Fix Leaking A/C : )
#1
04-13-2008 | 09:35 AM
Fix Leaking A/C : )
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Fixing That Leaking Air Conditioner
Pat Goss
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I have some tips about leaky air conditioning systems. You know how it goes; the refrigerant goes away, the air doesn't work quite like it should, and yet you can't see a leak. That's because refrigerant is a gas and it escapes into the air. Finding the leak is pretty simple if you have a kit like this.
This is dye that gets injected into the air conditioning system. The kit comes from Tracerline, it's inexpensive and it's very easy to use - just follow the directions. Now once you have the dye into the system, you'd use the air conditioning for a period of time, then you would use a special light that comes with the kit. This light has a bulb in it that makes the dye glow. So you just move it around to different parts of the air conditioning system until you see this glowing dye and trace it back to where it came out of the vehicle.
But maybe you do all that and you don't find a leak. What then? Well it may be a leaky evaporator. Now the evaporator is typically mounted up in the dash. It's buried, it's expensive, it's a real job to replace one so you don't want a wrong diagnosis. What you do is you run the car for a couple of hours with the air conditioning on, park it in a garage, and then put a drain pan underneath it. Let it sit overnight, and some of the water will come out of the air conditioning drain. Then you take the special light and shine it onto that water and if the water glows like this then you have found your leak, it's in the evaporator!
Okay, we've got a positive diagnosis. Now even if the air conditioning system isn't leaking, another thing you have to consider is that evaporators get dirty so you have to clean them usually about once a year. That requires a special product like the B-G Frigi-clean, it does an excellent job. <~ `Space didn't know this, and I thought maybe one of our member's didn't either. Hope this article helped someone. Peace from `Space
Okay, we've got a positive diagnosis. Now even if the air conditioning system isn't leaking, another thing you have to consider is that evaporators get dirty so you have to clean them usually about once a year. That requires a special product like the B-G Frigi-clean, it does an excellent job. <~ `Space didn't know this, and I thought maybe one of our member's didn't either. Hope this article helped someone. Peace from `Space
[hr]
If you have a question or comment, write to me.
Not to `Space, he really doesn't know anything, especially without the Web : )
Write to Pat, @ the below Address,
The address is MotorWeek, Owings Mills, MD, 21117.
Thanks `Pat & MotorWeek
#2
04-13-2008 | 09:45 AM
RE: Fix Leaking A/C : )
How Air Conditioning Works
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[align=center]You might have pondered (while stuck on the M60) how the air conditioning actually works, or perhaps you have never given it a moment’s thought. Just in case you are curious, let us explain it to you.
Air conditioning like it says “conditions” the air. It not only cools it down, but also reduces the moisture content, or humidity. All air conditioners work the same way whether they are installed in a building, or in a car. The fridge or freezer is in a way an air conditioner as well. Air conditioning is a field in it’s own right, but we’ll stick to the main points or a car’s air conditioning and the main parts used and a few hints to keep the air-con system running properly.
A number of people don’t realise that turning on the air conditioning actually reduces the number of miles per gallon of your car. There is energy used in removing the heat and moisture from the air in the car, and this consumes petrol because of the extra engine load.
Air conditioning’s main principles are Evaporation and Condensation, then Compression and Expansion. To the engineer and physicists they talk of thermodynamics – but we’ll explain it in our own way here:
Evaporation: You may have noticed that if you rub a little surgical spirits on the back of your hand, then your hand will feel cold. Why is that? It’s evaporation. It is because the spirits on the back of your hand start to evaporate. As the spirit evaporates, it takes away heat from the surface of your skin.
Condensation: Have you ever noticed when somebody walks in from the cold into a take-away wearing glasses, their glasses steam up? Why is that? It’s condensation. The moist air of the take-away cools as it contacts the cold surface of the glasses and the air has less capacity to hold moisture, so it condenses into water on the glasses.
Heat of Compression: Have you ever noticed when you pump up a bicycle tyre with a hand pump, that the end of the pump gets hot? This is because the energy that you have put into the air by pumping it has not only compressed it, but has also caused the air molecules to push closer together so giving off heat with the friction.
Compression: At some point all gases will eventually become liquid. An example of that would be a can of deodorant – it’s liquid inside the can (because you can hear it when you shake it) but is a gas when it comes out and hits your underarm. The pressure inside the can is higher, so the propellant inside is liquid.
Cooling by Expansion: Going back to the deodorant, you will notice also how cold it feels – that’s because the propellant has just expanded in volume quickly.
Anyway, enough about takeaways, armpits and surgical spirits, but those are the basic ideas that are easy enough to explain. The important question is how does all this fit into making your car's vents blow cold?
