I used this leak sealer on my aunts house and yes it did not fix the leak but it sure slowed it down. Lasted probably a year and when I came back to recharge it, it was only down two lbs instead of the initial 5 lbs it took to fill it up. 410A system. I always recommend it to customers as a first option when it’s a hard to find leak. I’m sure it probably work better in a R22 system as the pressures are lower.
Problem is when you have to return for another sealed system repair on that same unit in the future. Say you have to come back to replace the compressor. Well when you recover the system, you’re not gonna get all that stuff out. And once the system is open to the atmosphere residual sealant in the system will start to harden and you’re gonna have restriction problems. Have seen it happen multiple times. It is a last resort option on an older unit.
Great video, I had an evap leak that was pretty bad, and because it was at the bottom the oil insec and grease from years made it difficult to braze the bottom U bend. Unfortunately many other leaks on the U bends and other places made the evap not fixable.
I find best results killing power, doing a lb of trace gas and pumping the nitrogen really high, like max of lowside test pressure at 300-400 psi. You will def hear it if there is a leak even if its small. Also I like to replace the schraeders everytime
If it’s an old system r22 and customer is on a budget I’ll give it as an option to get them through the summer. And if it doesn’t work like most the time there is a visual for the customer and an easy leak find. Usually line set etc is replaced anyway on change out. But why waste $500-1000 and just get the new system With warranty blah blah. But they already add it to vehicles supposedly and I heard companies are or may start sending hvac units with it already in the system. As some companies with major contacts new homeBuilds are getting empty units and leaking evaps from factory
Additional information to my previous comments the walk in freezer equipment was definitely a top notch install probably 5-6 years old at the time I worked on it not a very long piping run operating pressures coming out of defrost were 25 suction 250 head pressure would run 15 pound suction pressure and the leak was a tiny pin hole.
When my Trane system evaporator coil was leaking at 10 years old some sort of sealant / conditioner was added. System is now in its 18th season and still running perfectly. Never added another ounce of 410a. Hope I didn’t just jinx it ! 😱
I already know a bunch of people have negative opinions of this stuff. I just wanted to provide an objective resource to help people making an informed decision if they're trying to decide whether to use leak sealant, or not. Let me know what you guys think of this stuff. Garbage or legitimate product?
Yeah for me I bring it up but try to dissuade them explaining there are generally better ways to approach it. If it's at a certain age and the customer is already throwing money at it though then it's not necessarily a bad gamble.
well said i have used it to for a band aide situation until a replacement couple times mixed feelings on it great review red you summed it up well done! great video
The hardest part is knowing the unit / system in question has a bonafide leak, not just a leak due to improper service practices like tight service caps / not plastic caps either. I used some of this years ago and it really did nothing to seal. I can't remember which brand it was. I have a rental house that I own and that unit is from a time period when I used to live there. It's R22 Freon unit that is very efficient even at today's standards one of those 2 compressor style units. The problem with this particular unit is keeping the E-coil from leaking I've replaced the coil 3 times since about 2008 when it was installed new. About 9 months ago I took out the sniffer and verified the indoor coil is yet again leaking. So I installed another leak sealer, not the one you mentioned here though. Then about 3 months ago when I checked the unit I took out the sniffer and could not detect any leak at the indoor coil like I had prevously. The leak in this instance was very small leak. Maybe 3-4 lbs and this unit probably holds around 18-20 lbs of R22. 18 SEER 2 compressor unit. I have another customer I put some in to his system, but no verification if the unit is leaking / the service caps were loose at the time I serviced the equipment. Improper service practices because people are more inclined to shop cheap than do anything right. That said: Refrigerant leaks are real.
I use the non-dyed sealant and it worked on 1-1.5 lb/yr leaks. Anything larger, don’t waste your time and customers money. It never gummed up anything.
My thoughts? After using this product, I had some of it leak out of the dispenser onto the service valve and the cardboard box it came in. I let it sit exposed to the air for several minutes, and none of it hardened. Not even a sign of a thin skin layer of hardening on the product.
I like the dye but I’m not a fan of the kind with the sealant in it. It can gum up the system pretty easily. Especially with a txv. I have used it when a customer asked for it. The dye is awesome though. You can have a recovery tank partially filled with virgin 410 and some dye in it and use part of it to fill a leaking system then just come back later with the UV light or when they call when it’s not cooling. It’s great for those very hard to find leaks.
@@SurfBrosHVAC yeah. You have to be super careful when taking a system out. I ruined someone’s carpet one time a long time ago. The dye leaked out of the coil as I was removing it from the attic.
The newer type products do work quite well. And they do not clog or gum up the system. But it will not work on a Crack in the line. It must be a hole. Leaks on the end of the coil where the line go through the end plate or most likely a Crack. So leak stop does not do well there. Leaks in the middle of the coil are most likely a hole. And this does much better there.
