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Technology Stocks : Intermagnetics (IMG) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Mark Shaw who wrote (2773)	6/15/1998 1:26:00 PM
From: Gerald Thomas	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 3448

Here's the annual Nora Carter article... Air-conditioning retrofits will be tricky Nora Carter FOR THE JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION 620 Words 4343 Characters 06/12/98 The Atlanta Journal - The Atlanta Constitution S;02 (Copyright 1998 The Atlanta Journal / The Atlanta Constitution) Most pre-1994 vehicles used R-12, better known as Freon, as the refrigerant in their air-conditioning systems. But because of efforts to protect the ozone layer, the chemical has not been manufactured since 1995, and the supply is rapidly dwindling. As these older A/C systems require service and repair, you eventually will be confronted with the option of retrofitting (using an alternative refrigerant) your car's air-conditioning system. One thing all of the replacement refrigerants on the market have in common is they all require some modification to your existing A/C system. What refrigerant and retrofit is right for your car and your bank account? You might want to carefully weigh the following before you plunk your money down. The two most commonly used refrigerants, R-12 and R-134a, are unmixed, pure refrigerants. Although each requires separate service/recovery equipment, most shops have invested in the tools and supplies to service them. Both of these refrigerants can be completely recycled unless contaminated by either each other or another chemical. Cesar Pascual, a local Automotive Service Association shop owner, meets regularly with the Bottom Line Impact Group, comprised mainly of other ASA shop people around the country. He, the group and shop owners around the country unanimously agree they will not service any vehicle containing refrigerants other than R-12 or R-134a. The reasons? Original equipment and aftermarket air-conditioning component manufacturers will not warranty any A/C parts using refrigerants other than R-12 or R-134a. And the shops are not going to incur the additional cost of different chemicals and equipment every time a new refrigerant hits the streets. Some refrigerants are now calling themselves safe * substitutes for R-12 and R-134a. Some, primarily FRIGC/FR-12 and Freeze 12, are likely to be aggressively marketed. These products probably would work well as replacements for R-12. Their claims on price, performance and ease of conversion seem to be valid, but my main concern with them is serviceability and availability. Their chemical construction and subsequent service have very little acceptance in the automotive repair field. FRIGIC/FR-12 and Freeze 12 are blend refrigerants. They use a combination of chemicals to achieve cooling. Each requires its own service/recovery equipment, tools and supplies. Neither can be recycled. They must be recovered in containers and shipped back to the manufacturer for disposal. That means serviceability of A/C systems containing this stuff will be extremely limited. If your air conditioning conks out in the middle of Kansas or Wyoming, the rest of the vacation could well be spent with the windows down unless you can find a shop that has this particular refrigerant setup. Even if you've decided by now that the new alternative refrigerants are not for your car, you're not out of the woods yet. Used vehicles, especially those from auto auctions or buy here/pay here lots, are prime candidates for a cheap and easy retrofit. It is a good idea before purchasing any used vehicle to have its refrigerant content checked along with the standard used-car check-out. The standard procedure in most shops for a customer who needs A/C service will be to identify, or "sniff," the vehicle's refrigerant. If anything other than pure R-12 or R-134a is detected, the vehicle will be sent away. It's up to the customer to find a shop that will work on the system. We have all purchased products that appeared inexpensive or economical, only to find the replacement part costs astronomical, if available, or that service was nonexistent. Nora Carter, who has 26 years of experience in the auto repair industry, is an automotive instructor and an ASE master automobile technician/L-1. Write her in care of Wheels, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, P.O. Box 4689, Atlanta, GA 30302. Or send comments online to nora@admin2.dekalb .tec.ga.us or 2wrenchs@ bellsouth.net I0607 * End of document. I think she has it right about Frigc and Freeeze 12 all the other Snap accepted blends have heavy concentration of r-22 in them...