When you drive around in the summer heat there are time when you aren’t moving quickly at all and keeping your windows down only seems to make things worse for you. When this happens you may turn to the air conditioning system of your vehicle to help you stay cool, but if you turn it on and nothing happens you feel miserable, and hot. It’s important to maintain your A/C for the summer months to allow this system to keep you as cool as you can be during the hottest time of the year; here is some guidance to help you recharge your system on your own.
Your car has an air conditioning system that works the same as the one found in your home or office. First the gas is passed through a compressor that compresses it and pushes high temperature and high pressure gas to the condenser. In the condenser the gas is cooled enough to turn it into a liquid, but it’s still at a high temperature and high pressure as it moves to the receiver dryer. In this unit the liquid is filtered to ensure no debris is present which would eventually ruin your air conditioning system.
Next the liquid enters the expansion valve where it is slowed down and the pressure is lowered which also lowers the temperature as the liquid makes its way into the evaporator. In the evaporator you have fans that blow ambient air, which is at a higher temperature than the liquid in the evaporator coils, across the evaporator coils which then absorb the ambient air and its temperature allowing cooler air to flow into the cabin of the vehicle. During this process of heat transfer the refrigerant absorbs the heat and then turns the liquid back into a gas to begin the process all over again as it delivers the warmer gas to the accumulator to then head back to the compressor.
In order to replenish the refrigerant needed inside your air conditioning system you need to pick up a kit from your local auto parts store that will allow you to do the job. You also may want to pick up a thermometer so you can see the results of this process. Once purchased you need to turn on your engine and then turn on your air conditioning system on its highest setting.
You should be able to visibly see your compressor working, but if it’s not the most likely reason is due to the system being low on refrigerant. You need to locate the low pressure port which will be marked with a cap that has an “L” on the top of it and it will be located on the low pressure side of the system. Most of the refrigerants used will help to seal off any leaks as well by increasing the size of the rubber parts where most leaks occur. Connect the fitting on the recharge hose after disconnecting the fitting from the can of refrigerant. Set the proper setting on the recharge hose gauge to be in the temperature range you have outside.
When you look at the dial if the reading is in the white or green area of the gauge you are ready to move forward, but if it’s in the red there is something else wrong with your air conditioning system. You need to have the pressure come up to the area between the two thin red lines on the gauge.
After taking this reading you disconnect the recharge hose from the vehicle and reconnect it to the bottle of refrigerant. Reconnect to the air conditioning system and follow the instructions on the bottle to bring the system to the correct amount of refrigerant so that your vehicle will be properly charged and be able to keep you nice and cool all summer long. Don’t forget to put the cap back on your car’s system and you should be ready to go. Be careful not to overcharge your system as you will then need to have the excess refrigerant removed from the system professionally.
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