My R134 experience-So far so good

[JMac11]

Went with a Serpentine Setup on my 84, new 4Seasons Compressor. Really fretted over the whole new condenser issue but figured to try the OEM unit.
New O rings, Blue ford Orifice, 8 oz ester oil and 3 cans and a bit of r134, probably close to 42 oz by best guess. Line pressure finally settled about 24 Low and 245 high, Ambient temp was about 80, passenger side vent temp- 37 Degrees.

Think I am still going to put a shutoff valve on the Heater line and add LT1 Dual electric fans out of want to more than need. Hope it holds up to the Tallahassee Summers 95 degrees/ 95% humidity.

[tucsonjwt]

I had my 76 and 83 converted to 134a and noticed that the cooling capability was noticeably diminished, but the trucks still kept cool. However, in the AZ desert summer heat of 110 degrees +, the R12 was a lot better. Of course, we now have an EPA directed new refrigerant (HFO-1234yf), so you may get to do your conversion over again. At least this will cause an end to all global warming (correction: now called "climate change", since that global warming thing did not really happen - yet). The feds are taxing 134a to discourage you from buying it.

Owners of 1994 and newer cars, this is the time to fix your air conditioner. Not just because warm summer days are coming (hurray!) and RockAuto has AC compressors, condensers, evaporators, and other AC parts that we are eager to sell. Fix your AC because you will soon officially be joining the owners of 1993 and older cars in having environmentally unfriendly and expensive refrigerant under your hoods.

In 1994, R-12 (branded as Freon) refrigerant was replaced with R-134a in new vehicle AC systems. R-12 had contributed to holes in the earth’s ozone layer. Production of new R-12 was banned in the United States and most other countries. The price of recycled R-12 skyrocketed. R-12 smuggling became as lucrative as drug smuggling. The last time I had an AC system charged, the R-12 cost $60 a pound.

Now R-134a is on the chopping block because it has a “global warming potential” (GWP) of 1400. Carbon dioxide is the baseline with a GWP of 1. This means R-134a is a greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming 1400 times as much as an equal amount of CO2.

Regulations now specify that refrigerants have a GWP of less than 150. New vehicles in Europe are required to have low GWP refrigerant starting this year. In the US, low GWP refrigerant will be phased in from 2013 to 2016 depending on the vehicle manufacturer.

The preferred new refrigerant is something called R-1234yf. It has a GWP of only 4. It requires special lubricating oils and handling equipment. It is also slightly flammable. AC fittings will be changed to help prevent the mixing of R-1234yf with R-134a.

This time around the production of the old refrigerant, R-134a, will not be banned. But R-134a will be federally taxed so its price is forced up from about $10 a pound to about $40 a pound, the expected price of R-1234yf. The tax is intended to further discourage people from attempting to use R-134a in one of the upcoming new cars designed to use R-1234yf.

This means refrigerant for the typical two pound R-134a AC charge will cost $80 instead of $20. That lost $60 might buy an AC O-ring set, an AC receiver drier or help pay for labor or other needed air conditioning parts. If your AC system needs work or frequent recharging, you will likely save some money by fixing it sooner rather than later.

Tom Taylor,
RockAuto.com

[hatzie]

I've used Propane "R290" for years. It cools better than R134 and it's almost free. If you care Propane R290 beats R-1234yf with ODP=0 and GWP=3. I don't worship at the altar of Human Created Climate Change.

Before you jump on the "It's flammable so we need to protect you." bandwagon. Some food for thought.

R-134a IS FLAMMABLE at just above atmospheric pressure (5 PSI). The vehicle A/C low side pressure is well above that and the compressor oil can light even if the R134 doesn't. Burning R134 produces hydrogen fluoride (hydrofluoric acid). That stuff etches glass gents. I don't want to breathe it.

The A/C only uses 1.5lbs or so of propane R290 gas. Our single fuel tanks hold 113-142lbs of liquid gasoline. Most accidents don't result in fire even with all that flammable liquid onboard. The NBC debacle required a model rocket engine to light the leaking fuel from the "dangerous" sidesaddle fuel tanks.

R290 doesn't produce phosgene or hydrogen fluoride when it burns either... R12 & R134 do.

End of my Frank Hill rant.

[Pyrotechnic]

That's too bad. Might be a good time to pick up a few cans of R134A before they jack the price up? I noticed at Walmart they have a huge stack of it probably for the summer A/C repair rush and it's still cheap.

[dropd80s]

Thats very interesting, where did you get the idea to run propane in place of more traditional refrigerants? Im going to do some research.

[thepenguin99]

They are already jacking the price. Last year it was $5 a can at big lots. This year $8. I will be picking up a case or two at least before it goes any higher.