With the price of metal on the rise, copper theft is reaching epidemic proportions. Each day hundreds of homeowners are waking up to discover thieves have stripped the copper from their air conditioning units to grab some quick cash. According to the U.S. Dept. of Energy over $1 billion worth of HVAC equipment is stolen every year. Some cities have reported a more than 50 percent increase in these crimes over the past year.
steps you can take to reduce the risk. You know the old saying: An ounce of prevention goes a long way.
For starters you might want to consider using shrubbery or a small fence to partially hide the view of your HVAC unit. However, you don’t want to totally obscure it from view and give potential thieves a place to hide while they are stripping the copper.
Adding decorative lighting that remains illuminated throughout the night and installing floodlights or 
motion detector lights that kick on whenever there is activity around the unit also deters thieves. Don’t give criminals a convenient cover.
One simple solution to minimize your risk of copper theft is to enclose your air conditioning unit in a protective metal cage, secured with a lock. Hinges allow technicians access for servicing the unit. Remember thieves go after easy targets, not objects that require hard work to steal.
Another easy security measure is to take the cover off your AC unit and apply a can of neon spray paint to all of the copper tubing, as salvage yards usually won’t accept any painted copper. This will also help law enforcement identify stolen goods when contacting scrap yards. Put microscopic dots containing your address on the copper tubing as well.
Homeowners who take these simple steps to ensure an AC unit won’t become a target may avoid the loss of thousands of dollars in repair costs and those seemingly endless headaches caused by copper thieves.