Hard tubing and flexible hoses connect all the actual components of the air conditioning in your car. Evaporation and condensation, expansion and compression are the physics of why it works. There are five main components to the whole system, namely the Compressor, Condenser, Receiver-dryer, Expansion valve, and the Evaporator. [/align][align=center][font=verdana,tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif,sans-serif][size=-1]
[b]The fluid that passes around the whole system is the refrigerant. The refrigerant can evaporate at a low temperature, and then condense again at
#3
04-13-2008 | 12:10 PM
RE: Fix Leaking A/C : )
[align=center]During my travels in Cyber `Space, I ran into another[/align][align=center]good article on A/C's[/align][align=center]by[/align][align=center]
[/align][align=center]
[/align][align=center]
Automotive Air Conditioning Systems
Today, as we drive our automobiles, a great many of us, can enjoy the same comfort levels that we are accustomed to at home and at work. With the push of a button or the slide of a lever, we make the seamless transition from heating to cooling and back again without ever wondering how this change occurs. That is, unless something goes awry.
(Article Continues below)
Since the advent of the automotive air conditioning system in the 1940's, many things have undergone extensive change. Improvements, such as computerized automatic temperature control (which allow you to set the desired temperature and have the system adjust automatically) and improvements to overall durability, have added complexity to today's modern air conditioning system. Unfortunately, the days of "do-it-yourself" repair to these systems, is almost a thing of the past.
To add to the complications, we now have tough environmental regulations that govern the very simplest of tasks, such as recharging the system with refrigerant R12 commonly referred to as Freon® (Freon is the trade name for the refrigerant R-12, that was manufactured by DuPont). Extensive scientific studies have proven the damaging effects of this refrigerant to our ozone layer, and its manufacture has been banned by the U.S. and many other countries that have joined together to sign the Montreal Protocol, a landmark agreement that was introduced in the 1980's to limit the production and use of chemicals known to deplete the ozone layer.
Now more than ever, your auto mechanic is at the mercy of this new environmental legislation. Not only is he required to be certified to purchase refrigerant and repair your air conditioner, his shop must also incur the cost of purchasing expensive dedicated equipment that insures the capture of these ozone depleting chemicals, should the system be opened up for repair. Simply put, if your mechanic has to spend more to repair your vehicle - he will have to charge you more. Basic knowledge of your air conditioning system is important, as this will allow you to make a more informed decision on your repair options.
[b]S[size=3]hould a major problem arise from your air conditioner, you may encounter new terminology. Words like "retrofit" and "alternative refrigerant" are now in your mechanics glossary. You may be given an option of "retrofitting", as opposed to merely repairing and recharging with Freon. Retrofitting involves making the necessary changes to your system, which will allow it to use the new industry accepted, "environmentally friendly" refrigerant, R-134a. This new refrigerant has a higher operating pressure, therefore, your system, dependant on age, may require larger or more robust parts to counter its inherent high pressure c
[/align][align=center][/align][align=center]Automotive Air Conditioning Systems
(Article Continues below)
Since the advent of the automotive air conditioning system in the 1940's, many things have undergone extensive change. Improvements, such as computerized automatic temperature control (which allow you to set the desired temperature and have the system adjust automatically) and improvements to overall durability, have added complexity to today's modern air conditioning system. Unfortunately, the days of "do-it-yourself" repair to these systems, is almost a thing of the past.
To add to the complications, we now have tough environmental regulations that govern the very simplest of tasks, such as recharging the system with refrigerant R12 commonly referred to as Freon® (Freon is the trade name for the refrigerant R-12, that was manufactured by DuPont). Extensive scientific studies have proven the damaging effects of this refrigerant to our ozone layer, and its manufacture has been banned by the U.S. and many other countries that have joined together to sign the Montreal Protocol, a landmark agreement that was introduced in the 1980's to limit the production and use of chemicals known to deplete the ozone layer.
Now more than ever, your auto mechanic is at the mercy of this new environmental legislation. Not only is he required to be certified to purchase refrigerant and repair your air conditioner, his shop must also incur the cost of purchasing expensive dedicated equipment that insures the capture of these ozone depleting chemicals, should the system be opened up for repair. Simply put, if your mechanic has to spend more to repair your vehicle - he will have to charge you more. Basic knowledge of your air conditioning system is important, as this will allow you to make a more informed decision on your repair options.
[b]S[size=3]hould a major problem arise from your air conditioner, you may encounter new terminology. Words like "retrofit" and "alternative refrigerant" are now in your mechanics glossary. You may be given an option of "retrofitting", as opposed to merely repairing and recharging with Freon. Retrofitting involves making the necessary changes to your system, which will allow it to use the new industry accepted, "environmentally friendly" refrigerant, R-134a. This new refrigerant has a higher operating pressure, therefore, your system, dependant on age, may require larger or more robust parts to counter its inherent high pressure c
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