What To Do When Your Vehicle AC Stops Working

26 April 2021
 Categories: Automotive, Blog

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The air conditioning in your car or truck is vital if you live in a hot climate. The air conditioning can stop working for many reasons, so if you are experiencing problems with the AC in your car, taking the vehicle to an auto air conditioning service or repair shop is often the best way to fix it. 

Refrigerant Level

One of the most common reasons for auto air conditioning to stop working is low refrigerant levels in the system. The refrigerant is added to the system and pressurized, so if a leak develops over time, the refrigerant levels can drop, and the air conditioning system will not work properly. 

The auto air conditioning shop can recharge the system for you, but if you have a leak and it is not repaired, the refrigerant will leak again, and the system will eventually stop working. If you suspect the system is low, have an auto air conditioning repair shop check the pressure for you to verify the problem before recharging the system. 

If the refrigerant level in the system is low, the repair shop can do a leak test on the system that involves adding some dye to the air conditioning system, pressurizing the system completely, and looking for areas that the dye is leaking from. This will tell the technician where the problem is so they can repair it properly. 

Repairs And Recharging

Leaks in auto air conditioning systems are most common around fittings and in the evaporator. Still, you can replace the evaporator with a new one, and the fittings that are leaking can be taken apart and new seals installed in them. Once the leaks are remedied, the auto air conditioning tech can recharge the system with new refrigerant and recheck everything for leaks. 

If the system is tight, the technician will use a system that removes all the air and water from the lines and replaces them with refrigerant. It is crucial that the air is removed during this process because it does not compress at the same rate as the refrigerant, so air in the system can cause pockets in the lines and problems when it gets to the compressor. 

While there are many air conditioner recharge kits on the market that allow you to refill your air conditioning system at home, they do not address this issue and can only be temporarily effective. The kits do not let you check for leaks or other problems in the system, so while they are inexpensive, the correct way to deal with any auto air conditioning problem is to take your car into a shop with the right tools and equipment to do the job properly.

Check out websites like https://www.lakesideradiatorandautorepair.com/ to learn more.