Yeah I think it used to say on the packaging that this was the case but I could not find this info written anywhere on it. I was going to include this in the video but I didn't know if I was remembering wrong. I think the way they make it seem so effective is a little misleading to the end consumer of the product.
Worked for me with a small pin hole in the evap coil. But lost the compressor 3 months later with an awful bearing noise. Related? Maybe! Also would you want this stuff in your recovery tank when you’re working on other customers units? If a one and done for yourself it’s ok, but for a tech, hmmm.
A few years back I was picking up a refrigerant leak in an evaporator coil of a frozen food box with A D-tek select Leak detector my boss had me put the same product you displayed it sort of slowed down the leak from “5” pounds a week to “2-3” pounds per week. After a month of weekly visits, the customer was a beer distributor that kept bagged ice in this fzr. I was able to go back and extensively leak check found a pinhole leak on a U bend the ez seal didn’t fully work I pumped the system down sanded the leak area carefully rebrazed the joint with silphos 15 no more refrigerant added. So not really impressed with the product.
I use it only on old clapped out units if the custy wants it to go maybe “one more summer”. Other than that I dont like it really. Id rather just find the leak and fix it but thats not always possible.
100%. I did try to convince them that they should do a pressure test on the initial visit but they declined and opted for the leak seal and told me that if it didn't work they would rather just replace indoor/outdoor/lineset due to the line being inaccessible. Not my house not my call. It is 410A
Its just a money making scam for both the tech/company and the sealant manufacturer IMHO. If it was so great condensing units would come pre-charged with the stuff. The leak sealant industrial complex lol. Im not convinced your unit is not leaking, need check it on a warmer day.
I agree. I actually edited out a part of me saying exactly the same thing you just mentioned. I was kinda talking about why not just put these in on install but I dunno it seems wild that if it was that effective it wouldn’t be more pushed. It would be more widely adopted by now if it was highly effective. We have a post summer follow up with this customer I’ll make a video at the end of summer marking 1 year
I used this leak sealer on my aunts house and yes it did not fix the leak but it sure slowed it down. Lasted probably a year and when I came back to recharge it, it was only down two lbs instead of the initial 5 lbs it took to fill it up. 410A system. I always recommend it to customers as a first option when it’s a hard to find leak. I’m sure it probably work better in a R22 system as the pressures are lower.
Problem is when you have to return for another sealed system repair on that same unit in the future. Say you have to come back to replace the compressor. Well when you recover the system, you’re not gonna get all that stuff out. And once the system is open to the atmosphere residual sealant in the system will start to harden and you’re gonna have restriction problems. Have seen it happen multiple times. It is a last resort option on an older unit.
Honestly I think that's why this is mainly marketed to residential
Agreed. Used it multi times. Mixed bag. 50/50 works. Of the 50% that it worked, about 40% of them, it holds 1-2yrs then it needs replacement
Great video, I had an evap leak that was pretty bad, and because it was at the bottom the oil insec and grease from years made it difficult to braze the bottom U bend. Unfortunately many other leaks on the U bends and other places made the evap not fixable.
I find best results killing power, doing a lb of trace gas and pumping the nitrogen really high, like max of lowside test pressure at 300-400 psi. You will def hear it if there is a leak even if its small. Also I like to replace the schraeders everytime
If it’s an old system r22 and customer is on a budget I’ll give it as an option to get them through the summer. And if it doesn’t work like most the time there is a visual for the customer and an easy leak find. Usually line set etc is replaced anyway on change out. But why waste $500-1000 and just get the new system
With warranty blah blah.
But they already add it to vehicles supposedly and I heard companies are or may start sending hvac units with it already in the system. As some companies with major contacts new homeBuilds are getting empty units and leaking evaps from factory
Additional information to my previous comments the walk in freezer equipment was definitely a top notch install probably 5-6 years old at the time I worked on it not a very long piping run operating pressures coming out of defrost were 25 suction 250 head pressure would run 15 pound suction pressure and the leak was a tiny pin hole.
I have tried it a few times and it did work
When my Trane system evaporator coil was leaking at 10 years old some sort of sealant / conditioner was added. System is now in its 18th season and still running perfectly. Never added another ounce of 410a. Hope I didn’t just jinx it ! 😱
You a Nu Calgon employee?
@@SurfBrosHVAC No
I already know a bunch of people have negative opinions of this stuff. I just wanted to provide an objective resource to help people making an informed decision if they're trying to decide whether to use leak sealant, or not. Let me know what you guys think of this stuff. Garbage or legitimate product?
I think if a system has a small leak and the system is 10 years or older then why not give it a try if the customer wants to?
