Date: Sun, 4 Apr 2010 10:34:19 -0500
Reply-To: Tom Hargrave <thargrav@HIWAAY.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Tom Hargrave <thargrav@HIWAAY.NET>
Subject: Re: Adding freon
In-Reply-To: <4BB81E81.1090601@charter.net>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
R134a will leak past the front seal of many older A/C compressors that were
designed for R12. The compressor front seal depends on an oil film to
provide a seal, the molecule size of R134a is smaller than R12 and the Freon
seeps by. If this is the case with yours then your Freeze 12 will leak &
stop working because Freeze 12 is a blend of R134a and HCFC 142. Also,
you'll need to replace the compressor with a rebuilt one rated for R134a.
Do yourself a favor and have the system checked out (again) before you start
dumping cans full of dollars into you're A/C system.
Tom
www.kegkits.com
www.stir-plate.com
www.towercooler.com
-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM] On Behalf Of
John Rodgers
Sent: Sunday, April 04, 2010 12:07 AM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Re: Adding freon
From memory (and that's pretty shakey these days - more senior moments than
I like to admit) - R12 can still be used in the system legally because of
the age of the vehicle. But R12 is really expensive, and because of that
high cost - most opt to go to the R134a. R134a is pretty cheap and can be
bought at Walmart or other stores. And - you can install it yourself.
However - to use R134a, you must install a R134a hardware conversion kit -
available from most FLAPS. Though some say there is no problem with the
R134a in these old systems, it is good to know that the R134a runs at a much
higher head pressure than the old R12 for which the Vanagon systems were
designed, and that seems to be the crux of any issues when using R134a in
lieu of R12. That given - the rules do allow for a conversion to R134a, and
after the conversion is made, you can then install Freeze 12 - a refrigerant
that approximates the performance of R12. It runs at much lower head
pressures than R134a, thereby taking the strain off of old systems. and
older compressors.
The conversion to R134a rule doesn't require you to actually install R134a,
so you can just install the hardware conversion kit, then install the Freeze
12. But to run Freeze 12 you absolutely must comply with the R134a hardware
conversion to be legal.
From memory.
Hmmm. Where did I put my glasses..............
John Rodgers
Clayartist and Moldmaker
88'GL VW Bus Driver
Chelsea, AL
Http://www.moldhaus.com
titantic01@AOL.COM wrote:
>
>
> Hello gang,
>
> Last year about the fist of April, I spent over $400.00 to get the A/C in
my '87 vanagon going. a hose was replaced and some minor things were done.
>
> Now, a year later, I turned on the a/C and it was so low of freon that the
safety switch would not even let the compressor run. I went and bought 2
cans of 134 a and a cheap gauge dispensing set up to put it in with.
>
> My question is since the compressor won't energized will I need to some
how jump the compressor clutch to make it run while filling the thing up or
will it start on it's own once I have put in enough freon?
>
> The other thing I want to know is is 2 cans enough or does that system
take a 3rd can?
>
> Thanks for your words of wisdom on this.
>
> Happy Easter everyone.
>
> Chris
>
>
>