It's HOT and the A/C's out!!

I have a 1994 Honda Accord LX that seems to have a freon leak. At
about this time last year the A/C started making a funny noise and
pretty soon it was blowing hot air alternating with cold air for 30
second intervals. We had the A/C checked out. The mechanic said it
was
low on freon so he refilled it. He said there might be a leak and to
watch it. It worked great all winter and the first half of this
summer.

Well, last week it died again, only this time it went out a lot
quicker. I'm sure there's a leak somewhere in it.


What is the best action at this point? The car is old and has nearly
200,000 miles. I don't want to spend hundreds on it, but it is very
hot now in Utah which makes having no A/C very uncomfortable. I've
seen refill kits in the newspaper adds that claim to have leak
stopping abilities. Do those work?


I would appreciate any suggestions or words of wisdom.


Thanks

 

If it took a year to go down just add a can of coolant and see if it runs
for a while. Or take it in and pay $$$$ to have it fixed. I have had a
couple cars that would bleed off over a year. Worked that way for about 10
years...

 

In the 1994, is that R-134a refrigerant? If so, the cost of recharging (if
it passes the basic leak test) is probably worth it. I recommend against
trying the DIY recharge kits. It's just too easy to overcharge R-134a and
destroy your compressor. I was proficient at DIY recharging of R-12 systems
but really got spanked when I tried recharging my son's Acura. We shut it
down before damage was done, but only because I was listening carefully for
the beginning of slugging. A pro straightened it out and charged about $90,
which is like the tax on what a compressor replacement would have cost.

If it's R-12, you really have only two choices: take it to a professional
(because you and I can't buy R-12) and pay a couple hundred because the
stuff is so expensive now, or learn the spiritual cleansing properties of
sweating like a pig. Okay, there is another option in an R-134a conversion,
but a proper job is pretty expensive.

Don't put in "alternative" hydrocarbon products like Duracool. It is
dangerous to have flammable fluids in your A/C and is illegal in the US.
Evaporator leaks are not uncommon, and how do you feel about butane leaks
into the passenger compartment?

Mike

 

1994 is the first year for r134a on Accords (Hondas).

 

If you know somebody in maintenence who recharges and mainatains large
building A/C units that use freon he MAY be induced to recharge your
auto A/C unit. with freon.

Been there done that on my `86 Accord.(worked in a hospital.)
mred