The air conditioning unit in your vehicle operates similarly to a refrigerator. Your vehicle’s air conditioning unit is designed to move heat from the inside of your car to outside of it.
Your vehicle’s air conditioning unit has six major components:
- The refrigerant carries heat. In modern cars, refrigerant is a substance called R-134a. Older cars’ refrigerant is called r-12 freon, which is more expensive and difficult to find than R-134a.
- The compressor circulates and compresses refrigerant within the vehicle’s cooling system.
- Your vehicle’s condenser changes the refrigerant from gas to liquid and expels heat from the car.
- The expansion valve (sometimes called the orifice tube) is a nozzle that simultaneously drops the pressure of the refrigerant liquid, meter its flow and atomize it.
- Your vehicle’s evaporator transfers heat to the refrigerant from the air blown across it, cooling your car.
- The receiver or dryer filters your vehicle’s refrigerant and oil, removing moisture and other contaminants from them.
When you start your vehicle’s air conditioning system, the compressor works by putting the refrigerant under pressure, sending it to the condensing coils, which are generally in front of your vehicle’s radiator. The condenser expels hot air to outside the car, cooling the air within the vehicle. When this happens, the refrigerant is cooled, and it changes form a gas to a liquid, which then passes through the expansion valve and to the evaporator.
Once the evaporator receives the liquid-state refrigerant, it loses pressure and cools the remaining liquid. The vehicle’s blower moves air across the evaporator and into the vehicle’s interior. If you keep your air conditioning unit turned on, the refrigerant goes through this cycle continuously.
If any of these components is damaged, it can turn your cool car into a furnace during the summer months. Your vehicle’s air conditioning issue could be as simple as topping off refrigerant to replacing a valve. When your air conditioning unit is not working as it should, bring your vehicle to us. One of our trained air conditioning specialists will inspect your car’s air conditioner, all lines, the evaporator and the compressor for leaks and wear.
For all of us on the Gold Coast, we know that a properly working air conditioner can be the difference between a pleasant drive around town, and a miserable run to your destination. Luckily for everyone , if you’re Air Conditioner is operating less than perfectly: we are just a short drive away. We will restore your air conditioner to its former glory, and save you the sweat and misery of driving without Car AC in the QLD heat.
Many folks don’t know exactly how an air conditioner works. We at GCSRC will not only fix your car AC, we can also explain to you what was wrong with it and how to avoid it in the future. We are aware that few things are as frustrating as constantly going back to fix a problem you don’t understand, and we give you assurance that we will fix your AC problems the first time.
If your AC in your car just isn’t as good as it used to be, you may have low refrigerant pressure. Depending on the situation this can be as easy as topping off your system (recharge AC refrigerant) or it may indicate a leak somewhere in your car air conditioning system. Something you can do yourself is check your Compressor, Condenser, fittings and hoses for any kind of grimy or oily build up. If there is excessive build up, you may have a refrigerant leak. Some refrigerants have an ultraviolet dye added, giving the fluid a greenish tint and making it easier to spot.
Another issue to watch out for is a failing compressor. When the compressor goes it can shed pieces of itself and run them through the condenser, hoses, accumulator and evaporator; creating a buildup of parts and refrigerant which will quickly destroy your new Compressor if it is not flushed out. So if your air conditioner is making some strange knocking or ticking noises or makes a squealing sound when you turn it on. Bring it in to us and we will get your car ice cold again in no time
If your air conditioner simply needs to be refilled with Freon (the lifeblood of your AC) have no fear, we can get you cruising in comfort whether your Air Conditioner uses the old R12 Freon or the new environmentally green R134A system.