Air conditioning

Is it possible to service my air conditioning my self? I live in AZ and it costs like 5 billion dollars now that its 100+ outside. can i buy freaon etc. thanks

i dont think u can cuz u need the tool to insert the freon.

what do you mean by servicing it? Do you need to add new parts, or just add some freon ... if its just freon how close are you to mexico? Cause here in the US you need to be refrigirant certified to purchase r12 or r134a, while I know someone on this board went to mexico and was able to pick up a bottle of r12 for like $20.

r12 is really expensive because they dont make it anymore cause its toxic, which is why all cars manufactured after 94 or 95 have the new r134a system.

I had my car converted at my local jiffy lube from r12 to r134a and it was $300, then my compressor blew so I was able to buy another one off eightohone for $50 who had just completed his b20 swap and didnt keep the a/c.

Anyways, just give us more details on what you wanna do.

if you need your a/c charged and it has been converted to 134a, you can pick up cans of refrigerant at autozone. You don't have to be certified to buy and use it, otherwise, you wouldn't be able to buy it. However, there does have to be a vaccuum in the system in order to "accept" the freion. That is, it has to suck the freion into the system.
You may get a service shop to "test" your system and pull a vaccuum and then you can charge it yourself and save some money. You don't need a special tool in charge the system either. There is a hose you buy that connects to your car and connects to the can. Ta da!!!! Insta-cold.

you dont have to be certified for r134? Guess I learn something new everyday :cool:

I think i might have a leak. a small leak and i want to find out where it is and fix it then recharge my freon. I do have the old system. I live about 2 hours from mexico so i guess if i feel up to the challenge ill head down there BUT I NEED AC FIRST!!:licker:

yeah Melt, you can buy R-134a anywhere...even your local wal-mart...I think the issue is that the dryer isn't necessarily 100% compatible with r134a refrigerant, and as redmanjd said in another post, it isn't as efficient as R-12..so most newer A/C systems are larger (more powerful compressor) to pump out cold air...however a R-12 system converted to R-134a is better than nothing I suppose. I think it is the material in the dryer that isn't compatible with R-134a - I hope using R-134a wasn't why your compressor blew up Melt. When you paid $300 at Jiffy Lube - did they replace any parts to make your system compatible to accept R-134a? :confused:

Also, the vacuum (evacuation) is a good idea too..You don't want air pockets, or to be mixing R-134a and R-12 and shit. If you have a leak, you can buy leak test stuff, but you should still evacuate the system first, so it isn't over pressurized when you start pumping in more freon...also, if there is a leak, it'll just leak out again...you should have a sight glass to check for air when the system is running...the sight glass is located between the front left wheel and the headlight..if you see air bubbles rushing past when the A/C is on, that generally indicates a leak...also, if your compressor cuts in and out, that could indicate a leak too.

Edit - I would recommend doing a search on "R-12 to R-134a conversion" on the Internet - very interesting reading. One of the most noticeable is that the oils in R-12 and R-134a are NOT compatible, and they fatigue the hoses, and cause them to fail...AND R-134a can cause compressor failure because it is less efficient and makes the already wore out compressors in our 12 year old cars run harder (Melt ;)) - and the dryer is the incompatible part, except I don't understand yet 100% what it does in the system ;)

here are a couple of links for you!
http://www.busair.com/wizzk.html

http://home.earthlink.net/~goodspeeds/ACCONVRT.HTM

http://www.babcox.com/editorial/cm/cm59846.htm

I think my compressor was just fucked up from the start cause it hadnt worked in so long. I have had no problems with 801's compressor which came out of a 90 si and its been in my car for almost a year.

And im not sure what all they had to do to it for it to get r134.

I know crxlvr did his himself, so talk to him about it.

Gone are the good ol' days when you could go to K-Mart and buy a can of freon (R12) for 97 cents.
Too bad so many people just thought, "It's cheap, what the hell?" and fttt! Dumped their pressured freon into the atmosphere where it started breaking down the ozone layer.
As a red-head who worries about skin cancer (my red-headed grandma had to get a skin graft to replace her nose), I don't really mind the new regulations.
Overexposure to R12 can also cause fatal heart arrhythmia, so I guess it's time for something less destructive.
Flunky
PS-But I'm a cheap bastard, and it HURTS to shell out that kind of money to someone else to work on MY car!

Originally posted by 4-Door Flunky
PS-But I'm a cheap bastard, and it HURTS to shell out that kind of money to someone else to work on MY car!

Exactly :mad:

Hey guys ... I was at walmart in Vallejo CA yesterday looking for something and they had cans of r134a on sale for 4.84 per can plus tax ... they looked like pound cans. So thats pretty cool, but im sure a bunch of dumbasses are gonna not flush their r12 out and mix the refrigerants.

wow someone remembered i did something

anyway i didnt read most of this cuz i was too lazy so here are some pointers.


go to your local auto store and get the r134a conversion kit and a bottle of oil&stop leak it should run a total of 40 bux.

now if you care about the environment(like anyone needs it) then you need to bring your car and have the old r-12 sucked out, or if your like me, you'll just press the little nozzle(same as a car tire valve) and release whatevers left into the air. dont mix these two things at all, or it will fuck up your system.

next you need to turn the car on and put the A/C on full blast with the inside circulation(the pic of the car with the arrow completly inside it) on, then attach the fittings supplied and put one can of r134a into the car, then add the oil and stop leak and put the other can in, then just cap it off and test your system.

what if ur NOT converting it do u stiil need to buy the kit? or is there something in it i need, the reason why i ask is cause my line snaped so im gettin a new one, my system is already r134, so all i need is the 2 can and the oil? and the adapter?

well if ur car is r134 already then you wont need the adapter, just the oil and the refrigerant.

how does it go on to the valve steam lookin thingy? can i get that seperate?

never mind i just called autozone they said they sell just the hose for the can to the line :D

yea!!!!

well if u need to refill your ac, then u got a leak somewehere because the ac is a closed system. and it wont run out unless u got a leak somwhere, so get the leak fixed then fill it

i know because in my other car which is a 89 the ac is still good, never been refilled once, and it still blows cold air, pretty good for such an old car