It’s a quick, dangerous job that pays about $30, takes about a half-hour and could result in as much as two years in jail.
Thieves in Austin are stealing parts of air conditioning units, sometimes the entire unit, and gutting them for copper.
Police said more than 25 air conditioning units have been hit by copper thieves in the past two weeks. Even more were reported stolen in the past two months, according to police.
No particular area of town is being targeted, police said. What the targeted homes have in common is that most are vacant or for sale, said Austin police Sgt. David Socha, who oversees the property interdiction team.
Because the homes are vacant, it could take months before someone notices that the units have been stolen.
“It’s several guys or a crew that’s doing this,” Socha said. “That’s why we need people to keep an eye out, people who don’t look like a real estate agent or suspicious, to call and write down plates.”
Those stealing the units might have a hard time selling the copper in Austin because of a new city ordinance that went into effect Oct. 15 that says anyone selling copper in an air conditioning unit must have a recent receipt or an electrician’s license, Socha said.
At All American Recycling, off FM 812 in Travis County, owners say they haven’t seen an increase in copper sales and haven’t had any suspicious customers.
Austin Borders, who owns the all-metal recycling yard, said the company requires a Texas driver’s license with all sales, takes photos of the units and keeps the photos for 48 hours for police.
“We have to follow these rules regardless, and sometimes we’ll even write down the license plate of the truck,” Borders said.
He said one unit could contain enough copper to bring about $30 at about $3.20 a pound.
Most of his copper clients are air conditioning business owners such as Javier Sifuentes, who was taking several unit parts to be recycled Wednesday afternoon.
Sifuentes, who has owned Sibcon Air Conditioning for 16 years, said he has had to replace four units within the past month that were hit by thieves.
“All the money is in the condenser coil of the unit,” Sifuentes said. “So these guys have to know what they are doing.”
Sifuentes said the condenser coil isn’t easy to get to but, if done right, can be taken out of the unit quickly without removing it from its cement slab. He said it costs about $1,000 to replace an air conditioning unit that no longer has the coil.
Socha said they hope to catch the thieves soon; they are costing insurance companies and homeowners a lot of money.
He said people who know a home is for sale in their neighborhood can help by keeping an eye out for suspicious activity, and neighborhood associations should tell neighbors of the thefts.
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