Refrigerant Recharge / Recovery Cost — AC, Heat Pump & More (New Zealand, 2026)
Estimated $190–$2,400 NZD for a refrigerant recharge / recovery in New Zealand, depending on the HVAC system and the exact fault. Built from 12 sourced repair jobs across 5 HVAC types — each row keeps its own sources. Reviewed July 2026.
What a refrigerant recharge / recovery costs, by HVAC and fault Estimated
Each row is a real sourced repair job whose description matched this part. Parts and total are that job's own national range — follow the problem link to localize it to your area.
| HVAC | Problem | Repair | Parts | Total | DIY |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Central Air Conditioning | Not cooling / blowing warm air | Leak-test, repair the leaking joint and re-weigh the refrigerant charge on a ducted or high-wall heat pump running in cooling | $120–$420 NZD | $420–$950 NZD | Pro recommended |
| Central Air Conditioning | Frozen evaporator coil | Low-charge icing diagnosed: leak located, joint repaired and refrigerant weighed back in | $120–$400 NZD | $420–$950 NZD | Pro recommended |
| Central Air Conditioning | Short cycling (turns on and off) | Incorrect refrigerant charge or a circuit restriction corrected: recover, evacuate and weigh in the factory charge | $100–$350 NZD | $400–$900 NZD | Pro recommended |
| Heat Pump | Not cooling | Leak test and refrigerant recharge (regas) after a low-charge diagnosis | $90–$320 NZD | $350–$780 NZD | Pro recommended |
| Heat Pump | Refrigerant leak repair / recharge | Leak test, repair the leaking flare or joint, evacuate and recharge | $90–$320 NZD | $420–$900 NZD | Pro recommended |
| Heat Pump | Short cycling (turns on and off) | Leak search and refrigerant recharge where low charge is tripping the pressure switch and stopping the unit early | $80–$260 NZD | $220–$650 NZD | Pro recommended |
| Ductless Mini-Split | Not cooling | Pressure test and refrigerant recharge on the single split | $80–$300 NZD | $320–$700 NZD | Pro recommended |
| Ductless Mini-Split | Refrigerant leak repair / recharge | Nitrogen pressure test, remake the leaking flare joint, evacuate and recharge | $80–$300 NZD | $400–$850 NZD | Pro recommended |
| Ductless Mini-Split | Refrigerant leak repair / recharge | Refrigerant top-up only (charge weighed back in after a passing pressure test) | $80–$300 NZD | $250–$600 NZD | Pro recommended |
| Boiler | Losing pressure | Re-pressurise the system, recharge the expansion vessel and top up inhibitor | $0–$60 NZD | $190–$450 NZD | Pro recommended |
| Air Handler | Frozen evaporator coil | Low refrigerant charge found behind the icing: leak located and repaired, then the charge weighed back in | $120–$400 NZD | $420–$950 NZD | Pro recommended |
| Air Handler | Evaporator coil replacement | Indoor evaporator/fan-coil replaced with recovery, braze-in and recharge | $500–$1,500 NZD | $900–$2,400 NZD | Pro recommended |
Base: published rates from 69 NZ repair companies · National base ranges — localize any figure on its linked problem page · Reviewed July 2026 · Estimated (GST-inclusive)
Related HVAC cost guides
The full cost guide for each HVAC system a refrigerant recharge / recovery shows up in:
Estimated national ranges aggregated from the linked problem pages — no per-page localization is applied here. See the methodology for the localization method and named sources.
Reviewed by a Red Seal–certified appliance technician who also holds a Technical Safety BC gas ticket (Gas-C) and an ODS/halocarbon refrigerant ticket (CFC/HCFC/HFC).