Catalina 350 International Association

I have just been told that my evaporator has failed on my 2008 Mk2 ( Hull # 488). After only two short seasons here in the NE that seems a short lifespan, but the real kicker is that I am being quoted $920 for the Adler Barbor part alone, and almost $2 K installed. Are there any alternatives people can suggest ? Can I replace it with a completely different unit ?

Can you elaborate a bit about what exactly a "failed evaoprator" is? The only time I have heard of evaporators needing to be replaced is when they are punctured and coolant leaks out (aka the ice pick defroster). This happened to a friend of mine recently and he was able to fix it quite inexpensively without replacing the evaporator.