Find the equipment's real age
Both the outdoor condenser and the indoor air handler carry a data plate with a model and serial number. The manufacture date is usually encoded in the serial, and most manufacturers publish how to read it.
Check both. Mismatched ages are common and informative: a two-year-old condenser paired with a fifteen-year-old air handler tells you half the system is near end of life, and that the pair may never have been properly matched for efficiency.
Identify the refrigerant
The data plate lists it. If it reads R-22, factor that into your offer. Production ended in 2020, so any future leak repair on that system is expensive and the supply only tightens.
R-410A is the mainstream standard of the last two decades and is fine. Newer homes may have R-454B or R-32, which are the current direction of travel.
Look for water history
Water tells the truth about maintenance. Look for:
- Rust or standing water in the drain pan under the air handler.
- Ceiling stains below an attic-mounted unit.
- A secondary drain line that has obviously been running — often stained siding below the outlet.
- Corrosion at the base of the air handler cabinet.
- Whether a safety float switch is even installed.
Do not skip the ductwork
Get into the attic if it is safe, or ask the inspector to. Look for crushed or kinked flex duct, disconnected runs lying in the insulation, and tape that has given up at the plenum.
Leaking return duct in a hot Florida attic is one of the most common reasons a house feels humid and costs too much to cool — and it is invisible from inside the house. It is also far cheaper to negotiate before closing than to discover in July.
Ask for permits and service records
If the system was replaced, there should be a permit on file with the county or city building department. Its absence is worth asking about — unpermitted mechanical work becomes your problem once you own the house.
Service records tell you whether the system was maintained or merely survived. A system with documented twice-yearly service at twelve years old is in better shape than an unserviced one at eight.
Consider a dedicated HVAC inspection
A general home inspector confirms the system produces cold air. A dedicated HVAC inspection measures: temperature split across the coil, static pressure, refrigerant pressures, and amp draw against the nameplate — the readings that reveal whether a system is healthy or merely running.
You get a written condition report covering equipment age, refrigerant type, and measured readings. On a house you are about to buy, that is cheap information.
Want it measured instead of guessed?
The readings that settle this — pressures, superheat and subcooling, amp draw, static pressure — take a visit. You get the price in writing before anything is replaced.
(904) 467-1100