# Help 2 year old York AC leaking freon and making clicking noise(video, pics inside)



## tennisfan20 (Jun 1, 2009)

Hi,
When the AC unit is on, there is a clicking(loud dripping?) noise near the drain pipe/pan. The pipe goes from the coils(above the furnace) to a black drain pipe near the washer and dryer. If I put my hand under the white pipe, then the sound cannot be heard. The white pipe goes into a black drain pipe and it is open(there is no cap between the two).

My AC unit, 3 years old York, has had a freon leak problem for the last 2 years. Towards the end of last summer, it was not cooling properly, so the company that installed came by and said there might be a leak. It was very hot that week, so they refilled the freon and said that they can check the leak next May(May 2009). They came by today and refilled the freon again and put in some red dye? in order to locate the leak. They also did a pressure check with the unit off and said all of it came back out, so there is no leak inside the house and that it is mostly the condenser. It is not a problem because there is a warranty to the condenser. So, they refilled the freon with the dye and said they will be back next week.

What is causing the clikcing noise? Any idea if the Freon leak is from the compressor? Could it be some other problem? Thanks in advance. 

Video here on youtube(clicking noise):
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IgJefOhIrFU[/ame]

Pictures here(white pipe goes from coils to drain cup):
http://picasaweb.google.com/tennisfan20/UntitledAlbum#


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## glennjanie (Aug 27, 2009)

Welcome TennisFan:
The clicking noise is most likely from the water dripping into the plastic pipe, which conducts noises very easily. Insulating the pipe will stop the noises.
Losing all the refrigerant is a serious problem/leak that may not show up even with the red dye. All the soldered joints should be physically checked and look for any points where the copper pipe may be rubbing a sharp metal edge.
You certainly don't want to keep paying for refills.
Glenn


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## Lss (Sep 23, 2010)

I live in a new condo, neighbor above moved in and when they run the AC I hear the same noise you described. What was your solution, please help, can't sleep over this noise.


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## silentdub (Oct 1, 2010)

1. The problem is that it is a YORK. York is simply garbage, especially the cheap contractor grade units, they last long enough to get out of the warranty period.

I am betting that there is a leak in the area of where the valve is on the outside unit, those things are known for leaking. If it was somewhere else, like there being a hole in the line or coil, I would expevt the leak to be much worse.

If you look on the outside unint neat where it connects, there is a funny looking vlave in line with the larger tube, there should be a cap on it, remove the cap, put some thread tape on it and tighten it back down. If the valve is leaking, that won't fix it, but it will prevent it from leaking out and causing the problem.

To replace the valve means you have to fully evacuate the system and charge it.

Try that at least.


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