Any information would be greatly appreciated.
Any information would be greatly appreciated.
I want my air conditioner charged with R12, lol. I can't find any shops here in Texas that use it, nor in California where I live. But if Austin doesn't want it, I'll sell it to you.
Rufus, I think you have to buy the r12 from eBay and then find someone to service it. HAven't looked lately, but I did see that it was available. I'm in the same boat and trying to decide weather to junk the working AC or not. I hear the conversion to r134 is expensive and cool at best.
You can still get r-12, but it will cost you. If yours is just low, buy a couple cans off of eBay or craigslist and use a cheap piercing tool to put it in. That's what I did before I had the fancy equipment and it worked well. Just clean the sight glass on the drier/receiver, turn the AC on (both front & rear if equipped), fan(s) on high, set RPMs to about 2k, then get under and while watching the sight glass add the freon to the inlet port. Watch the sight glass for bubbles & stop adding when the bubbles go away. When you get back inside the van it should be blowing cold. Tim
http://www.onecraigs.com/craigslist-...3985j5093957j9
http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from...erant&_sacat=0
Some of the eBay sellers will say you need to verify you're licensed, so I usually avoid purchasing from there. I have chanced it before though and nobody ever pressed the issue (even the ones that said they would). I think they list that way to avoid scrutiny. Tim
PS: If pressure in your system is really low, compressor won't initially come on (there's a pressure switch in the system that prevents compressor when low). Assuming it's only that, the compressor will come on when pressure starts coming up, then it will suck it in quicker. That's what my 89 did when I got it. It was too low for the compressor to run. Half way through the 1st can it took off & system was full & working by the end of the 2nd can. After charging that once, I used that AC for years without another need for freon. Tim
You can also use a jumper wire to bypass the pressure switch. I helped with a few a/c services at a shop I worked at as a teen and I remember doing it that way when the pressure was too low. This was when you could still get r12 at the local Kmart.
Lol, one of the old 14 oz cans I found in a box of stuff from ~30 years ago still had a K-mart price sticker on it..........$1.77
Ok, so if my system is low, how many cans should I buy to fill up one van? I have two vans that need a recharge.
I haven't been able to find anyone in New Mexico yet who will deal with the R12 any longer. Mine is still blowing cold but I know is going to need some love this spring before things heat up too much. I was thinking of using the Redtek (?) R12 replacement in mine as the reviews I've been reading mostly sound positive... and cold. Let us know what you decide to do. -Harv
I was skeptical at first, but after much research I did give it a go on our old Jag.
We drove it for years without the AC working and on a whim I tried Redtek one day.
Results were very satisfactory.
Ice cold air and no leaks (it has a heavy Pine sent, that is unmistakable).
A conversion would have meant new receiver/dryer at the very least and I didn't want to spend gobs of money, only to find a failed evaporator or condenser (both common failure points)
Repair quotes were all over the place with the cheapest interrogation being over $100, the Redtek experiment only cost $60.
The charging parts that come in the kit are a little on the cheap side and I did have to heat the cans to fully empty them (wrapped with a hot/wet towel)
But the price was right, as was the outcome.
Just remember, it is Propane based, so all appropriate safety precautions should be exercised.
BB
Was reading through this and thinking about going the RedTek route but searched my local craigslist for R12 just to see and I found someone with seven 14 ounce cans. My system is intact so with any luck I can get it charged up and I'll be set for years. Just picked up a can of Toyota OEM charge oil on e-bay too.
I bought a charge adapter off ebay a while back. Should I try this myself or find a shop that is certified in R12?
Last edited by brentlehr; 04-21-2016 at 03:10 PM.
I happy to report that after 2 cans of R12 my AC is blowing cold! Only took 6 years and 90K miles to get around to it. It took about 30 minutes to take both cans, and about 10 minutes or so before the compressor kicked in on the first can. Seems much longer than when I've charged new vehicles. Could this be a sign of a worn compressor or just a result of it sitting so long?