converting to R-134

does anyone know what has to be replaced? Or if you know of a good step by step website please let me know!!! Thx!!!

you will of course need to remove the r-12. they make a kit that you can buy from most auto part stores. it will have new fittings that will screw on to where the old r-12 high side and low side fittings are . they should screw right on to them . you will also new to add some r-134 oil.now when it comes to filling the system somewhere on the car it will tell you how much the system holds . because of the oil that you ve added you will only need to pull about 85% of what would normally go in .not alot more than that. one other thing that you should check is the orfice tube which is a in line filter. now you will need special tools to open the line . it should be in the low side line that goes to the drier. the drier is the silver tube . its shouldnt be plugged up unless something has come apart such as the compressor. this may sound harder than it really is

sweet. im using a donor vehichle. its been retro fitted, so can i just pull stuff off of it?? I was also gonna reuse the o-rings , since the air has been ran regulary? also, do i need to change the dryer or accumulator or anything like that?? thx for your help!! And where is the in line filter located?

Just use ester oil, it is compatible with R-12 and R134a. It's also a good idea to change to chage accumalator and orface tube (they act as filters) Also Make sure you get a vacume pulled on it. Boil out the moistue that has accumalated.

the accumulator is the thing that connects to the drier and is in a black casing on the firewall, or is it the the radiator looking deal that sits in front of the radiator??

ok, so accumulator and dryer are the same thing. The evaporater is in the black casing. The condenser is the radiator looking thing.

The orifice tube is a metering device located just ahead of the evaporator on the high-pressure side of an A/C system that restricts the flow of refrigerant into the evaporator. (copied from website) so ts in the line i take it. Does it just pull out or come apart?

Also, which of the above, if any, do i need to replace? The air in the bronco has not been run since before the guy i bought it from can remember. So im guessing atleast the dryer, anything else? Im already gonna replace the compressor with a donor from the 302 im putting in the bronco. Im also gonna reuse the o-rings if i can. anything else?? thx!!!! Also if you know any tips that would help, please say so!!

does this sound about right??? copied from webpage also.

# Any remaining R-12 has to be recovered.
# The accumulator has to be changed to one that can accommodate R-134a
# The threaded fittings need to be replaced
# Altering the compressor oil to PAG or POE.
# The “barrier style hoses” may need replacing
# O-rings should be replaced with ones that are made of Neoprene W
# System has to be recharged with the new coolant – up to 80%
# Viton compressor seals need to be replaced as they are not R-134a compatible.

what is it talking about with the viton compressor seals??? can i take these off of the compressor from my f-150 that has been retro'd??

i read somewhere that sometimes the hoses build up something on the inside, enough that i might not have to replace them??? will there be a leaking prob with the bronco hoses??

ok, so accumulator and dryer are the same thing. The evaporater is in the black casing. The condenser is the radiator looking thing.

The orifice tube is a metering device located just ahead of the evaporator on the high-pressure side of an A/C system that restricts the flow of refrigerant into the evaporator. (copied from website) so ts in the line i take it. Does it just pull out or come apart?

Also, which of the above, if any, do i need to replace? The air in the bronco has not been run since before the guy i bought it from can remember. So im guessing atleast the dryer, anything else? Im already gonna replace the compressor with a donor from the 302 im putting in the bronco. Im also gonna reuse the o-rings if i can. anything else?? thx!!!! Also if you know any tips that would help, please say so!!

Ok Just to start off, if you are going to have the system open at all, it is very important to vacume the system out. Anyway, you can get the orface tube out without a puller but it is a pain in the butt. I think orface tube pullers are like 8 bucks at your local parts store. the accumulator is the most important part to replace. It is the system filter. The orface tube can be reused if the screen is good and the little tube is not plugged (but since they cost like 3 bucks, you might as well just replace it.) second most important part of doing a AC retro fit is to make sure you put in the correct ammount of oil. The most oil you will recover out of a system ( Unless you take off the compressor which in your case you are) is about 1 OZ max. All the oil is for is to lubercate the compressor. Don't just go and put in a full can of AC oil just because it a full can. Figure out how much oil was recovered and replace it. With AC systems it is one of thoes rare cases that it is better to have a little less oil than too much.

does this sound about right??? copied from webpage also.

