How old is my Ruud air conditioner?
Serial number age decoder for Ruud central air conditioners: 2 format eras, the decode rule in plain English, transcribed tables, and the official lookup.
Type the serial from the data plate, not the model number. Nothing is sent anywhere; the tables are in this page.
Format example: W291013412
- Ruud air conditioner serial numbers in the era not stated format encode the year as digits 4-5 (YY) and the week as digits 2-3 (source: building-center.org).
- Example: serial W291013412 decodes to week 29 of 2010.
- Ruud air conditioner serial numbers in the era not stated format encode the year as digits 3-4 after the middle factory letter and the week as digits 1-2 after the middle factory letter (source: building-center.org).
- Example: serial 7351 M2806 16735 decodes to week 28 of 2006.
- Ruud's official lookup at rheem.registermyunit.com returns warranty terms.
Format eras
- era not stated VERIFIED
A#########digits 4-5 (YY) - era not stated VERIFIED
#### A#### #####digits 3-4 after the middle factory letter
How to read the serial
era not stated formatVERIFIED
Shape A######### · example W291013412 · confidence high
- Year
- digits 4-5 (YY)
- Week or month
- week = digits 2-3
- Plant
- letter 1 (e.g. W)
Example: serial W291013412 decodes to week 29 of 2010.
Listed under Rheem in the source; Ruud is named in that format's family and the corporate link is an estimate, not a checked fact.
era not stated formatVERIFIED
Shape #### A#### ##### · example 7351 M2806 16735 / CB5D302F099903346 / OR177 M2807 00097 · confidence high
- Year
- digits 3-4 after the middle factory letter
- Week or month
- week = digits 1-2 after the middle factory letter
- Plant
- middle letter F, M, G, W or N
Example: serial 7351 M2806 16735 decodes to week 28 of 2006.
Listed under Rheem in the source; Ruud is named in that format's family and the corporate link is an estimate, not a checked fact.
Where the data plate is on an air conditioner
On the outdoor condenser: a metal or foil plate on the side or back of the cabinet, often near the refrigerant line connections. Some brands repeat it inside the electrical access panel.
General guidance, not brand-specific: the owner's manual or the installer can point to the exact spot. See the data plate guide.
For scale only: the InterNACHI Standard Estimated Life Expectancy Chart for Homes lists Air Conditioner (central) at 7 to 15 years of expected service (nachi.org). That chart is a guideline, not a prediction for your unit.
Open the official Ruud lookup takes serial; returns warranty terms; URL unverified
This site is a reference built from published tables. The manufacturer's own lookup wins whenever the two disagree.
What we could not confirm
- Ruud is treated as sharing Rheem's format because the source lists it in that family; the corporate relationship itself is an estimate.
- Rheem acquired Ruud in 1959 (building-center). Ruud page lists the identical six Rheem HVAC styles (W291013412; CB5D302F099903346; 7351 M2806 16735; OR177 M2807 00097; 0804B10488 MMYY; 123451872) with the same chart images (Rheem-HVAC-style-1..6). ruud.com is (c) Rheem Manufacturing Company and ruud.com/warranties 404s; the lookup lives on Rheem's registermyunit portal (curl 200). Water-heater page: https://www.building-center.org/ruud-water-heater-age/ (not fetched this batch).