner.

Important: if you do not fill the air conditioner in time, it will not only work worse, but also overheat, which will soon lead to its breakage.

Choose a refrigerant for refueling

The refrigerant for the air conditioner is different from the one used in the refrigerator. The best is the R-22 freon: it is used by specialists when working with modern split-systems. If you take Freon brand R-8 or any other type, the efficiency of your air conditioner can fall at times, which will lead to an increase in electricity bills.

There is also freon R-134a, which does not destroy the ozone layer and is considered safer for the environment. However, this refrigerant was not widely used because of its high cost.

Remember that for a person freon is absolutely safe gas, so you can safely work with it at home.

Refueling of air conditioner

The procedure for refueling the split system:

1. Set the temperature to 18 degrees and turn the device on to cold.
2. Find the largest tube from the outdoor unit.
3. Open the cap and use a special hose to connect a pressure gauge (the other end is connected to a cylinder with freon).
4. Set the normal speed of the split system and start measuring the air temperature with a thermometer or a digital sensor.
5. By slightly open and close the valve of the cylinder with gas, carefully following the indications of the instruments. The temperature should rise, and the pressure in the system grow.
6. It is necessary to bring the pressure to 5-7 bar (depending on the temperature in the street: the higher it is, the greater the pressure should be).
7. As soon as the frost appears on the valves (nuts) and the manometer, the process must be stopped.
8. Disconnect the cylinder with a pressure gauge and put the cap back in place.

Properly charged air conditioner will work well, consuming as much electricity as was declared by the manufacturer. At the same time, it is bad for the system, if there is a shortage of refrigerant, and its refilling.

Specialists calculate the pressure, temperature and quantity of freon required by special formulas. That's why, if you act independently, without having an idea about all this, you can spoil the device. Do not risk - call the trusted master!