They Found a Refrigerant Leak. Now What?

First, insist they show you where

“You have a leak” is not a diagnosis. Leaks are located, not inferred, and there are established ways to do it: electronic leak detectors, UV dye introduced into the system and traced with a lamp, or a nitrogen pressure test that isolates the section losing pressure.

Where the leak is determines everything about the decision, because the cost ranges from trivial to more than the system is worth.

Where it is decides the cost

• A valve core or a service port — often a very small job.
• A brazed joint or a fitting — accessible, repairable, moderate.
• The line set between indoor and outdoor units — depends heavily on routing and access.
• The evaporator coil — a real expense, and common on older systems.
• The condenser coil — in coastal South Florida this is where salt-air corrosion shows up, and it is usually a large number.
• The compressor body — effectively a replacement decision.

The 2026 factor: which refrigerant you have

This has changed the calculation. Manufacturers stopped building R-410A residential equipment as of January 2025, and new systems ship with R-454B. R-410A still exists and is still legal to buy and use in existing systems, but supply is winding down and the price has moved sharply — wholesale has gone from roughly $8–12 per pound to something like $25–45.

Two consequences. First, a large recharge on an R-410A system is no longer a minor line item. Second, you cannot convert an R-410A system to R-454B — there is no retrofit and no conversion kit. The equipment, oils and safety design are different.

So on an older R-410A system with a significant leak, the repair does not just cost the repair; it also buys you continued dependence on a refrigerant that is getting more expensive every year.

A usable rule of thumb

• Under 5 years old: repair, almost always. It may be under warranty for parts.
• 5–10 years: repair if the leak is accessible; think harder if it is the evaporator or condenser coil.
• Over 10 years with a coil leak: replacement usually wins, especially on R-410A.
• Repair cost above roughly a third of replacement, on a system past ten: replacement is generally the better value.

South Florida's run hours compress those brackets. A ten-year-old system here has done the work of a much older system in a seasonal climate.

What not to do

Do not accept an indefinite programme of annual top-ups. It is expensive, it vents refrigerant, and it delays a decision you will make anyway. And do not let anyone add refrigerant without at least attempting to find the leak — if they will not look, they are selling you a subscription.

Ask for both numbers

Repair priced in writing, replacement priced in writing, and an honest statement of what else on the system is near end of life. A leak in a fifteen-year-old unit with a corroded coil and a compressor drawing high current is not really a leak decision at all.