Air Conditioning recharge cans
 

It seems like its time to recharge my cars air conditioning, and I was wondering if I should get a pro to do it, or should I go to the auto parts store and pick up one of those recharge cans, and if I do get one, which type should I get? My Honda has a stock non-vtech engine, and all other parts under the hood is stock as far as I can tell.

Thanks

Don't just go off what you think. You might not even need a recharge, it could be something else. What are your symptoms?

About the recharge:
Don't charge it yourself. You should only charge it yourself if you know what you're doing and you have the proper gauge manifold for simultaneously reading both the high and low pressure sides of the system.

Your car uses R12. Auto shops will not put R12 in your car (except maybe some smaller shops). The new standard is R134a, and you have to convert to it. Most shops will tell you that you need to change the compressor and many other parts in order to convert. It's not completely necessary. I converted to R134a without doing all that (well, actually I changed the compressor, but not for that reason... and it worked fine on R134a before I changed the compressor... long irrelevant story as to why I changed it.)

Here's what you do... buy the R134a conversion kit from the auto parts store. Drain the system into the air (don't get caught). Screw on the new fittings under the hood. Take it to the shop and have them do an evacuation/recharge (typically runs about $125). They attach a vacuum machine to suck all the old refrigerant out, then fill it back up with new R134a. Don't even mention the R12 or the conversion unless they ask.

Unless of course you do find a shop that will fill your system with R12. In that case, skip the conversion and all those other steps and go straight to the shop.


After all this you should be running A/C good... if a recharge was what it actually needed. This is why you should have the A/C inspected before taking any action. Most chain shops are offering discounted or even free A/C inspections around this time of the year.

I dont think anything is really wrong with it. When I bought it not too long ago, the guy said it would need a recharge soon, and sure enough it got gradually warmer since then. How would I tell whether or not I have a R134a system or a R12 system?

R134a started with 1994 Civics. That's how you know

What I meant was how to tell if he changed the system out already.

Look at the service ports, which are on the top ends of the hoses that lead to the compressor (near the condenser). Unscrew the plastic cap. If the part on the car has external threads and a tapered top, it's an R-12 fitting. If the part on the car has internal threads and a flat top, with a groove around the outside (like an air quick connector, it's the same concept) it's a R-134a fitting.

oh nos, you're killing our atmosphere :(

Yea, normally I don't condone something like this... but draining R12 can be a pain in the ass... lots of shops won't even do it with their machine. If you have access to a shop that will empty out your R12 then by all means go there and have them drain it.

Flat tops, internal threading, and a groove on the outside about a quarter inch wide :). As far as I can tell, there isn't any leaking going on. I'm going to look under the hood to see if the belt spins at all.

Thanks for the info guys.

Edit: All the belts are spinning, and nothing sounds sickly. I think its just in need of a recharge, but I'll have it checked out just in case.

The belt has to spin... otherwise it would snap.

Make sure the compressor clutch is engaged.
With the engine on, turn your A/C on (fan on lowest setting, a/c button lit). You should feel a noticeable slight difference in the engine's idle. Now press the a/c button to turn the a/c off while leaving the fan still running. The idle should change a little bit again. This would indicate the compressor clutch is working.
To verify this, now look at the compressor. You'll notice that while the engine is on the belt will always turn the pulley on the compressor regardless of the a/c being on or off. If you look on the driver side of that pulley, you can see that the side is not spinning with the pulley when the A/C is off. When you turn the A/C on, that side of the pulley should also rotate with the pulley. This is what happens when the compressor clutch engages.

When your compressor clutch isn't engaged, the pulley spins freely and the parts inside the compressor do not move. When the compressor clutch engages, the compressor starts compressing the refrigerant.