Edit: this thread will document the trials (and many errors) in the continuing saga of sealing up, cleaning, repairing and converting the SCS Basement Air Conditioners to 24-volts so that my dogs can be happy inside while we are away during the heat/cold of the day…
Problem: I put a hole in the ac condenser coil which is aluminum… bright it to a local welder and they say the hole is too close to the end to fix :-( Where can I source a new condenser please?
I hope I am calling it the right thing - it’s the big radiator looking thing on the outside of the ac unit…
TIA!!!
To me that looks like aluminum fins on copper tubes, I have repaired lots of them it is not hard,I pull off the aluminum fins around the hole, clean the copper tubes really good , heat up the copper tube and put a drop of silfos on it I use 15% silfos, if it is a steel frame on the end I burn it away with a oxy acetylene torch eather with a cutting tip or just increase the oxygen and oxidize it away, when I tried to pry it away I end up making other holes so I started to burn it away
John Kosir
712 2004 45-8
(This post was last modified: 07-02-2025, 10:31 AM by johnkosir.)
Thanks John, I am not a very good welder but do have a friend who is… I will check with him. I’m hoping it is aluminum coated copper as you said… I’m now considering alternatives to this unit including rooftop ac and mini split units. I did find a unit that looks like it would work and my be as much cost/work as repairing this pig… the welder I took it to this morning said the ‘orange stuff’ was old flux and he didn’t want to weld it :-(
(07-02-2025, 10:27 AM)pairodice Wrote: Thanks John, I am not a very good welder but do have a friend who is… I will check with him. I’m hoping it is aluminum coated copper as you said… I’m now considering alternatives to this unit including rooftop ac and mini split units. I did find a unit that looks like it would work and my be as much cost/work as repairing this pig… the welder I took it to this morning said the ‘orange stuff’ was old flux and he didn’t want to weld it :-(
Looks like a copper tube to me, a welder is probably not the best choice for this repair. You need an good A/C guy that can solder it. I added service ports to mine with a mapp gas torch and some flux and all was good. I think a little bit of flux on there and a dab of solder is all it needs. Get the fins pulled back a bit so you can clean the copper good and I think it could be repaired. Of course this is all from a distance and from pictures.
I took it to a radiator repair place and he said it was not repairable. If my research is correct then I would need to refill with R22 which would cost a lot or convert to a newer Freon which would mean lots of new parts and $$$$$. I’m thinking about punting and just installing a mini split in the front and hobble with the rear unit. I did order the Newell board and it will go in the rear unit…
Any good AC or Refrigeration mechanic should be able to do it Solder might work, but silfos would be ALOT better, A map gas, maybe even a propane torch would do it, I prefer oxy acetylene, for the small concentrated flame, It should have a vacuum pulled on it, 22 is expensive but you don't need much, you can also use R422 which is a lot cheaper and is a drop in you don't have to change the oil.
I did find a local AC guy to come and weld/solder the leak and we will test it this week hopefully. I ordered a single board from Newell and it looks nearly the same with the same connections on it as the old burned board. I will plan to replace the front A/C with the with the relays and transformer to see how that all goes together. I’ll use the Newell board if I cannot get the relay situation to work correctly (I’m not an EE)…
I find it easier to put a blob of silfos on an hole like that , silver solder flows too much and I find it hard to fill holes with it , it is expensive and requires flux
I spent some time removing the AC unit from the basement of the coach and the local AC guy came by and cleaned, rewired the AC, and replaced all the Capacitors. We also went from the Newell 12-volt board to the 24-volt system, many thanks to Jeff LoGiudice for diagrams and answering all my dumb questions! It is still a work in progress and a long way to go but we did get unit 1 working last week with one compressor. I’m trying my hand at wiring unit 2 - will see how that comes out.
I plan to make a video if anyone if interested in 1) removing the unit 2) pulling the unit apart and cleaning 3) rewiring 12 to 24 volt relays/contactors 4) reinstalling; although at the rate I move it may be a while unless there is a ton of interest in the videos…
I will be using Ecobee Thermostats to control the heating and cooling. I’m learning WAY more than I wanted to ever know about A/C units but it is fun as long as I get to work in my cool garage (mini-split) and not the storage building…
The next step is to get compressor 2 working on unit 1…
