A/C - To clean or not to clean

[kenz]

Hi guys, would just like to get your opinion on whether to have my perfectly running and still untouched A/C system (60,000 km na car ko) cleaned or not. My biggest concern is the compressor which costs big time cash if it fails! Are there any preventive maintenance that can be done to the compressor? Like change oil or something? I've read in previous threads people advicing to just wait till the A/C stops cooling then have it checked. Is it possible to just have the compressor serviced? Need ur advices lang po. Salamat!

[benchph1]

of course clean! it will cost much more when it fails. just observe if it does not cool as much as it used to then it is time to have it cleaned. take to mario reyes. a/c expert

[jackaroo]

Agree, clean it- what model is the car? If dirt builds up on the evaporator, this may lead to rust then pin holes on the evap which means replacing it. If you don't have any cooling problems, then they may just clean the evap and reuse the drier and expansion valve.
No need to replace the compressor oil if you never leaked freon- a good shop should take a pressure reading first before disassembly.

[tebs]

have it cleaned!

change oil na rin. hmm... better give it a general tune up. para nasa north pole ka na uli! :P

seriously, mas ok na binibigyan mo ng maintence trips ang a/c mo. mas magastos kung hihintayin mo pang masira yan or pag hindi na lumamig yan

[garyq]

no brainer, have it serviced. clean evaporator, condenser, vacuum lines, add compressor oil, add new freon.

[yebo]

sabi nya "whether to have my perfectly running and still untouched A/C system" so may nakalimutan kayo ...

first rule of maintenance: if it aint broke, don't fix it! (there is a more colorful way of saying this but tsikot.com will censor it ehehehe)

you're asking about cleaning the evaporator di ba? before you have it cleaned, check it first if it is dirty. a dirty evaporator will most probably have a low air flow. malakas pa ba ang hangin? if in doubt then look at it! also, if you do not smoke in your car, if you never ever drive with the windows open, if you keep your car clean, then most probably the evaporator is still clean.

your compressor? well check the sight glass. if there are no bubbles in the glass after the compressor has ran for a few minutes, then your compressor has no leaks, is pumping as it should, and there are no contaminant gases in the system. have the system pressures checked also. if the pressures are ok then that confirms the assumptions of the 3rd sentence of this pharagraph. so why have it fixed?

the trouble with messing up with your a/c is that automotive aircon shops in pinas are not very thorough in their jobs. if your a/c system is opened for evaporator cleaning or charging oil, then that is the time you get the problems! subok na yan, di ba you hear of people going back and forth to the a/c shop to have their a/c fixed after a minor job lang. the reasons are varied but the most notorious ones are: 1 - they do not vacuum the system; 2 - they introduce incondensable gases (AIR) when charging oil or refrigerant. NOW, IF the a/c shop will give you a guarantee that they will vacuum the system (this takes half a day!!!), IF the a/c shop can guarantee that their charging units (for oil and refrigerant) are not contaminated, or will be flushed before they connect it to your a/c system, IF they will not take any shorcuts in servicing your a/c, like not replacing the filter-drier (sorry dun sa nag-post sa taas pero the filter-drier must be replaced) then by all means have it serviced.

BUT IF they can not guarantee that then that means they will not vacuum the system, they will leave incondensible gases inside, they will take shortcuts because they want you out of there pronto so they can serve another customer (after taking your money of course!) then refer to first rule of maintenance above.

[Belisarius]

I have a W123 benz and it seems to take forever to have the ac serviced, you have to take the whole dash out just to get to the evaporator and the guys at the shop tend to lose parts in the assembly and disassembly. The screws and nuts are not correct and even some are missing, so anybody can recommend a shop that does benz its a 1981 W123 200D thanks

[AC]

para sakin din.. dont clean it.. hehe.. baka magkaproblema kapa after cleaning... hehe... some car companies actuali... suggest every yr.. or 10t km... yata.. hmm... parang pure business talaga.. and para saakin..iba yung factory installed kesa sa na touch na.. kahit pa cleaning... kung walang leak.. or kung ndi pa nawawala lamig dahil sa dumi.. no need for cleaning

[kenz]

thanks sa replies mga bro, btw my car is a city type z. i drive most of the time with the temperature setting in the middle. i seldom drive during midday. and when i remember, i usually turn the blower to a higher setting (w A/C off) before calling it a day.

yebo,

parang ikaw yung nag advice before na if ain't broken don't fix it. di ba?

btw, taga cebu me so unfortunately i cannot avail the services of your favorite A/C mechanics there in manila. i plan to have it done in the casa na lang. advisable ba peeps? may denso service center dito. which do you think is better with this sort of job.

frustrating talaga if you have something serviced thats not broken but will just end up amajor headache. this is my biggest concern. would very much appreciate additional inputs. thanks all!

[revoGSX]

agree ako kay yebo... madaming car aircon shops dito sa pinas na hindi marunong maglinis .. mas lalo lang lumalala yung problem.. usually less than 6 months lang at maba-busted na yung aircon....

if ever na kelangan na talaga linisin, kay mang mario ako pupunta dahil subok na ng mga taga tsikot.. kung nasa malayong lugar, sa denso service center na lang ako kesaa sa mga tabi-tabi na aircon shops... take note din.. meron mga fake na denso aircon shops hehe.. sa cebu, ang coolmate denso sa bejar bldg MJ cuenco ave ang authorised na shop (based sa revo manual namin)

guys, paano ginagawa ang leak test and paano nila nalalaman kung saan ang singaw? nilalagyan ba nila ng soap sa labas ng mga pipes?