How to Perform Maintenance and Check-up on Your Car's Air-conditioning System

A car's air-conditioning unit is among the essential parts of the vehicle. It provides you comfort by distributing cold air within the car's interior. However, as with the other more essential parts of the car, the air-conditioning unit needs maintenance as well. A few months ago, we visited an auto service center to have our air-conditioner fixed and maintained. Let me share some of the things my mechanics did and some ideas they shared.

First and foremost, cleaning the unit is essential as clogs and dirt can block the cold air resulting in a much hotter air coming out of your vents or probably none at all. A telltale sign is water dripping or coming out underneath the dash by the evaporator. They need to clean the hoses, tubes and the evaporator. And of course, they can check the Freon level if it's sufficient enough. They will have to replenish it though after the cleaning.

They should also check the belt on the compressor. It could produce a squeaking sound much like the ones you hear on the fan belt. If your compressor is old, there's a chance that the disc, where the belt is, may need maintenance. Or in the worst case scenario, you probably need to replace the compressor which is the most expensive part of the air-conditioning system.

We also had an issue with the fans that blow the air through the vent. Before we came in, we were really having a hard time turning the fan on. I can hear the compressor and the idling of the engine going up but there's no air coming out of the vents. Our car has another fan at the back for the passengers there and it was running fine.

I immediately thought that it was just the fan underneath the dash and I was right. The mechanic removed the fan and adjusted the coils. It was already too old and it should be replaced however, he was able to bring it back to the way it was, so he claims, and it actually did the trick and the fan started working fine again after.

Dirt within the vents can also prevent cool air from blowing out into the vehicle. Aside from that, it can damage the fan especially if the object is hard. Make sure you remind the mechanic to help you clean it. I tried it myself and it was quite difficult. First of all, it's underneath the dash and it took me forever just taking it out. I got off worse trying to install it back especially to the side vents.

The general cleaning and maintenance done on our car took more than 2 hours and there were 2 of them working the air-conditioning system. They had to remove some of the parts in order to clean them. They advised me to have the air-conditioning system checked and cleaned every year to ensure the system is working properly. Afterward, there was just really cool air coming out of the vents and you can smell the scent of a newly cleaned air-conditioning system. Nothing felt more comfortable than driving quietly with cool air circulating inside the vehicle under the heat of the sun.

Sources:
Air-conditioning mechanics
Dallas Service Center - Tomas Morato, Quezon City, Philippines

Wikipedia - Air conditioning
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_conditioning