ok my cousins 95 ex seadan a/c is not cold anymore and i was wondering how to recharge the a/c myself instead of takin it to the dealer so what do i need to do?

 

if it needs recharing then it has a leak but if you go to autozone or any supply store like that they have kits to recharge really easy (r134) just plug it in and run your car it comes with instructions.

 

To properly charge the system, you idealy should use a manifold gauge set, these are about $40 at Harbor Freight. It allows you to read both the high and low pressure side while charging.

A can tap, about $6. R134a, about $8/can. 94 civic takes about 1.3 cans, but I cannot remember the exact charge.

You could vacuum out the system to remove any moisture, the vaccum pumps run anywhere from $100 to several hundred, I paid $225 for mine, or you could rent it. I also replaced the receiver/dryer ($40) and the thermal expansion valve ($30), added a little bit of PAG oil ($12). You want to vaccuum the system after removing and replacing the receiver/dryer and the txv. Of course, you want to evacuate the current R134a before disco'ing any of the system.

refernce this thread: https://honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=1665946

edit: re to above. the most common leak is the schrader valves on the low or the high side. Either that or the compressor is leaking, or your condensor or the evaporator is leaking from a pinhole leak.

 

^^ that thread is great.

Drumminforev really is the a/c gangstar.

40 degree a/c would be ridiculous!!!!

 

thanks for the help guys

 

You could save yourself some money by not buying all the things like the vacuum pump, manifold gauge set etc; replace the receiver/dryer yourself, add some PAG to make up, source the leak if there is one and then just take it to a shop to have them vacuum the system out and recharge. If you can't find the leak, when the shop puts the system in vacuum, it should hold it for a while. If vacuum falls you have a leak.

 

You don't have to have a leak to need a recharge. The refrigerant molecules are small enough to slowly leak through the hoses, so in theory, all cars have a slow leak.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by t0p_sh0tta &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">You don't have to have a leak to need a recharge. The refrigerant molecules are small enough to slowly leak through the hoses, so in theory, all cars have a slow leak.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Beat me to it.

Regardless of a big leak, A/c tends to get less cold over time. I don't have any leaks in my a/c system, it only blows about 65 degrees. Factory should be a little colder.