AC worth?

June 18, 2012 7:50 PM

How much is an air handler and ac worth?

My ac from 1993 died this weekend. Its looking like its more cost efficient to replace it than to fix it. I don't like the idea of the installation company taking my old parts and making money off them (but not rolling that savings into my new unit.) So....how much is a used, almost dead unit from 1993 in terms of metal recycling, copper parts, siphoning freeon or just selling it on craigslist for someone to take off my hands?

posted by jmd97 to home & garden (7 answers total)

Phone a scrap metal outfit and ask them.
posted by Sternmeyer at 7:57 PM on June 18, 2012

About 5c a pound probably.
posted by fshgrl at 10:17 PM on June 18, 2012

Parting is not for the faint of heart.
posted by rhizome at 12:50 AM on June 19, 2012

My father has been doing a lot of scrap metal collecting lately. He generally has to take items apart down to the nuts and bolts to get to the desirable metal. It's a hell of a lot of work and the pay isn't anywhere near worth it. He does it because he's a retiree workaholic and because making a bit of money here and there allows him to convince himself he has a legitimate motive rather than just a compulsive desire to hoard.

Ask the scrap metal business what they can and can't take. Maybe you won't have to disassemble, but I expect you will.

Could you offer to sell the broken (but still assembled) unit to the repair people?
posted by Clay201 at 5:15 AM on June 19, 2012

Check to see if the quote they gave you includes removal of the old unit. Because of system thefts from part-time residences down here, the scrapyards are only allowed to buy scrap A/C units, parts and air handlers from licensed HVAC contractors with an invoice from the job.
posted by halfbuckaroo at 5:29 AM on June 19, 2012

Let them have it. You are going to be so much happier with your new unit, and you'll save on your bill, so you're up there. Will you begrudge your HVAC guys a way of making a bit of money off of your old unit? They might get $20 off of it, it's worth it to them to schlep 5 or 6 of them at a time to the scrap metal place. It's probably not worth your time to deal with it.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 7:47 AM on June 19, 2012 [1 favorite]

You probably cannot handle the refrigerant. A mechanic will need a pump to pull it out and a reclaim cylinder to hold it. Unless you are licenced you probably couldn't get one, let alone get it processed, and even then you probably wouldn't get any money for it.

The scrap metal from the unit might be worth something, but honestly, for the amount of effort you would be wasting your time. We get in scrap condensing units all the time and leave them out the back and they magically disappear. There is no value in them for us.

Are you definitely changing the copper line sets? You might not need to.

Your old stuff is not really worth anything. Forget about it. If you want to save money, focus more on the type of unit your getting in as a replacement. Shop around. Don't pay for super high efficiency unit if you only run it a few weeks a year. You'll never get your money back.
posted by Frasermoo at 11:12 AM on June 19, 2012