DIY Auto Air Conditioning Repair

A car that just will not cool down makes for a frustrating ride to work in August.  When you are getting warm air coming from the vents, the go-to solution is often a “recharge” of the magic refrigerant.  And, barring any other issues with the A/C, that can do the trick.

Enter a new product that is appearing on shelves:  A simple can with a gauge that promises to have your air conditioning blowing cool air again in just 30 minutes.  Does it work?  According to most reviews, the answer is a resounding…

Sometimes.

If it truly is low levels of refrigerant, the tried and true “recharge” will do the trick.  But, it begs the question:  why was it low in the first place?  As a car gets older, the pressure levels will drop, but a drop in pressure could also indicate a leak.  Any recharge (DIY or otherwise), will eventually go down again and you’re back in the same boat.

While both professional mechanics and do-it-yourselfers have given these products favorable ratings, others do have some reasonable concerns.  Your air conditioning system has many pieces, parts, and hoses that can fail.  Some mechanics have expressed concern that if the pressure is too low or too high, you could invite other problems.  Others have noted that the product in these cans is not professional grade and could compromise other parts of the system.

All in all, if you have an old car and the expense of replacing a compressor in an A/C system doesn’t make sense anymore, you could skate by with a recharge from a professional or by using one of these off the shelf products.

But, as with anything… if something isn’t doing what you think it needs to be doing, or the problem keeps repeating itself, it’s time to visit a pro.

Stay cool!

Your Car's Air Conditioner is not Trying to Kill You

Warmer weather brings out the birds, new plants, and apparently a whole crop of new internet rumors about your car’s air conditioning.

With a little help from the American Cancer Society and the hoax debunkers at snopes.com, we can assure you that you will not get cancer from your air conditioning.

The email that has been going around claims that turning your A/C on kicks up all kinds of benzene from the air ducts and other plastic objects in your car.  It suggests that turning on your air conditioner right as you enter the car putting you in a cancer soup that is almost certain to cause leukemia. 

While it is true that benzene is a known carcinogen, and it’s nothing to mess around with, a 2007 study looked specifically at car interiors and did not find benzene, and it certainly has nothing to do with your air conditioner. 

All of this assumes your car is working well, and properly maintained.   

As a practical matter, you may wish to open the windows before you turn the A/C on so the hot air can escape.  Releasing the hot air will make sure that your air conditioner doesn’t have to work so hard to keep you comfortable. 

For more information on this rumor email or potential cancer causing chemicals in your car, learn more at cancer.org or snopes.com

The Sour Smells of Spring... from Your Air Conditioner?

Every time the weather changes from cold to warm or back again, we usually wake up some dust that has settled in the heating or cooling systems, and that's why you get that temporary aroma when the heat or the air conditioning has been turned on for the first time each season.  No big deal, and it usually works its way out after the A/C has been on for a couple minutes. 

 

But, if your air conditioning has a foul odor coming from the vents that just won't give up, you might want to investigate further.

AHHH, what is that smell?

 

Your ventilation system brings in air from the outside, then cools it or heats it.  You've got some filters in there that try to make sure it's just air going through, but it's not perfect.  If you get a smell that seems to be more like gentle aroma of the space between the toes of a marathon runner, you've probably got some bacteria in your system.  Yuck.

Spraying some disinfectant in the evaporator will usually do the trick.  That is, if you can get to the evaporator.  It's usually right behind your glove compartment, so you may need to take some stuff apart.  If you don't feel like doing that (and who could blame you), you can first try to blast the disinfectant right into the vents, then blast the air conditioning for 10 or 15 minutes.  Many times that can solve the problem. 

If you are smelling oil or gas when you turn on your a/c, you've got some bigger issues and it might be time to bring it to us here at US Automotive.

Enjoy the fresh air when you can...!  But, if it's not so fresh in your car, we hope we were able to help!