How do i recharge me A/C? - Honda Prelude Forum

Qveon · 07-03-2002, 01:43 PM

I see for sale these recharge bottles at Walmart and stuff, so how do i recharge my A/C cause its not really cold anymore? 92 Si non-VTec.

PreludesR4Speed · 07-03-2002, 02:12 PM

To recharge your AC you have to get the bottles of refrigerant and a nozzle that screws onto them. Attach the nozzle to the low side port of the AC (should be the one with the blue cap) and pour the refrigerant in. A couple of problems that you may run into include the fact that any prelude made in 1992 or earlier uses the older R12 refrigerant instead of the new R134a. Unless somebody has retrofitted your AC, you are still using the R12 which is very expensive and illegal for you to charge yourself unless you are certified. You can either buy a retrofit kit or let a professional retrofit the system to R134a. The other problem you may run into charging it yourself is that if you put in too much refrigerant you will burn up your AC compressor. I would recommend letting a pro do this, a complete retrofit is usually about $150 to $200 and very worthwhile, after it's retrofitted you can get it recharged for $30 to $40 if it needs it.

Jape · 07-07-2002, 07:49 AM

Does a 93 prelude si need to be retrofitted????

G_Loc · 07-07-2002, 07:57 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Jape
Does a 93 prelude si need to be retrofitted????

no

beenerachi · 07-07-2002, 12:26 PM

YOu mention that you can overcharge your A/C on a 92, is this a concern with the A/C units that accepts R134a?

Thanks

redpreludevtec9 · 07-07-2002, 12:48 PM

how do you know if you put in to much or not?

93si4ws · 07-07-2002, 01:03 PM

beenerachi, its an issue with any pressurized system...tire pressure, oil pressure, blah blah...yes its an issue with r134a systems.

repreludevtec9 you can buy a cheapy guage from pepboys just like a tire guage but reads higher pressures. stay within spec and you're fine.

don't forget to pop in a lil caster oil.

v

Qveon · 07-08-2002, 12:21 AM

Ok so im reading my manual and it says 26.5-28.3 oz, ok so how do i tell how much psi i need? and how do i bleed the system off of air?

PreludesR4Speed · 07-08-2002, 10:08 AM

All ludes 93 and newer already have the new R134a refrigerant and don't need to be retrofitted. Like somebody else said, just buy an AC pressure gauge to make sure you don't overfill and burn up the compressor.

BlueLude1 · 07-08-2002, 10:18 AM

dudes honestly i have looked into workin on this stuff an its by far worth ur time an money to take it to a local shop ( not honda they will rape u) an have it looked at an tested for leaks. Cause ur messin with gases an thats a whole new playing field. OH an i am not saying u guys dont know ur stuff but i beleive it was either 95 or 96 when cars switched to R134a just about the time OBDII came along

Dane

PreludesR4Speed · 07-08-2002, 03:24 PM

my prelude is a 93 and it has R134a from the factory. you are right to an extent, R134a didn't become mandatory until a couple of years later, but hondas started using it in 93

G_Loc · 07-08-2002, 03:49 PM

i didnt use a gauge.

i just put in a whole can and almost a whole other one (12 ounces each and it said 23 ounce capacity in the helms). did that a few months ago and it still works perfectly to this day

93si4ws · 07-08-2002, 06:46 PM

r134a wasn't mandated until 97.

g_loc...all fine and well but not at all recommended. if someone follows your footsteps and blows their system it'll all come back to you

G_Loc · 07-08-2002, 06:59 PM

hehe, i didnt have enough money to buy the gauges.

my system was completely empty, so guessing wasnt too bad of a technique. heh, dont do it guys

CrazyKid · 07-08-2002, 11:12 PM

hmmm its asealed system, the gas jsut doesnt disappear folks... if your running out of gas in it.. there is aleak.. you need to get the leak taken car of by a pro... or your jsut hurint us all...

i wont go into a big explanation.. my dad is a refrigarnet tech... he knows about the a/c systems on cars and homes, and fridges in your kitchen.. they all use the same gases and stuff...

and those kits from pep boys are junk... thsi is one you need to go see a pro about...

concLude · 06-19-2003, 02:06 PM

ok folks, back up top.

Does anyone have some pictures? i love pictures. I wanna hit up this project tomorrow and dont have a helms. I'm willing to bet i dont have an once of R123A left in my system since i'm using the JDM compressor that cam attached to the engine. I need AC here in FL. How many bottles am i looking at? screw it where? and do i need some special tools? thanks

Side note, the jdm condensors are using R134A right?

concLude · 06-19-2003, 06:42 PM

from the looks of this thread

How to re-fill freons on 4th gen ???

sounds like you just screw 3 cans on there, no biggie, i'll try it tomorrow.

fiendracer · 06-19-2003, 07:52 PM

i think the $150 to $200 price quote was a little high. i got a quote of $100 for a retrofit and recharge. but then again, i guess it all depends on where you live and where you go. bluelude1 was right, don't go to honda, they will rape you, but we all know that right.

concLude · 06-19-2003, 10:19 PM

oil city , must be bethlahem or that other jesus city.

i'll let ya guys know tomorrow, by the way, what one is the low pass, i'm not going to rely on the napa people, but **** they prolly know better then me

Qveon · 06-19-2003, 11:46 PM

ummm...this is last summer i posted this...hehe

concLude · 06-20-2003, 08:11 AM

yeah i know, so how did it go?

jmcn · 07-02-2003, 10:57 AM

I just found this stuff if anyone's interested...

It's an R12 replacement that doesn't require a hardware swap to R134a fittings:

www.autocool-refrigerants.com

irishpilot · 07-02-2003, 12:57 PM

awesome find jmcn!!!

I may do this, if someone else does before me please let us know how it turned out!!!!

And for the peeps that are worried about overcharging there are guages that are like 6.99 and some are on the bottles to let you know when you are full