1994 Accord A/C Evaporator

[dbbyleo]

A reputable shop diagnosed my A/C for leaks. They charged it with refrigerant with dye ... the A/C blew really cold for 3-5 weeks before losing cold air.

I brought it back to the shop for them to find the leak.

They said they cannot find any sign of dye on the lines. They said because the evaporator commonly has gone bad on this generation accord, they suspect it is the evaporator, but can not confirm until they can get to it, which is behind the dash.

If it is the evaporator, the cost is $600+ in repair. But when I asked, he said that if it is not the evaporator, I would half of the labor, which ends up being no more than $100 (that I would pay).

Anyway ... I'm considering doing the work myself, if it doesn't require any special tools. I would still get a service manual, though, so I have to ask if anyone's done it before and if it's do'able by your typical DIY'er. The most extensive job I've ever done is replacing broken CV joints.

Even if I was able to replace the evaporator myself, I know at some point I'll have to find someone to charge it up for me. This same shop charge me $130 for charging it up the last time (with the dye). Is that ok price for refrigerant charge up? Are there laws that would prevent them from doing it for me outside normal diagnostic process?

Lastly, it's a 14 year old car. How many of you have had other problems with the A/C? I'm wondering if something else would break later on ... like the compressor. Although I have to say ... from being this old, it sure still blows really cold air when the system is charged. What other potential A/C problems could I have later on that's common in this generation accord?

Thanks.

[brcidd]

A reputable shop would never change an evap on a whim, without proof of need-- There are ways to find it-- a good sniffer and good mechanic will confirm- or find the leak elsewhere.

I personally would never change an evap without positive testing- dye out the drain hole, or refrigerant sniffed through the vents- anything else is a WAG- and you normally have to pay for those..

Heck, I've even drilled small holes in the HVAC case to get a good sniff of the evaporator..

[dbbyleo]

Well ... I guess they aren't A/C Specialist. Some has said I should have taken it to an A/C Specialist.

Anyway ... I am getting water leaking in the passenger side ... I seen it and have felt ice cold water drip on foot before. I've read in another forum that if you have that with mildew smell ... it's definitely the evaporator.

So I suppose there's a good chance that it is the evaporator that's bad. I've seen some say "make sure the evaporator lines are clean". What does that mean?

Anyway, the point of the original post was to find out if anyone's has done this kind of job.

Thanks.

[webbch]

I agree with brcidd - a reputable shop can determine for certain if the evaporator is the problem. An electronic leak detector is the tool used for those smaller leaks, whereas the dye will tend to show up a bit more on those larger leaks. A good way to find a truly reputable shop IMO is to ask them what their "standard procedure" is for re-charging a system. If they don't mention hooking it up to a refrigerant identifier before hooking up their equipment, look for another place. Ideally, they'd know about "sealer" identifier and/or give you an earful at the mention of sealers.

To answer your question about special tools, if you're talking about doing the entire job yourself (evacuate, repair, recharge), then a big, resounding YES, special tools are involved, mainly with regard to evacuating and charging the system. If you are willing to take it to a shop to evacuate the system, then take it home and do the repair work, then take it back to the shop to have them put in any needed refrigerant oil, pull a vacuum, and recharge, then you may be able to save some money on labor. This assumes the lines don't need to be flushed, which also takes special equipment if you want to do it right.

FYI, in the last couple years I started doing A/C repairs myself, and was surprised that the tools required are TOTALLY different from the tools I have for doing "regular" automotive work. LOTS of equipment to buy up front before you're ready to fully service your A/C. About $2k+ investment if you bargain shop, if you want to recover, pull a vacuum, and recharge. I got tired of local shops doing a poor job and charging lots of money for it, so I started to DIY it. Did a complete system repair with a new evaporator and heater core on my friend's '93 mustang a few months ago that necessitated a full dash removal to get at the critical components. Flushed everything, new oil, new lines where needed, pulled a good vacuum down to to 500 microns, held to 1500 microns for 30 minutes, then recharged with R12. Have heard nothing but praise about the cold air in our 100+ degree Arizona heat from him in the last several months.

[dbbyleo]

webbch... sounds like you really know what you're doing. I've definitely now got some knowledge before I take my car to any shop next time for AC service.

Are you saying that if the shop only looked for dye residue, then they could missing very small leaks?? My AC did run for at least 4 weeks before getting hot again. Would that suggest I have a small leak?

I'll definitely ask them about their standard procedure to AC leak detection. It seems like with a "sniffer", there should be no excuse for saying, it "may be" the evaporator. So sounds like they probably just went by dye residue.

What do you think about my ice cold leaky water in the passenger side? Is that a problem with my evaporator or may just clogged drain lines?

Anyway ... if the problem is the evaporator and I try to fix it myself, I was just planning on replacing the evaporator and taking the car to a shop to do all the charging of refrigerant.

But let me ask you this. What is generally the steps to take before service an AC ... or in this replacing the evaportor? I mean ... what steps would you take ... including any evac/vaccuum/flushing/etc related stuff ... before and/or after you remove/re-install evaporator? Also, would there be other parts you'd replace while you got the car/dash torn apart (like I read that the expansion valve is usually with the evaporator)?