It is blowing air but not cold air. I had the freon conversion done a couple of years ago and it worked fine up until this spring.

I remember when I used to push the A/C button that the drain on the motor could be felt and heard. It's not doing that now. There is no change at all when I turn on the A/C button or when I turn it off.

Could this be a simple problem like a fuse? Does anyone no what I should check? Has anyone had A/C problems recently?

Thanks,
Mark C.

 

Don't know about the older maximas but most AC systems work like this:

When you pused the button before, it would engage the ac compressor clutch and start the flow. That is the drag you felt.

Now when you press it, nothing right? Just the fan blower. The compressor clutch is not engaging (ie.. turning the compressor) Why?

1) No freon. Since freon is also a lubricant, there is usually a safety system that won't allow the clutch to engage when the freon is low(as to not damage the compressor bearings)
2) Maybe a fuse (as you mention)

 

Now that you mention it, that is exactly the same problem I had with my home heatpump. Just the fan with no cold air. When it was refilled with freon, the compresser engaged and the A/C started working normally.

Thanks, Jeff... that's a good place to start.

 

Mark
Look for visible signs of oil around air conditioning lines and fittings. that is an indication of a leak. If it is true, your freon is low then you have a leak somewhere in the system. Make sure if you have it serviced that they locate the leak before charging it up or you will be paying again and again for the freon.

 

Thanks for the suggestion.

Is it true that if your freon is low, then you more than likely have a leak? Someone told me once that freon doesn't get used up, it usually is only lost through leakage.

 

yes that is correct. an air conditioning system is a closed system. once it is charged you should not have to recharge it again any time soon. after a long while you may lose some due to compression and alot of air conditiong terms I will not bother you with but bottom line is,,if you have to recharge it dont let nobody tell you otherwise, you have a leak. If you know anyone with nitrogen, a nitrogen regulator, and a vaccum machine. I could tell you how to check it yourself.

 

With a maxima it could be a simple low gas level or a electrical problem.
a small leak is some thing that needs atttention once a year.quicker than that you would see some signs of oil stain.except inside the cooling unit[evaporator].
most of he problems I see are compressors and the high pressure side parts[condensor and hoses].

For the low gas switch to work the level is above 26-31 PSI.I would expect 80-100 psi on a 20 deg day.if it is too high it will also turn off.and if there is blockages in the system the compressor will run for a second the turn off as the pressure goes hi/low.There is also on some a temp sencor on the compressor these fail like a fuse..

more common electrical problems are the thermostat[termister and amp] ,Relays,compressor magnetic coil.The fan must work for the a/c to go so check the speed resistors.

A/C GASSES are blended so often the god bits leak out and just leave a hohum gas.I been caught with large bottles that have been sitting as the gasses seporate and the good stuff goes to the top but the bottles empty from the bottom.we had to roll a bottle around the workshop durring the degas mode.

 

This was the problem. A can of coolant and it's back to blowing cold again. Thanks for the advice.

 

you said you did the conversion but im a little confused. are you running freon (r-12) or are you running r-134a? if youre running r-12 where did you get it from and how much was it?

 

The conversion was from r12 to the r134, and I paid about $5 for the can. (Kit was about $30)

The last price I saw on freon around here was $80 a can a couple of years ago.

 

R-12 is currently 18 bucks a can from advance auto parts............if you have the recovery license.