I have a 97 civic hatch and the a/c blows hot. I have never worked on Air conditioning befiore in any car and have no idea where to start.

When I turn the A/C on I do not hear the compressor turn on but the button on the dash lights up. Could this just be a bad compressor?

 

Does the condenser fan run when the A/C button is pushed with the cabin blower on?

Is fuse 17 or 56 blown?

 

Fuse 17 is not blown and I do not see a fuse 56. The fan does not turn on when the button on the dashis pressed

 

 

If fuse 56 is fine, try swapping the condenser fan and compressor clutch relays in the hood fuse box. Now does the fan run?

If the fuses and relays are fine, troubleshoot the A/C thermostat and the heater control panel.