There are so many things that can cause your air conditioner to malfunction that you never know if the repairs will be quick and inexpensive or more complicated and costly. For instance, the compressor is one of the more expensive parts to replace in a residential air conditioning system.

While it might be possible to repair a compressor if the problem is minor, it's often necessary to replace the part instead. Here are some choices you may need to make when the compressor in your AC goes bad.

Replace The Compressor Only

Replacing only the compressor could be the right choice if your air conditioner is still fairly new. If your AC is still under warranty, you may not even have to pay for the new compressor. If your AC is no longer under warranty and getting up in age, putting an expensive new part in an old air conditioning system may not be the right choice. In that case, you may need to replace the entire AC.

Replace The Air Conditioner

If your air conditioning repair technician recommends replacing your AC so all parts are new, this entails replacing the entire outdoor condenser unit as well as the evaporator coils in the air handler inside. This ensures the parts are all the same age, and that you can hopefully prevent future problems for several years.

A possible option is to just replace the condenser outside and leave the old evaporator coils, but then you have a system that doesn't match. Refrigerant would flow from new condenser coils to the old evaporator coils, and that could potentially cause problems. Your AC contractor can advise on whether it's a good idea to leave the old evaporator coils or if you should replace them.

Replace The Entire HVAC

One last consideration is to replace the entire HVAC system. This is a significant investment, so you probably wouldn't want to do this unless the air handler and furnace are old and need to be replaced soon anyway.

Your AC and furnace share the air handler. Even if the evaporator coils are replaced, your AC would still use the old blower and associated parts. If you're having new coils put in and a new condenser put outside, you may want a new furnace installed at the same time so all the parts of your HVAC are new and can age at the same pace.

While you might want to consider each of these options when your compressor goes bad, you also have to think about your budget and the need for future repairs on an old system. You may want to discuss the pros and cons of all these choices with an HVAC contractor so you make the right choice for your present and future finances.