Frig uses Ammonia/Hydrogen, not Freon
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Originally Posted by Bill
If the A/C and refrig don't work, and need to be "recharged", that means they have lost their freon - the original charge of freon has leaked out. If a new charge of freon is all they need, then it is a little expensive, since they undoubtedly need the old freon (called R-12, I think). The old freon can be had, but it carries a hefty premium these days (I just recharged the A/C in a '93 Saab). The new freon (R-134a?) is not quite so expensive, but you can't just substitute the new stuff in a system that was built for the old.
Beyond that, the fact that the old freon has leaked out probably means that the refrigeration tubing has corroded and has one or more pinhole leaks. Although a good refrigeration guy can find and repair a leak, you can be sure that there are more pinholes waiting in the wings. As a practical matter, a relatively old A/C and refrig that have lost their freon probably have to be replaced. And they cost several hundred dollars each.
If you proceed with the purchase, be prepared to replace them and hope that you don't have to. If the present owner tells you that my diagnosis is full of farina, ask him to back up his statement with a one-year guarantee - you will pay for an initial recharge, but if either one loses its freon again within a year, he pays to replace the unit. If nothing else, it's a good sincerity test.
Bill
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Concur on the AC...a Freon recharge after finding where the leak occurred is sufficient. Probably anywhere from $100 to $300 for labor and replacement Freon.
However, the 3 way "absorption" type refrigerators don't use Freon, but rather an exotic mix of Ammonia and Hydrogen. From everything I've read, once that coolant leaks out (usually due to deterioration of the tubing), it's nearly impossible to get it working correctly again...they apparently can't be "recharged" and the entire refrigerator has to be replaced. A replacement Dometic absorption refrigerator of the size used by TM runs around $700 to $800 (plus another couple of hundred for installation...they're not normally considered a user installable device.)
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Ray
I use my TM as a base camp for hiking, kayaking, mountain biking, and climbing Colorado's 14ers
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