Bard is the best-known brand of wall-mounted package units in our area. In fact, sometimes we hear contractors say “Bard unit” as a generic term for any wall-mounted package air conditioner. They are most often used for small to mid-size commercial buildings, but we occasionally see them installed in residences. Here’s a chart for decoding the serial number.

    The data plate can be a little hard to read as it gets older. The serial number on this one is 93H860440715. It fits the format for 1980 to the present, and the first two digits after the single letter are the year of manufacture: 1986.

    And here’s a newer example from 2014.

    To find out the age of another brand of air conditioner or heat pump, go to How do I determine the age of my air conditioner?,  which has a listing of all major manufacturers and links to instructions for decoding their serial numbers.

    Also, see our blog posts How many tons is my Bard air conditioner or heat pump? and How can I find out the SEER of my air conditioner?  And to figure out what all the other numbers listed on the condenser data plate mean, go to our blog post How do I understand the air conditioner or heat pump condenser label (data plate)?

    To find the age of other home components, go to How can I find out the age of a roof? and How do I determine the age of an electrical panel? and How do I determine the age of my water heater? For life expectancies, visit What is the average life expectancy of the components of a house? 

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  To learn more about heating and air conditioning systems, see these other blog posts: 

• My air conditioner won't turn on. What's wrong? 

• How can I find out the size of my air conditioner? 

• Where is the air filter for my central air conditioner and furnace? I can’t find it? 

• Does an old air conditioner use more electricity as it ages? 

• How did homes stay cool in Florida before air conditioning? 

• What is wrong with an air conditioner when the air flow out of the vents is low?

• Why has the thermostat screen gone blank? 

• Why does it take so long to cool a house when an air conditioner has been off for a while? 

• Why is my air conditioner not cooling enough? 

• What are the most common problems with wall/window air conditioners?  

• Will closing doors reduce my heating and cooling costs? 

   Visit our HEATING AND AIR CONDITIONING page for other related blog posts on this subject, or go to the INDEX for a complete listing of all our articles.