I'm going on my third cold summer with HC-12a which is a R12 replacement like the EnviroCare, there both LPG and some butane. Mixes with old R12 and oil, no issues. Was $6 a can when I bought a case.
CK5
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A/c refrigirant
- Thread starter scotto0609
- Start date
THEMCGUIRE
1/2 ton status
too late
About the inline filter. I finally installed it. When I opened the package there were 3 thimble shaped filters.
You find the one that fits the inlet on your compressor and using the enclosed hard plastic you drive it in. That was it. The screen is not very fine.
I guess if something big breaks off in you system it will catch and save your compressor but I don't think it will be very effective or that it is a true "in-line" filter...
I was just too lazy to send it back.
About the inline filter. I finally installed it. When I opened the package there were 3 thimble shaped filters.
You find the one that fits the inlet on your compressor and using the enclosed hard plastic you drive it in. That was it. The screen is not very fine.
I guess if something big breaks off in you system it will catch and save your compressor but I don't think it will be very effective or that it is a true "in-line" filter...
I was just too lazy to send it back.
It seems like the compressor is the most likely thing to break. I would maybe want the filter on the compressor outlet. Other than dessicant coming free from the dryer, the whole system is just tubing.
THEMCGUIRE
1/2 ton status
I agree that it is all tubing but I think the idea is the keep any crap from anywhere in the tubing from getting into your compressor. Thus protecting the most expensive part of the system.
THEMCGUIRE
1/2 ton status
I agree Pwagon, your right, technically.
However for me the change is needed because:
R134a is quite a bit greener. For my children I want to do my part...I can live with a little warmer to accomplish that. Sacrifice is a part of life.
R12 is now min $30 a can if you can get it. That is $120 bucks for refill which is what I need right now. Realistically, with all the regulations, you have to get a shop to do the R12 refill and they charge a lot more than $30 a can.
R134a is only $10 a can, and I can do it myself.
R12 will only get more expensive as time goes by. I plan on keeping this truck for a while since I am restoring it.
That is why I put in the parallel flow condenser to get the most out of the R134a. Also, I have a newer car that came with R134a and I have never had to complain about the a/c.
And the most important reason to stop discussing this is that it is a done deal. I have made the conversion already.
Thanks all for your help, suggestions, and comments.
However for me the change is needed because:
R134a is quite a bit greener. For my children I want to do my part...I can live with a little warmer to accomplish that. Sacrifice is a part of life.
R12 is now min $30 a can if you can get it. That is $120 bucks for refill which is what I need right now. Realistically, with all the regulations, you have to get a shop to do the R12 refill and they charge a lot more than $30 a can.
R134a is only $10 a can, and I can do it myself.
R12 will only get more expensive as time goes by. I plan on keeping this truck for a while since I am restoring it.
That is why I put in the parallel flow condenser to get the most out of the R134a. Also, I have a newer car that came with R134a and I have never had to complain about the a/c.
And the most important reason to stop discussing this is that it is a done deal. I have made the conversion already.
Thanks all for your help, suggestions, and comments.
I hear your argument. However, when someone asks for an opinion I offer one. I just wanted to add a couple more thoughts.
-Your newer car (you mentioned) is cooling well because your condenser was sized appropriately for it. Older trucks with R12 condensors do not cool as well when running on 134. The cost of R12 (even being as expensive as it is) is still a cheaper alternative than replacing your condensor and charging your system with 134. Have you priced a 134 condensor for a K5 lately?
-Greener? 134 will cause all kinds of reproductive harm, mental impairments, and is still considered to be a greenhouse gas (it contains 1,1,1,2-Tetrafluoroethane (HFC-134a)). Plus the delayed effects are still unknown (http://www.refrigerants.com/msds/r134a.pdf).
Just pointing out some facts. I hope I haven't beaten a dead horse or angered you. I just wanted to offer my perspective. Good luck with the AC system.
-Your newer car (you mentioned) is cooling well because your condenser was sized appropriately for it. Older trucks with R12 condensors do not cool as well when running on 134. The cost of R12 (even being as expensive as it is) is still a cheaper alternative than replacing your condensor and charging your system with 134. Have you priced a 134 condensor for a K5 lately?
-Greener? 134 will cause all kinds of reproductive harm, mental impairments, and is still considered to be a greenhouse gas (it contains 1,1,1,2-Tetrafluoroethane (HFC-134a)). Plus the delayed effects are still unknown (http://www.refrigerants.com/msds/r134a.pdf).
Just pointing out some facts. I hope I haven't beaten a dead horse or angered you. I just wanted to offer my perspective. Good luck with the AC system.
THEMCGUIRE
1/2 ton status
Duh, now I understand where you are coming from. I have a couple of threads going... Sorry my other A/C threads are:
1988 K5 Air Conditioning Upgrade ? and I have posted to the Parallel Flow Condenser thread
The bottom line of me sharing the other thread info is that I have upgraded my condenser and it only cost me about $77.00
Spectra 7-3642 A/C Condenser - Factory finish, Aluminum, Parallel flow and it FITS my 1988 K5 5.7l PERFECTLY!!
http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/sk.../SPI73642.html
and lol I did not say Green, I said Greener... from what I read it is better than R12 but that is a minor point.
1988 K5 Air Conditioning Upgrade ? and I have posted to the Parallel Flow Condenser thread
The bottom line of me sharing the other thread info is that I have upgraded my condenser and it only cost me about $77.00
Spectra 7-3642 A/C Condenser - Factory finish, Aluminum, Parallel flow and it FITS my 1988 K5 5.7l PERFECTLY!!
http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/sk.../SPI73642.html
and lol I did not say Green, I said Greener... from what I read it is better than R12 but that is a minor point.
Really, I don't care about the supposed environmental harm from running R-12. I've seen pictures of military buildings that used Freon fire suppression doing test dumps with 1000lbs+ of HFCs. What's a couple more 12oz cans? Nobody has manufactured this stuff for years. We just keep buying recycled material. Whether my car leaks it out this year or it sits in a bottle a couple more - it's all going into the atmosphere eventually. Even if the use was outright banned, it would keep circulating for a while. So why not use it up? It's really a question of cost.
R-134a is not a friendly material either, nor a particularly good refrigerant. It's just the one that got the nod by politicians. If you really cared about the environment you wouldn't run HFCs anyway. An R134a user looking down on an R-12 user for "green" reasons is like a 300lb guy calling a 315lb guy "fat".
Hydrocarbons cool better, require less refrigerant, cost less, leak less, run at lower compressor pressures and have no impact on the atmosphere. No need to upgrade your system, either. R-134a can burn and we ride around with pressurized gasoline all day, but it seems people are too afraid of a lb of propane/isobutane for it to get popular.
R-134a is not a friendly material either, nor a particularly good refrigerant. It's just the one that got the nod by politicians. If you really cared about the environment you wouldn't run HFCs anyway. An R134a user looking down on an R-12 user for "green" reasons is like a 300lb guy calling a 315lb guy "fat".
Hydrocarbons cool better, require less refrigerant, cost less, leak less, run at lower compressor pressures and have no impact on the atmosphere. No need to upgrade your system, either. R-134a can burn and we ride around with pressurized gasoline all day, but it seems people are too afraid of a lb of propane/isobutane for it to get popular.
