Repair or replace? The honest math
A good rule: multiply the repair estimate by the unit's age in years. If the result is over $5,000 — say a $600 repair on a 10-year-old unit — replacement usually wins. But some situations make the decision for you:
- Your unit uses R-22 refrigerant. R-22 is phased out; recharging an old leaky system costs a fortune when it's possible at all.
- The compressor failed out of warranty. A compressor swap costs a large share of a whole new condenser — with none of the efficiency gains.
- It's 12–15+ years old. Even running, older units can use dramatically more electricity than a modern high-SEER2 system for the same cooling.
- Rooms never get cool. A system that was sized wrong on day one never gets better. Replacement is the chance to fix it properly.
We'll give you both numbers — the repair and the replacement — and tell you plainly which one we'd choose in your house.
What a 360 Total Home replacement includes
- Removal and haul-away of your old condenser and coil
- A load calculation so the new system matches your home, not the old label
- New line set flush or replacement as needed, new pad, and proper refrigerant charge verified by measurement
- Thermostat setup and a full system walkthrough
Replacing your AC? Look at a heat pump first. For roughly the footprint of a new AC condenser, a cold-climate heat pump cools in summer and heats most of the winter — and qualifying models installed by an Xcel-registered contractor like us are eligible for Xcel rebates. It's often the smartest replacement path in Colorado right now.
Next-day replacement across the metro
AC failures don't schedule themselves. We stock common sizes and can usually have a new system cooling your home the next day anywhere in the northern Denver metro — Broomfield, Westminster, Arvada, Thornton, Northglenn, and beyond. Call (720) 737-1196 for a free replacement quote. Financing available (ITIN and SSN applications accepted).