# Any remaining R-12 has to be recovered.
# The accumulator has to be changed to one that can accommodate R-134a
# The threaded fittings need to be replaced
# Altering the compressor oil to PAG or POE.
# The “barrier style hoses” may need replacing
# O-rings should be replaced with ones that are made of Neoprene W
# System has to be recharged with the new coolant – up to 80%
# Viton compressor seals need to be replaced as they are not R-134a compatible.

1. correct, Also there must be a vacume pulled on the system.
2. it should be changed, it is the same accumulator for both r-12 and r-134a
3. The high and Low side fittings need to be addaped.
4. INCORRECT (not yelling just want you to chatch this.) PAG is the oil that is used in todays R-134a systems however, when you do a retrofit, you need to use ESTER oil your local autoparts store should have it. (I know advanced autoparts does.)
5. You only have to use barrier style hoses if you are using another type of refrigerent such as HC-122a or as such. R-12/R-134a do not need them (Although I know ford used them on some of their vheicles for some reason.) With HC-122a and similiar types of refrigent, the molucules are smaller and can leak through normal hoses. R-134a does not require barrier hoses.
6. your Accumulator will come with new o-rings, use them. Just soak them in oil before you use them though.
7. They have conversion charts avaible to use, I have one on my computer. Let me know your R-12 capicity and I will let you know how much R-134a is needed. The new standard way of converting is to start out at 60% and increase untill your gauge pressures are correct for the given tempature/ humidity.
8. I will get back to you on the vition seals. Never herd of them before. (Time to go pull out the oil AC book.)

the seals used in a/c are not the same as an ordinary o-rings . they are usaully green or orange. they dont cost alot though so if you can get new get em .as far as getting the filter out they do have a puller but a good pair of needle nose should do it . getting the lines apart is a different story you will need to get the special line tools . most of the off brand tool companies make them in a plastic set 8 bucks or so . they white rings of different sizes and they are on a black rail.Other than that hypsi87 sounds like he covered the rest .like him i will emphasze the importance of pulling a vac. on the system before refilling . it will make a huge difference in the performance of your a/c

ok, so put it all together on my bronco, then before putting oil or freon in, i should pull a vacuum on it, correct?

Can i use all the fittings from the donor retrofitted truck?

My r-12 capacity is Max 3lb 4oz.

How do i recover the oil from the compressor?? will a vacuum work for this also? I will have the compressor off, so if there is a better or more correct way, please let me know. I was reading somewhere about a flush you can get for the compressor??

thx again for all your help!!!!!!

ok first you take 3lbs 4 oz and turn it into oz. which is 52oz. then multiply by .80 which is 41.6 so you want to put 2lbs 9.5-10 oz. now for the oil you'd have to take the compressor off and turn it on its side to get the oil out . you need to put what ever oil you take out back in unless its less than 1 oz. than you putt one oz in the compressor. Y ou will have to take the car to a shop to get it vac. unless you have the vac pump.

to put the excact amount in, do i just buy one of those hoses with the gauge on it? Also i was reading on some webpage (cant find it now) and they were talking about something called freeze 12 or something, and you put it in over the r-12, suppose to work just fine, and its like $8? Does anyone know anything about this stuff? Did they just make it when they first started converting over??

