Air conditioning

[Eyersey1234]

Can anyone in the Hull/East Yorkshire area recommend an air conditioning service company? I'm planning on getting the Focus air conditioning serviced as I've no idea when it was last done. Thanks all.

[Evercross]

Eyersey1234 said:

Can anyone in the Hull/East Yorkshire area recommend an air conditioning service company? I'm planning on getting the Focus air conditioning serviced as I've no idea when it was last done. Thanks all.

Air conditioning is one of these things that is best left alone if it isn't giving you any problems. The 'servicing' idea is just another money generating scheme.

If you are finding the cooling a little weak then it may need the gas topping up, but I would only expect this to happen to a system after 8-10 years. Significant gas loss before then means the system is leaking.

If it is smelly then change the cabin filter (ideally for a carbon one) and get an antibacterial spray and spray some into the cabin air intake and then then rest into the car and leave the ventilation system running on re-cycle for 10 minutes or so with no-one in the car and the windows closed. Smells are caused by mould in the vents and on the outer surface of the air-con evaporator so fiddling about with the aircon gas will have no effect on them.

Edited by Evercross on Friday 30th August 09:37

[Eyersey1234]

Thanks, the air con works fine so if that's the case I'll leave it for now then.

[Mr-B]

If it is cooling the car then as said previously I would leave it alone. I had my car re-gassed quite a few years ago and regretted it. The first firm messed it up totally and said there was a problem with (it was working OK when I took it in, maybe not ice cold but working) and they had to remove all the gas because it was dangerous. WTF!?! Didn't charge me so that was the only saving grace. Took it to another firm who checked it and said it was OK and finished the job but ever since then it has been much noisier than it was originally.

Moral, if it ain't broke.

[Evercross]

Mr-B said:

If it is cooling the car then as said previously I would leave it alone. I had my car re-gassed quite a few years ago and regretted it. The first firm messed it up totally and said there was a problem with (it was working OK when I took it in, maybe not ice cold but working) and they had to remove all the gas because it was dangerous. WTF!?! Didn't charge me so that was the only saving grace. Took it to another firm who checked it and said it was OK and finished the job but ever since then it has been much noisier than it was originally.

I'm willing to bet that the first firm hooked your car up to an automated machine and fired it up and then realised they didn't have your car in the uploaded data files on the machine so didn't know how much gas and PAG to put back in, so rather than take the numbers from the sticker under the bonnet and configure the machine manually (because they weren't competent enough to know how to) left it empty.

Too many places are offering 'services' that just involve letting a machine go through a cycle that is supposed to do it all for them. As soon as something unexpected happens they are clueless.

Either that or they were intentionally stealing your aircon gas!!

Edited by Evercross on Friday 30th August 12:46

[Mr-B]

Evercross said:

I'm willing to bet that the first firm hooked your car up to an automated machine and fired it up and then realised they didn't have your car in the uploaded data files on the machine so didn't know how much gas and PAG to put back in, so rather than take the numbers from the sticker under the bonnet and configure the machine manually (because they weren't competent enough to know how to) left it empty.

Too many places are offering 'services' that just involve letting a machine go through a cycle that is supposed to do it all for them. As soon as something unexpected happens they are clueless.

Either that or they were intentionally stealing your aircon gas!!

Edited by Evercross on Friday 30th August 12:46

You are probably right on all counts. They most likely did just have a plug in and forget do it for you jobbie and got an error code. I vaguely recall the second garage saying they probably overfilled in the first instance and got an error or something and rather than try and fault find just got rid of me. The first garage was I recall one of these fixed price places that didn't charge if they couldn't improve the performance of the air con, the second garage were a bit more specialist.

[littlebasher]

Evercross said:

I'm willing to bet that the first firm hooked your car up to an automated machine and fired it up and then realised they didn't have your car in the uploaded data files on the machine so didn't know how much gas and PAG to put back in, so rather than take the numbers from the sticker under the bonnet and configure the machine manually (because they weren't competent enough to know how to) left it empty.

Too many places are offering 'services' that just involve letting a machine go through a cycle that is supposed to do it all for them. As soon as something unexpected happens they are clueless.

Either that or they were intentionally stealing your aircon gas!!

Edited by Evercross on Friday 30th August 12:46

Exactly what happened to me at a local fast fit outfit that had an offer on

Put the wrong model in the machine, which tried shoehorning in twice the amount of gas it was supposed to hold. Condenser went pop as a result, so went from working air con to knackered in the space of 20 mins.

Cost me £250 to sort as naturally they washed their hands of it (after refunding me and pointing to their terms and conditions that absolved them of any responsibility)