Repair or replace: the two rules we use on every quote

If a repair costs more than half of a comparable new system, the money is usually better spent on the replacement, because the rest of the old system is the same age as the part that just failed. A $2,500 compressor on a 14-year-old system is the classic example. A $250 capacitor on the same system is not; capacitors are wear items and replacing one buys years.

North Texas cooling seasons are long, and systems here age faster than the national average. Past 12 years, repairs become a sequence rather than an event, and efficiency losses show up on the electric bill every month. The rule is not that a 12-year-old system must be replaced; it is that a major repair on one deserves the replacement number next to it before you decide.

• R-22 systems (pre-2010): refrigerant is scarce and expensive, so any refrigerant-side repair tips toward replacement
• Two major failures in three years: the system is telling you something
• A system under parts warranty: a compressor covered by the manufacturer is a few hundred dollars of labor, not thousands, and changes the math completely
• Ducts that leak badly: a new system on them will disappoint, so the duct work comes first or at the same time

Plano has the oldest housing stock in our area, so it gets the most replacement sales calls. Some are warranted. Some are a $12,000 answer to a $400 question. A technician who is not paid on commission, and a second opinion that costs nothing, are the two things that keep the advice from changing with the ticket size.