“Get Your Fix” Part 2 of 10: YORK® YLAA

As we progress through our coil issue countdown, we’ve arrived at the YORK® YLAA chiller—a model known for its operational problems and less-than-ideal durability in its MCHX condenser coils. It's a fact that we receive weekly calls from contractors and end users regarding the YORK YLAA chiller and the leaks associated with its original microchannel coil.

In general, customers express dissatisfaction with the durability of this OEM model, which has negatively impacted York's reputation. Even though York designed the unit with both options—microchannel coils and copper tube coils—we seldom see this unit equipped with the higher-grade copper tubes.

The Usual Suspects

The most common YLAA models we encounter are the Style B, which come equipped with microchannel condenser coils in both the standard and high-efficiency units.

To determine whether you're dealing with a standard unit or a high-efficiency unit, simply check the model number. For instance, the "S" in YLAA0700SE indicates a standard unit, whereas the "H" in YLAA0156HE signifies a high-efficiency unit. A handy insider tip: if you spot a "ZE" in the model number, like YLAA0080ZE, the unit originally came with copper tube coils.

So, What’s the Solution? #ChangetheChannel

Switching out the microchannel in the YORK® YLAA chiller for copper tube condenser coils will significantly enhance the unit's reliability and ease of servicing while preserving the OEM efficiency.

One crucial point to keep in mind: when upgrading from microchannel to copper tubes, you must complete the circuit and increase the refrigerant charge using the sub-cooling method. This means that if the YLAA chiller has a leaking coil but it’s part of a circuit with four coils, you need to replace all four coils. Depending on the tonnage, YLAA units can have anywhere from 4 to 12 coils.

A York YLAA unit before microchannel conversion.

The same York YLAA unit after converting the microchannel to copper tubes and applying a Blygold® coating.

If you're considering replacing only one coil, we recommend reaching out to York to purchase an MCHX coil directly from them. At Nationwide Coils, we avoid changing just one coil since this is merely a temporary fix and won't address the ongoing issues with the York YLAA unit.

Even though the YORK YLAA chiller is one of the more popular units we upgrade, we can perform a microchannel conversion for virtually any make or model.

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