The warm season is accompanied by frequent calls by car owners to service workshops for such a service as diagnostics of the car’s air conditioning system, as well as troubleshooting. Consider the reasons for this phenomenon.
External factor
For the effective functioning of any system, there is one important condition - it must work continuously, without undergoing prolonged downtime. This axiom is relevant for the air conditioner in the car, as well as for all its main components. Russian conditions are such that this system does not work the entire cold season, which affects its serviceability in the most negative way. Most often, seals dry out, which leads to a loss of their tightness. That is why it is often necessary to diagnose a car air conditioning system.
To avoid forced downtime of the system, it is required to regularly perform a very simple procedure - turn on the air conditioner every week for about 10-20 minutes.
Difficulties
The happy owners of large jeeps of foreign manufacture equipped with an additional rear circuit of the air conditioning system have a rather significant argument in favor of conducting a regular spring check. The flow of refrigerant to the rear circuit is carried out through pipes and hoses that pass along the bottom of the vehicle. Usually one or two of our winters is quite enough for their transition to a completely terrible state. And for the constant maintenance of the entire structure in working condition, it is necessary to pay increased attention to it, as well as regularly inspect the highways.
What are the causes of malfunctions?
Repair of a car’s air conditioning system may be required as a result of exposure to many factors that the driver usually feels “in his own skin”. Cooling may be absent for a number of reasons:
- The most common case is a low level of refrigerant, the amount of which must strictly correspond to the level specified in the instruction manual. To do this, the pressure in the air conditioning system of the car is checked, after which the problem is eliminated.
- The operation of the cooling unit can be severely affected due to engine overheating.
- A technical malfunction, due to which a lack of fresh air to the condenser is formed, which is associated with many different reasons.
- Various problems with the electrics, which are most often easily eliminated by changing the fuse, but there are cases and "harder".
- Compressor failure is usually caused by prolonged seasonal downtime, because its internal surfaces tend to rust without supplying circulating oil.
Troubleshooting
It is immediately worth noting that independently fixing such malfunctions is rather problematic. This is even fraught with the appearance of even greater difficulties. It requires professional equipment and special tools, as well as much more.
Even a simple diagnosis of freon leakage can turn into a complex and lengthy process. It is generally unrealistic to pump refrigerant at home, as this requires a special filling console. Using it, proper tightness is ensured, and the pressure gauge needle shows the current pressure level in the line, etc. The volume of the charged refrigerant is also strictly regulated. If it will be less or more, then this can cause quite serious trouble. The system may not turn on at all, or fail due to a lack of oil, and increased pressure often causes compressor failure, rupture of the mains and other problems.
That is why it is quite reasonable to trust qualified specialists in this case. This will save money and time in the future, since the occurrence of complex breakdowns as a result of self-intervention is a fairly common occurrence.
Another case
The air conditioning system of the car in hot weather works almost constantly. That is, when the car just starts, the work of all elements, as well as active cooling of the air, already begins. In all pipes and ducts, condensation forms, that is, a certain amount of liquid. During the ride, a very large amount of plant pollen, sand, dust, small particles of automotive rubber, and much more, enter the car interior with air. And all these notes are hardly useful.
How is everything going?
Most of all these impurities are delayed by the cabin filter, that is, they do not directly enter the car, but remain in the duct and air conditioning tubes. When you reach the destination, and then turn off the engine of the car, all the bacteria, plant pollen, fungal spores, and so on, which the car’s air conditioning system has filled up, are in the most favorable environment for them. It is there that their interaction with condensate takes place, as well as very active reproduction. The next trip is accompanied by the fact that you breathe in all this with air, which is harmful to the body, and for children it can even serve as a catalyst for allergies. The cabin filter saves for a while, but gradually it gets wet from condensation. After that, the process of germination of spores of plants and fungi begins in it, mold forms, which makes the filter itself a new source of health hazard. This causes dampness in the cabin, unpleasant odors, as well as a feeling of shortness of breath and dustiness.
How to deal with this?
The main advice is this: whenever the trip ends, do not turn off the engine. Turn off the air conditioner for a couple of minutes. But after you can turn off the engine. This time is enough for the temperature emanating from the unit to evaporate the condensate and the tubes to become dry, which makes reproduction of bacteria inside the tubes very difficult.
The air conditioning system of the car needs to replace the filter twice a year. It is best to do this in the spring, even before the active flowering of plants begins, as well as in the fall, before treating roads with various reagents. The cabin filter is best used with a carbon filter. Its main advantage is that a dense layer of activated carbon delays and absorbs many tiny particles of pollen, dust and metals, which allows you to keep the air in the cabin as clean as possible. Such a filter is replaced once a year.
Alternatives
It so happens that unpleasant odors of dampness appear and do not disappear in the car, and the dusty effect of the cabin does not pass at all, while changing the filter does not give any result. This only says one thing - the air conditioning system of the car is captured by mold. In this case, cleaning is necessary using a special antibacterial composition. This can be done in a certified center where qualified specialists will provide all the necessary services in this area. You can do the work yourself, for which there are special spray cans on sale that have detailed instructions for use. With their help, in just half an hour of work in the garage, the car's air conditioning system can be cleaned. Such remedies are very effective.
Other problems
Flushing the air conditioning system of the car is required due to the fact that the main lines and components of the equipment are located in a special way. Many of them are placed under the bottom of the car, that is, where there are special pollution. The risk of dirt accumulation in the system can be significantly reduced provided that its condition is constantly monitored. But it is almost impossible to avoid pollution, which is why regular flushing of the car’s air conditioning system is required. Using this procedure, the formation of corrosion, which is usually caused by moisture and dirt, can be prevented. Corrosion causes intensive wear of elements and parts, as well as the formation of holes through which freon leaks can form. If its level drops below a certain permissible norm, the equipment will overheat and fail.
How to flush the car air conditioning system?
The process takes several steps. First you need to pump refrigerant out of the system. When all the connecting parts of the system are disconnected, the sealing rings should be removed and no longer used. Then the expansion valve is dismantled for further flushing or replacement. Pressure gauge valves must be closed. Then R-11 is pumped into the lower filling hole of the evaporator until the substance flows out of the outlet. The inside of the evaporator must be completely filled with liquid, and when a large amount begins to flow out through the top, the valve must be closed. After a five-minute wait, R-11 can be released. These manipulations should be repeated several times in a row.
Cleaning the air conditioning system of the car from R-11 is carried out using substance R-12. For this, the temperature of the component parts of the equipment should be 24 degrees Celsius or more. If as a result of the complete release of R-11 from the system, pressure remains in the car’s air conditioning system, then the release work should continue in thirty minutes.