[pattywagon]

I live in arizona and we all know how hot it is here, for those who don't 100 degrees is around the corner. My E is not shooting out ice cold air anymore. I don't want to take it in and pay a ridiculous amount when I've heard its not that hard to do it yourself. Any tips or suggestions cause I'm not real sure on what I am doing, never done it before.

 

[BigTzElement]

Air conditioning systems are a closed loop system. If your system is not "shooting out ice cold air" then you have lost refrigerant. (not freon)

Which means you have a leak somewhere in your system. My first wag would be the condenser coil.

If it a small enough leak then yes refrigerant can be added to make the system run properly again.

My suggestion is to take it in to get leak checked. BTW, almost any mechanic can put gauges on your system and tell you right away if it is low on refrigerant.

 

[slimerdogs]

Its a R134 system and if you have not worked on one before I would highly suggest on having a AC professional take a look at it. Like the last post you may have a leak or the comperssor has failed ect. If you put too much refrigerant in it you could do some damage or worse a line blow off but usually a pop off vent goes off first. A lot of places will run a AC special to check out the system.

 

[lizzurd]

I live in arizona and we all know how hot it is here, for those who don't 100 degrees is around the corner. My E is not shooting out ice cold air anymore. I don't want to take it in and pay a ridiculous amount when I've heard its not that hard to do it yourself. Any tips or suggestions cause I'm not real sure on what I am doing, never done it before.

If you don't know what you are doing take it to a professional. As has already been stated you can do alot of damage if it is not recharged properly.

I don't know about the laws where you are...But where i am it is illeagal for anyone but a certified a/c technician.

 

[pattywagon]

cool yea it was ice cold when I bought it in October but haven't used it since, the dealer I bought it from said it wasn't covered under my warrenty so I thought I would take a shot at it myself, well maybe I won't, I'd hate to have to pay a mechanic more money cause of damage I caused. Thanks for the advice.

 

[Hathi]

A/C maintenance

cool yea it was ice cold when I bought it in October but haven't used it since, the dealer I bought it from said it wasn't covered under my warrenty so I thought I would take a shot at it myself, well maybe I won't, I'd hate to have to pay a mechanic more money cause of damage I caused. Thanks for the advice.

An A/C tech instructed me to use the A/C once a month every month, for a few minutes in order to circulate the lubrication oil in the system, and thus prevent seals from drying out, which causes leaks. Seems odd doing so in winter, particularly after brushing a ton of snow off your car, but the rational is sound.

As a result, I run my A/C routinely, as a simple maintenance task. Five minutes, and a few extra drops of gas.

Scangauge gurus can weigh in here on the additional expenses incurred. :grin:

 

[Picturetaker]

I worked as a ASE certified HVAC tech for many years. In the days of R-12 every season some one would try and charge the AC with one of the quick and easy charge kits and without knowing they would try and charge from the high pressure side of the system, and the small hand held container of Freon would blow up like a grenade. In later years the container had expansion room built into the bottom of the can and fill valves had check valves built into them. But this did not keep someone from getting hurt or damaging the system to the point of costing more to fix the system than the professional would of charged. Let the pro leak check and fill the system to the right spec and you will be cool and trouble free.

 

[awdhonda]

There is a common place that the leaks can be at on the E. it is in the front of the car there is a little ac cooler, like the small raditor. it has no protection from rocks. unfortunately it has been brought to hondas attention, and still seems to be a problem, and is also not covered under warranty. it is very expensive to replace. you can make a small grill gaurd that will help protect it though. here is a picture to point out where it is. not to good of a close up but if you want a better one let me know.

 

[slimerdogs]

That is a common problem for the E as its out in the open and subject to rock damage. Most owners go for the Home Depot grill mod.

 

[Flat Lander]

I haven't tried this on a R-134 system yet, but I have done it on my R-22 home HVAC. I had a small pin hole in the "A" coil. I called a friend that works for a HVAC supply house. He said that they have a product that is introduced into the system just like refrigerant is, but it acts like the products that you use in your radiator to stop leaks. It finds the hole and once it hits "air", it cystalizes. He brought a can over, put it in, charged my HVAC and I haven't had a leak or any problems for 3 years now.

He said that most HVAC companies won't tell you about it because they want to sell you a new system rather than just a service call. I'm not sure if it works with all refrigerant or just R-22. Surely you can do a little research online to find out.

Of course, the gutter guard mod can greatly reduce the risk of this happening again if your condensor is the culprit and was actually damaged from road debris. It could be something as simple as an o-ring or bad hose/hard line. As others have said, I would recommend taking it to a professional. It might cost a little more, but it will be troubleshot and repaired fast and with a warranty.