safe to disconnect A/C hoses?
 

im determined to get my AC compressor out of the car today and to do so in my garage. do i need to be concerned of any danger? i dont want to take it anywhere. I was just going to put some gloves on, cover stuff with towels and blankets and undo the hose. i dont think the A/C has run for many years but i am not sure. i think its safe to assume the system has not be recharged in at least 10 years

anyone try this at home?

According to your sig you have an 83, you can't just vent that R12 into the environment. You need to get it evacuated if there is still a charge in there.

At the very least, you need to put a guage on it and make sure there is no pressure. You'll be in for a very nasty surprise if it's not totally empty, not to mention the possibility of getting hurt.

You can check at the service ports for pressure with a guage. If there is none then it's fine to disconnect. If there is any pressure there you should have it evacuated. Any service center could check and evac if needed. Just ask them up front how much they would charge.

ok. thanks. i dont have a gauge so i guess this will have to wait

Yes, I've done it.

Disclaminer: You should probably get it properly evacuated first.

But, if you insist on doing it yourself... relieve the pressure (if any) first by depressing the high and low pressure schrader/134 fittings on the compressor. After that, you can crack open the hose fittings and then loosen the compressor mounts. You'll need to replace your receiver/drier (probably need to anyway) if you leave the hoses open to air, because the drier will absorb moisture from the air. Getting the compressor off is easy. If you notice a dark horizontal oil line on the lid of your engine compartment, that probably means you've leaked refridgerant at the compressor seals. There's a Pelican Tech Article on refitting a Nippondenso compressor with new seals and o-rings on. You'll want to flush all the oil from the system and flush and dry your rear condenser while you're in there. Alot of folks replace their old hoses with new barrier hoses at this time. Do properly recharge yourself, you'll need some A/C pressure guages to monitor the recharge and a vacuum pump to pull suction on the system prior to introducing oil/refidgerant. Do a search... there's a ton of A/C info on the 911. Jim Sims is the man in this department.

-Troy

Venting any freon into the air is illegal.

Yes I know... but I do it anyway. It's an irresponsible thing... kind of like speeding... and I have authority issues.

-Troy

lol.

I recently disconnected the compressor, condensers, etc. from my car. There was just a little poof of air that escaped the first hose line I disconnected that went to the rear condenser, and that was it. I did not use a gauge or take it to pro because 1) A/C blew warm air 2) the sight glass on the receiver/dryer indicated that there was no freon left in the system. Happy engine bay cleaning!SmileWavy

Then we are all criminals. Every pre 1995 911 that I know leaks freon to some degree = hell the pre 1989 were designed to leak freon.

My take... That ancient R12 (if there is still any left) is going into the air through 20 year old barrier hoses anyways. My A/C worked fairly well when I first purchased my car (thus it WAS charged), but I never used it. When I decided to remove the A/C a couple of years later, I placed several phone calls in an attempt to "recapture" what R12 might remain, but couldn't get any takers at all. When I became a criminal, all I heard was a very slight "pft"...there wasn't squat left, and I've been looking over my shoulder waiting for the man ever since :)

edited: ps: I see Jeremy beat me too it...:)

Being a criminal AND owning is Porche is kewl! We should all get together and have a gas venting party or something.

-Troy

Isn't there a scene like that in Blazing Saddles? Oh, wait... you were talking about A/C refrigerant....

It can also be kind of dangerous.

As it is intended, Freon gets extremely cold when changing from liquid to gas - if it is concentrated somewhere, say on your skin, it could cause some damage (frostbite).

Be careful.

Yes, you definitely need to be careful with it. It'll burn you. I cover everything up in the engine compartment and wear safety glasses and long sleeves when working with this stuff. You can vent slowly with a screwdriver tip and wear gloves. If you go slow, it won't squirt out the refridgerant in liquid form. I have a hose close by to hose everything off afterwards. I doubt your system has much pressure in it, but you want to let that out before you start cracking open the ac hoses. Your will probably just poof one time and that'll be the end of it. No worries here, if you're careful with it.

-Troy

BTW, anyone in Colorado area, I'll evac your system for free. Just PM me.

Be afraid be very afraid. Dick Cheney is on is way now........ I mean Al Gore......

Both scare the beegesus out of me.

Come on, an 83 that has not had the compressor run in 10 years has NO freon left in it, lets all be realistic here. Go ahead, loosen the lines and send me your rear condensor! That's where mine leaks. ;)