Yeah for me I bring it up but try to dissuade them explaining there are generally better ways to approach it. If it's at a certain age and the customer is already throwing money at it though then it's not necessarily a bad gamble.
well said i have used it to for a band aide situation until a replacement couple times mixed feelings on it great review red you summed it up well done! great video
The hardest part is knowing the unit / system in question has a bonafide leak, not just a leak due to improper service practices like tight service caps / not plastic caps either. I used some of this years ago and it really did nothing to seal. I can't remember which brand it was. I have a rental house that I own and that unit is from a time period when I used to live there. It's R22 Freon unit that is very efficient even at today's standards one of those 2 compressor style units. The problem with this particular unit is keeping the E-coil from leaking I've replaced the coil 3 times since about 2008 when it was installed new. About 9 months ago I took out the sniffer and verified the indoor coil is yet again leaking. So I installed another leak sealer, not the one you mentioned here though. Then about 3 months ago when I checked the unit I took out the sniffer and could not detect any leak at the indoor coil like I had prevously. The leak in this instance was very small leak. Maybe 3-4 lbs and this unit probably holds around 18-20 lbs of R22. 18 SEER 2 compressor unit.
I have another customer I put some in to his system, but no verification if the unit is leaking / the service caps were loose at the time I serviced the equipment. Improper service practices because people are more inclined to shop cheap than do anything right. That said: Refrigerant leaks are real.
I use the non-dyed sealant and it worked on 1-1.5 lb/yr leaks. Anything larger, don’t waste your time and customers money. It never gummed up anything.
My thoughts?
After using this product, I had some of it leak out of the dispenser onto the service valve and the cardboard box it came in.
I let it sit exposed to the air for several minutes, and none of it hardened. Not even a sign of a thin skin layer of hardening on the product.
I like the dye but I’m not a fan of the kind with the sealant in it. It can gum up the system pretty easily. Especially with a txv. I have used it when a customer asked for it. The dye is awesome though. You can have a recovery tank partially filled with virgin 410 and some dye in it and use part of it to fill a leaking system then just come back later with the UV light or when they call when it’s not cooling. It’s great for those very hard to find leaks.
Yep. Just stains concrete. Learned that lesson the hard way
@@SurfBrosHVAC yeah. You have to be super careful when taking a system out. I ruined someone’s carpet one time a long time ago. The dye leaked out of the coil as I was removing it from the attic.
The newer type products do work quite well. And they do not clog or gum up the system. But it will not work on a Crack in the line. It must be a hole. Leaks on the end of the coil where the line go through the end plate or most likely a Crack. So leak stop does not do well there. Leaks in the middle of the coil are most likely a hole. And this does much better there.
Yeah I think it used to say on the packaging that this was the case but I could not find this info written anywhere on it. I was going to include this in the video but I didn't know if I was remembering wrong. I think the way they make it seem so effective is a little misleading to the end consumer of the product.
Worked for me with a small pin hole in the evap coil. But lost the compressor 3 months later with an awful bearing noise. Related? Maybe! Also would you want this stuff in your recovery tank when you’re working on other customers units? If a one and done for yourself it’s ok, but for a tech, hmmm.
A few years back I was picking up a refrigerant leak in an evaporator coil of a frozen food box with A D-tek select Leak detector my boss had me put the same product you displayed it sort of slowed down the leak from “5” pounds a week to “2-3” pounds per week. After a month of weekly visits, the customer was a beer distributor that kept bagged ice in this fzr. I was able to go back and extensively leak check found a pinhole leak on a U bend the ez seal didn’t fully work I pumped the system down sanded the leak area carefully rebrazed the joint with silphos 15 no more refrigerant added. So not really impressed with the product.
I use it only on old clapped out units if the custy wants it to go maybe “one more summer”. Other than that I dont like it really. Id rather just find the leak and fix it but thats not always possible.
I have used it as a last resort, and if the unit is out of warranty. 50% success rate is my experience.
My 50% is just people who I haven't heard from in the short term. Long term it's hard to say if it's really "stopping" the leak in it's entirety
it worked in a package unit foe me
it worked for me 1 for 3 times. i guess thats close to your percentage
Almost spot on
12 lb leak should be relatively easy leak to find with nitrogen. But an r22 system is garbage at this point.
100%. I did try to convince them that they should do a pressure test on the initial visit but they declined and opted for the leak seal and told me that if it didn't work they would rather just replace indoor/outdoor/lineset due to the line being inaccessible. Not my house not my call. It is 410A
Its just a money making scam for both the tech/company and the sealant manufacturer IMHO. If it was so great condensing units would come pre-charged with the stuff. The leak sealant industrial complex lol. Im not convinced your unit is not leaking, need check it on a warmer day.
I agree. I actually edited out a part of me saying exactly the same thing you just mentioned. I was kinda talking about why not just put these in on install but I dunno it seems wild that if it was that effective it wouldn’t be more pushed. It would be more widely adopted by now if it was highly effective. We have a post summer follow up with this customer I’ll make a video at the end of summer marking 1 year
Complete and utter garbage product