Regardless of what kind of vehicle your drive, your air conditioning system uses some type of refrigerant to create cool air. Before 1995, most air conditioning systems used R-12 Freon refrigerant. However, in 1995, the Environmental Protection Agency recommended automakers begin using R-134a refrigerant due to environmental concerns regarding the use of R-12 Freon. So if your vehicle still uses R-12 Freon and you need to recharge your refrigerant system, you may want to consider converting your R-12 Freon system to an R-134a refrigerant system.
Drive your vehicle to an R-12 Freon professional. Instruct the professional to evacuate the R-12 Freon from your air conditioning system. According to the EPA, only licensed professionals are allowed to purchase or handle R-12 Freon.
Instruct the licensed professional to remove the R-12 mineral oil from your air conditioning system. Unless you are sure your vehicle uses R-134a capable oil, you need to replace the oil in your air conditioning system. Instruct the professional to fill your air conditioning system with R-134a capable oil or POE, which is capable for R-12 and R-134a systems.
Drive your vehicle to a safe location. Turn off your engine while you prepare the supplies needed to convert your R-12 system to an R-134a system. Remove the A/C service fitting adapters from the R-134a conversion kit. Distinguish between the low-side adapter and the high-side adapter.
Open the hood of your vehicle. Locate the low-side service port on the refrigerant hose that connects the accumulator to the compressor. Attach the low-side adapter to the low-side service port. Locate the high-side service port on the refrigerant hose that connects the condenser to the compressor. Attach the high-side adapter to the high-side service port.
Remove the recharge hose and the pressure gauge from the recharge kit. Read the manual inside the recharge kit to see if you have a low-pressure or a high-pressure kit. A low-pressure kit is designed to connect to your low-side service port. A high-pressure kit is designed to connect to your high-side service port. Attach the recharge hose to the R-134a refrigerant can. Attach the pressure gauge to the recharge hose. Open the recharge hose slightly to allow refrigerant to fill the recharge hose. Close the valve once the recharge hose is filled with refrigerant. Attach the open end of the recharge hose to the appropriate service port.
Turn on your vehicle. Turn on your air conditioning system, and adjust the settings to maximum. Allow the vehicle to idle with the air conditioning system running at maximum. Check your dashboard to see if your engine is running at 2,000 rpm. If not, feather the gas pedal until your engine reaches 2,000 rpm.
Return to the hood area of your vehicle. Stand the refrigerant can upright. Open the valve fully to allow refrigerant to flow into your air conditioning system. This may take several minutes. Monitor the pressure gauge on the recharge hose. Close the valve on the recharge hose once pressure gauge reaches the appropriate reading for the service port. A low-side service port should display a pressure reading between 25 and 40 psi. A high-side service port should display a pressure reading between 220 and 235 psi.
Disconnect the recharge hose from the service port. Store the remainder of the refrigerant in a safe place.
