Air Conditioning

The Tax Man has always treated vehicle air conditioning as a luxury.   A new vehicle with air conditioning is automatically assessed a $100.00 premium destined for the government’s pocket.  Interestingly enough, it is difficult to buy a vehicle without it.  This goes to prove that just owning a vehicle is now considered a luxury.  Once you have had a vehicle with air conditioning, it can definitely seem like a necessity. The secret to successive long, cool summers, is to keep that A/C conditioning system properly maintained. 

 

Your vehicle’s air conditioner is a complex system made up of many components spread throughout the vehicle.  The main components are the: compressor, condenser, evaporator and a device to control the refrigerant flow.  These components are connected together by a series of pipes and hoses. The condenser is mounted in front of the vehicle’s radiator. It looks like the radiator and absorbs rock and bug hits.  The condenser releases the heat, removed from the passenger compartment, to the outside air passing over it.  The evaporator, shaped like a miniature condenser (and surrounded by ducting), sits under the vehicle’s dash board.  Its purpose is to absorb the heat coming into-or being circulated - within the interior.

 

The compressor, driven by a belt and resembling an alternator, circulates refrigerant in a closed loop-through a series of hoses, pipes and valves-from the evaporator to the condenser and back. (A small amount of oil is also circulated in order to lubricate the compressor.)  As it circulates, the refrigerant changes state from a liquid, to a gas and back to a liquid.  This results, miraculously, in cold air blowing out of the vehicle’s dash.

 

 To operate efficiently, an air conditioning system must contain sufficient refrigerant.  Unfortunately, the system never remains completely “closed”.  From the day a vehicle is made, refrigerant starts leaking out.  The most common A/C problem is insufficient refrigerant, resulting from leaks in the system.  Using an A/C system with low refrigerant can result in a major repair bill. The ultimate test of an air conditioning system is “…will it produce cold air on a hot day?”

Waiting for that hot day and finding out that your system is not up to par, is not the best approach.  An annual Spring Nu-Tech A/C System Inspection  will contribute to efficient operation and prolonged component life and the possible avoidance of future failures and costly repairs. 

 

 Nu-Tech's A/C System Inspection

 

Nu-Tech’s A/C Inspection will follow procedures set out by the Mobile Air Conditioning Society Worldwide.  Our technicians will:

 

1. Inspect the compressor, its drive belt, associated hoses, and metal lines.

2. Assess the condenser.  A clean condenser ensures optional efficiency and keeps pressures as low as possible in hot weather.  It will keep the load on the compressor as low as possible and reduce wear and tear.

3. Test operation of fans, the air selection door (at its outside and recirculating air positions), and temperature control system.  

4. Inspect vehicle’s cabin air filter-if equipped.

5. Performance test the A/C system.

6. Establish the refrigerant’s charge and purity.