DIY Car AC Repair

In today’s world, DIY projects are so much easier than they were for previous generations.  DIY or Do-It-Yourself used to be daunting because you had to teach yourself a new task and learn how to use new tools.  Now it only takes a second to find an instructional video or website to then teach you how to do just about anything including car AC repair!  Speaking of great videos, we want to invite you to join our friend Clark in the garage as he tackles the answers to some hard questions about your vehicle!

DIY car AC repair may be a relatively difficult topic to find help on and that is because repairing your AC system may take special training and equipment to diagnose and repair.  In reality, there is really only one problem with your air conditioning system that you can repair yourself without any special tools and that is a small system leak.

Diagnosing a small leak for DIY car AC Repair

1. Look for a slow loss of cooling ability
2. Look for small leaks
3. Check system low-side pressure

If your system has a small leak that you may be able to repair yourself it will almost always manifest itself as a slow loss of cooling power.  It may take longer for your system to cool down your vehicle after it has been sitting in the sun or you may notice that your car air conditioner is blowing hot air from the vents rather than cool air. Either way, this slow loss of cooling ability is one indication that your system is losing refrigerant.

Once your system is blowing warm you can try looking for evidence of leaks in your system.  The refrigerant in your system escapes as a gas so you won’t be able to see it, but your system has oil entrained in the refrigerant that will leave a residue around the leak point that dirt will stick to.  Try checking the places the refrigerant lines connect to components like the compressor, the dryer, and the condenser as well as where the hard lines are crimped to soft hoses. Lastly, check the condenser fins for damage and possible punctures in the tubes.

If you suspect your system is low on refrigerant you will need a small can of refrigerant to add back into your system.  Many of these will come with a gauge to measure the low side pressure. A low pressure on the low side of the system can indicate a loss of coolant and the need for recharging.

If you’ve got all of these symptoms together then you’ve got a small leak and that is a car AC repair you can do yourself without any tools!  All you need is a can of Red Angel A/C Stop Leak aerosol and a few minutes to inject the stop leak product through the low side port in your system.  Red Angel A/C Stop Leak will find the leak and create a seal inside your system to keep it from losing any more refrigerant.

You can find Red Angel A/C Stop Leak at any of our partnering local auto parts stores like:

• AutoZone
• Advance Auto Parts
• Bennett Auto Supply
• CarQuest Auto Parts
• NAPA Auto Parts
• O’Reilly Auto Parts
• Pep Boys
• Fast Track
• Bumper to Bumper Auto Parts Specialists
• S&E Quick Lube Distributor
• DYK Automotive
• Fisher Auto Parts stores
• Auto Plus Auto Parts stores
• Hovis Auto & Truck Supply stores
• Salvo Auto Parts
• Advantage Auto Stores
• Genuine Auto Parts stores
• Bond Auto Parts stores
• Tidewater Fleet Supply
• Bumper to Bumper Auto Parts
• Any Part Auto Parts
• Consumer Auto Parts

Pictures Provided By:

car_ac_repair.jpg – By coffeekai – Licensed by Getty Images – Original Link