Can you just refill a leaking HVAC system with refrigerant to get by?
Refilling an empty, leaking system temporarily without fixing the leak can be extremely expensive and unsustainable due to high refrigerant costs. Doing this instead of replacing the faulty component prevents a permanent fix and fails to address the root issue.
What the numbers show
Counted from the threads quoted below. How we count
- This comes up 20.5× more often in r/hvacadvice than across the site as a whole.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1Replacing the indoor coil instead of paying for refrigerant and labor twiceDid this help you?
- 2Using window AC or portable unitsDid this help you?
- 3getting a second opinionDid this help you?
- 4topping off the system and saving for a future replacementDid this help you?
- 5measuring delta T independentlyDid this help you?
- 6hiring technicians to find and repair leaks before rechargingDid this help you?
- 7Replacing various AC components including the console controller, actuator, accumulator, pressure switch, orifice tube, evaporator, and compressorDid this help you?
- 8Warming the refrigerant canDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“I have posted about this same thing before…”source ↗
“Ridiculously high for a “little low””source ↗
“The deltaT has been the same for 7 years. I've been measuring it myself every year.”source ↗
“If you have a leak at the indoor coil and the system was completely empty could you fill it up from zero with refrigerant to get a customer by?”source ↗
“I pulled a vacuum and tried to fill up with coolant but I could not get it to take more than half a can.”source ↗
“I can only get half a can in after running a vacuum for 3 hours.”source ↗
“The psi goes up to 70 and no more into the system.”source ↗
“Both sides are the same. I opened both the high and low trying to get the system filled.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 13Refrigerator water line leaking and flooring damage
- 4Cool air leaking from gap around AC copper pipe in attic
- 2How to get air bubbles out of the cooling system
- 2HVAC system stops taking refrigerant during charging
- 6Should I replace my HVAC system if the evaporator coil leaks?
- 2Why won't coolant flow into the engine and the thermostat open?