When it comes to any major appliance, it is best to leave service, maintenance and repairs to the professionals. Do you really feel confident pumping your own septic tank? Do you really think you can install all new wiring without shocking yourself? Installing your own HVAC system is equally as daunting and demanding. I made the horrible mistake of thinking I could install my own cooling system however. I went online and I found the perfect cooling system for my home. I already had ductwork installed in my home and figured all I needed was to buy the magical system and I could hook it up myself. The cost of AC installation scared me. I did not want to pay somebody to do a job I figured I could do. I am a handy guy. I had installed doors, windows and laid drywall. I have cut tiles and redone flooring. I can handle small plumbing repairs and even do my own wiring. I figured HVAC would be along the same lines.
When I purchased the cooling system and had it delivered, I was quite overwhelmed. First, the AC machine was a lot bigger and more complicated than I expected. Second, I had literally no idea where to start. Like any normal person, I started looking online on how to install my own air conditioner. The videos were confusing, uninformative and sometimes only showed half the job. I had a very difficult time even starting. I then figured it would be like popping the hood on a car. Once I had the pieces kind of in the right area, it would all make sense to me. At the time, and still to this day, AC doesn’t make sense to me. That became clear once I started hooking up to my existing ductwork and setting up the indoor air handler.
The process took days to complete and at the end of the process, I didn’t feel like I did a good job. I then dumped a whole bunch of refrigerant systems and figured I was good to go. How bad could I have made it really? Really bad is the answer. Read my next blog, The aftermath of DIY AC installation, to find out just how badly I messed up.