$8 a can, sorry

after you add the oil you could use a set of gauges to watch the high and low side preasures. the gauses are very exspensive though., but if you go that way you want the side about 250-300 and the low side about 30lbs. You could also estimate im not sure how many oz each small can is i think they are a lb /16oz but i ve always used the fancy machine my boss bought.pretty much fool proof .i would actually suggest letting a shop charge it for you r-134 is cheap most shops will charge from 50-70 dollars that will include 1 lb of freon maybe 20-25 bucks more per lb.if you absolutly want to do it yourself the compressor will run almost continous when the system is full . putt about a lb in then start the truck and turn the a/c on full blast it will help suck the freon in . the comp. will start clicking on and off then as it fills it should stay running. i ve never used that product that you are talking about so i dont know how well it is . i do know that if a person came into the shop and wanted a a/c charge and still had r-12 it was cheaper to convert it then to even fill 1 lb of r-12 .

the freeze 12 stuff is suppose to be in the middle price wise, just you dont have to change anything, i was just wondering.

can i use the fittings from my retro fitted donor vehicle??? or do i have to buy some new ones???

after you add the oil you could use a set of gauges to watch the high and low side preasures. the gauses are very exspensive though., but if you go that way you want the side about 250-300 and the low side about 30lbs. You could also estimate im not sure how many oz each small can is i think they are a lb /16oz but i ve always used the fancy machine my boss bought.pretty much fool proof .i would actually suggest letting a shop charge it for you r-134 is cheap most shops will charge from 50-70 dollars that will include 1 lb of freon maybe 20-25 bucks more per lb.if you absolutly want to do it yourself the compressor will run almost continous when the system is full . putt about a lb in then start the truck and turn the a/c on full blast it will help suck the freon in . the comp. will start clicking on and off then as it fills it should stay running. i ve never used that product that you are talking about so i dont know how well it is . i do know that if a person came into the shop and wanted a a/c charge and still had r-12 it was cheaper to convert it then to even fill 1 lb of r-12 .

Well your gauge pressures are variable depending on what the outside temp is. if it's 60 degreees out and you have 250-300 PSI, that is too much. Also there is a huge difference between 250 psi and 300 psi. Gauges are about 60 bucks for a cheap but good set. If you are going to be doing AC work from time to time, then i would suggest getting a set. As far as the compressor turning on and off, it will do that even when it has a full charge. It does this because your compressor will compress the refrgerent so fast that the refergent cannot pass through the orface tube fast enough to keep the pressures steady. so the high pressure switch will kick the compressor out untill the high side dropps to a safe level then it will kick it back on.

As far as the retrofit fittings working between the F-150/Bronco. I am 99% sure they will work. I know that ford sometimes had a goofy fitting that you needed to use a different adapator. I am pretty sure that they will work just fine.

As far as the freeze 12 stuff, be careful with what freons you use. espically if it is something that you order something off the internet. out of country copanys will do crap like take pure propane and slap a cool label on it like freeze 12 and sell it. Highly illeagel (For an ASE certified shop) to charge a system with crap like that. The back yard AC guy can buy it and use it in his own vheicle. which I would not reccomend.

sorry to put alot more info than what you asked up but, after I took my AC classes you realize that there are soooo many cheap ways around and alot of them can just cost alot of money in the long run. Not to mention just plain dangrous.

hypsi87 is right however i assumed that you would be doing this project soon and its still pretty warm out . and i did say almost continuous . maybe you can get the gauges for 60 bucks ive never seen em that cheap.

i do appreciate all yall's help!!!! Just about everything else is same on the f150 as the bronco, so hopefully the fittings will work! I shouldve asked this sooner, but just now realized it, when your talking about fittings, are you talking about like the high and lo side caps, where you would plug up a hose or gauge? or are you talking about something else??

also, a friend of mine was saying that when you put the freon in, that it will stop taking the freon when the pressure inside the lines gets high enough, matches the can. Is this true, or is it just a bad way to do it?? He did it on his truck and it worked fine, i was just gonna run it by yall first.

yeah the fittings are the high side which will be on the smaller line but will be the larger fitting and the opposite for the low side . as far as how your friend filled his system , i cant say i ve never done it that way, but just cause i havent done it doesnt mean it wont work.maybe he got lucky maybe it just worked not sure .