Question:

Actually, when you look in the little glass window, you should see white, bubbly stuff. If it’s clear, you’re out of refrigerant. Second, you should make sure you engage your a/c compressor at least 10 minutes a week YEAR-ROUND. This helps to keep the seals from drying out and cracking, leading to leaks and loss of refrigerant. Even in the wintertime, simply turn the temperature control to warm or hot, turn on the fan, and press the AC button. It’s great because it provides warm, dry air which helps to defog the windows too. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – >’85 Prelude’s air conditioning doesn’t work for some reason. The >fan works but all I get is hot air. I looked in the little window dealy >and it seems to be clear so I am thinking the problem lies somewhere >other than lack of refridgerant. Is there something that could have come >unplugged that would cause the a/c to fail ? I have an unplugged wire >that I have no idea what plugs into. Looking for quick fixes before I >take it in. >note: I know very little about air conditioning.

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>’85 Prelude’s air conditioning doesn’t work for some reason. The >fan works but all I get is hot air. I looked in the little window dealy

I had a similar problem on my ‘89 Integra ZXi. Turned out that some clown had shoved a piece of paper down the air vents and it was stopping the car from changing the air intake path. She eventually blew (or burnt!?) herself clear. Stephen.

Response:

‘85 Prelude’s air conditioning doesn’t work for some reason. The fan works but all I get is hot air. I looked in the little window dealy and it seems to be clear so I am thinking the problem lies somewhere other than lack of refridgerant. Is there something that could have come unplugged that would cause the a/c to fail ? I have an unplugged wire that I have no idea what plugs into. Looking for quick fixes before I take it in. note: I know very little about air conditioning.

Response:

>’85 Prelude’s air conditioning doesn’t work for some reason. The >fan works but all I get is hot air. I looked in the little window dealy >and it seems to be clear so I am thinking the problem lies somewhere >other than lack of refridgerant. Is there something that could have come >unplugged that would cause the a/c to fail ? I have an unplugged wire >that I have no idea what plugs into. Looking for quick fixes before I >take it in. >note: I know very little about air conditioning.

I once heard of someone who couldnt solve his ac problem for anything (wasnt a honda).  he got recharged, new condenser, everything.  Turns out a fuse had blown.  a 20 cent repair.

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> ‘85 Prelude’s air conditioning doesn’t work for some reason. The > fan works but all I get is hot air. I looked in the little window dealy > and it seems to be clear so I am thinking the problem lies somewhere > other than lack of refridgerant. Is there something that could have come > unplugged that would cause the a/c to fail ? I have an unplugged wire > that I have no idea what plugs into. Looking for quick fixes before I > take it in. > note: I know very little about air conditioning.

You did not mention if the electrical clutch in the compressor is working.  You should be able to hear it engage because the clutch will make a noise when it engages.     I guess you are out of gas because this is a very common problem. If the clutch won’t engage,  trace and locate the small wire that is coming out of the compressor to see if it is connected to some other wires.  If it is,  temporary disconnect this wire (should be able to find the quick disconnector to do this) and connect this wire momentarily (do not connect too long as it might "cook" the compressor) to the battery’s positive terminal.  If the engages now, it is very likely that you are out of gas.   The other way to check if there are gas in the system is to short-circuit the low pressure switch momentarily i.e if you can locate the low pressure switch (a device with the head end connected to the small refrigerant pipe and with 2 legs for cable termination – short circuit the cable legs momentarily) Usually when there is a gas leak,  one could locate the leak easily because compressor oil will leak out also at the same time.  Locate the oil patches formed on the pipes and fittings to find the leak.   When you need to charge the gas,  make double sure that the mechanic put in adequate to replenish the compressor lubricants (need about one table spoon full depending on condition).   When the air conditioner is working properly,   the smaller pipe (the discharged pipe) should feel warm and the larger pipe (the suction pipe) should feel cold. Good luck

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