Good point! It is important to keep using it at least now and again through the winter, Keeping the PAG oil circulating keeps the seals from drying out and all that expensive gas escaping.....I'm told that the cost of refrigerant has quadrupled in the last couple of years...
Aircon/blower Smell
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Shall I say it... ahhh why not...
tell her to get out and walk...
tell her to get out and walk...
Your doing well, the old A4s are pretty reliable but I’ve given up on the AC system long back on my 2001 B5. Every repair was £400+, normally a puff of smoke from under the bonnet in really hot conditions.
This makes sense and I’ll start doing it.
So oil is circulating when the AC is on. Does it make a difference to the passage of air through the ducting? Or does it always go through the evaporator? At what point does the evaporator kick in? As soon as you turn the dial to the cold side or does it have to be right down?
never had AC in a vehicle so trying to figure it out what is exactly happening. I was surprised that you can have the AC switched on even with the blower set to heat.
Think of the AC as a separate system to the heating. If AC is on, compressor will be circulating refridgerant and PAG oil.(the compressor will do it's own thing regards pressure) Then you have the normal engine cooling/heating system just like most vehicles. Now most systems are climate control, setting the temperature on the dial will cause your control unit to blend warm and cold via the positioning motors in the heater box. I think that's it in basic terms. As regards the AC in winter, it does just need to be run now and again to allow the oil to circulate and all the seals to stay lubed/swollen and therefore sealed. Does that sound a bit filthy?
The only issue I’ve ever had with it was that the clutch pulley end piece fell off. The bolt had backed itself out and disappeared. The plate was there caught on the undertray. I bought a new piece from a supplier as it showed a bolt but they didn’t supply the bolt! Ended up buying an A2 compressor for £20 and using the bolt out of that, thread locked it and used the original plate.
The old mechanical clutches did cause problems, dropping to bits, ripping splines off shaft of compressor. Not actually sure what the newer vehicles have? is it the one with like a rubber cush drive? and the compressor itself goes into a central position to cut the pressure? It's been a while....this may be a bit of codswallop...
Aircon units de-humidify the air that passes through them, so you get air with very little moisture content passing over the windscreen. This strips the moisture off very quickly, especially if you use it with the heater on full.
This is also why some people get dry throats and eyes in air conditioned vehicles.
It’s also why vehicles with aircon have a drain out onto the road to get rid of excess moisture.
Pete
This is also why some people get dry throats and eyes in air conditioned vehicles.
It’s also why vehicles with aircon have a drain out onto the road to get rid of excess moisture.
Pete
If I remember correctly, it may rob you of about 5hp when working hard......My memory isn't always the best....
Pete is bang on the money about it working as a drier.....You'll notice the pool of condense under it on hot/humid days....
Pete is bang on the money about it working as a drier.....You'll notice the pool of condense under it on hot/humid days....
yes have the exact same problem i add a drop of carpet cleaning air freshener to the water
This might help The fridge side of the Air-con is totally sealed from the air in the van it just passed over the cold evaporator coil. called an evaporator it turns saturated icy cold liquefied refrigerant back into gas / vapour to go back to the compressor to be re pumped the expansion of liquid going back when squeezed breaks the valves and pistons but Gas can be ... like deodorant aerosol can being squirted out a can but inside the coil/ radiator ..... the refrigerant gas and oil mixed like a froth. the oil is to lube the compressor bearings BUT also the oil Lubes up the seals on the compressor shaft stopping gas leaks if you RUN YOU AIR CON ONCE A WEEK you wont probably ever loose your gas .its the only place a sealed system can leak ... of course a joint or pipe can but that's a fault not a normal system . So with your AC on close off the recirculated air bring fresh air into the van
use re-circ air to bring temp down quicker but turn it off ... before turning the engine off turn off you AC let fresh out side air blow over it let the high pressure side equalize inside your system and fresh air to dry it a bit
if you smoke run AC on recirc turn car off come back to the car a while later and run it again on recirc it stinks and yes bacteria can be bad in the coil drip tray
AC is just your fridge indoors but with fans added Building Chillers, Beer coolers, All the same same gas near;y same system very near same pressures just Differant designs But that's another story for another day
how do i know.... im an air con engineer or more so was
Thanks @Mud Digger, so basically make sure recirc is off for a bit before turning off ignition.
is the coil drip tray accessible? Maybe I need to clean it out?
is the coil drip tray accessible? Maybe I need to clean it out?
Probably no more than driving around with the windows down.
That's the thing probably No access to it at all and always run you AC on fresh air you have a pollen filter filtering the air. Brief recirc to bring temp down quick but put fresh air on and shut down the A/C before turning off engine. The coil could frost up slightly with no fans running with the pressures equalizing in the system just adds more water in the drip tray then your van sits there weeks.... but you see the pattern every time you shut down and walk away
the A/C comes on with heating your screen.... its to help Dehumidify the air its blowing warm air over the chilled coil making condensation that runs out the van there's a cartridge you set off in the van for cleaning the coil
autoglym looks ok Autoglym Air-Con Cleaner: Amazon.co.uk: Car & Motorbike
this is cheaper and i highly rate Meguires cleaning and waxes
Meguiar's Whole Car Air Re-Fresher Odor Eliminator Mist Black Chrome Scent Air Bomb 59ml: Amazon.co.uk: Car & Motorbike
Meguiar's Whole Car Air Re-Fresher Odor Eliminator Mist Black Chrome Scent Air Bomb 59ml: Amazon.co.uk: Car & Motorbike
www.amazon.co.uk
This is the one I used - K2 Pro Klima DOKTOR Air conditioning Cleaner Foam fresh A/C Refreshener 500 ml – Car Service Kits UK
It’s a foaming one. I took out the pollen filter and gave the evaporator a good covering.
the thing I can’t work out is that since doing this Cold Blower plus AC smells fine. Cold blower, no AC still smells a bit of old socks. This is without recirc on in both cases. Surely the air coming in from outside Passes through the pollen filter and evaporator in both cases?
It’s a foaming one. I took out the pollen filter and gave the evaporator a good covering.
the thing I can’t work out is that since doing this Cold Blower plus AC smells fine. Cold blower, no AC still smells a bit of old socks. This is without recirc on in both cases. Surely the air coming in from outside Passes through the pollen filter and evaporator in both cases?
I do exactly this too, my ac is on 365 days a year, it makes zero difference to my mpg whether its on or off ( maybe would if it was working hard to produce and blow cold air all the time but I live in Scotland so not much chance of that happening)
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