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Oh ok.
Nitrogen (N2) is a gas at room temp and atmospheric pressures (boils at -320.4°F). I've never heard of it being used for flushing.

Flush with R141b, it boils around room temps, it comes as a liquid (N2 won't) and is used for flushing AC lines, if it hasn't been banned in your area. I used to get it from the local NAPA store several years ago, and there's a flushing apparatus that goes with it, you fill the bottle and pressurize it, and it has a hose and valve you hold up to the pipe and squeeze the trigger to purge the stuff through.




Just worry about getting them clean inside. As soon as the flush solvent evaporates -- it's gone, but make sure the contaminants are gone too.
You'll need a compressor to charge the flush bottle (if using the style above) then you could use a blowgun on the air line to blow out the newly flushed lines, just to be sure they are cleared of liquid.

You'll never get anywhere near the pressures a running AC system has, so don't worry about pressures damaging a line.

Hows that?

 
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Yeah, I ordered some of this already: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B001DKPJW0

And I got a flush kit loaned from AZ. They actually pulled a brand new one from the shelf.

Well, wish me luck man. I'll be taking a crack at all this on Monday when the rest of the parts come. Thanks again for you help.. you've been pretty much instrumental in getting my head wrapped around this for the first time. It's reassuring to know that there are people out there who will help out just for the sake of helping out.

 
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YW.
It's pretty much just a bunch of parts replacements for you right now, and being careful.
Use a swab to check the quality of your flush job, see if you need more. Cleanliness is next to Godliness!
I've even used brake cleaner and carb cleaner since they are pretty strong, then I'd follow/final flush with the flush you bought.

The evaporator section in the dash is probably gonna be the hardest work IMO, and I've always had to have someone helping on the other side when the pipes have to reconnect at the firewall.

Yeeeeah I'm gonna need your major credit card numbers now...

 
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Won't do you much good after I bought all these damn parts.

 
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Story of my life right there.



In real life, people only seem to seek me out AFTER other shops took all their money without ever getting the car fixed.

 
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Already there's a twist in the story: Rockauto sent me the wrong condenser. Even though it's listed under 2003 Si 2.0L and I called a rep to confirm fitment (they confirmed)... wrong condenser. And the rep I talked to today was a total dick about it, basically saying that I should have confirmed the part myself and that he has no proof that another rep confirmed fitment for me (aka, that I'm lying).

I'm trying to leave on a big road trip this coming Wed. and getting the right condenser in time isn't really in the cards, I don't think. The part fits except for the top brackets don't totally line up... I could just get out the welder...

 
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Self-drilling sheetmetal screws?


Got pics?


This is a big reason I prefer to deal locally, face to face.

 
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The condensor for a 3 door isn't the same as coupe/sedan.
I bet you already know which one they sent you.

The SI version probably isn't anywhere near as popular in terms of fast moving parts, and too many people behind a parts counter may just assume all Civics are exactly the same.
They DO have 4 wheels, right?

 
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You can see I'd have to make some kind of custom bracket to make it work. It fits at the bottom and the inlet and outlet line up the same. The bumper also clears it when I put it back on. The old ones have those brackets off the sides... That's really the only difference that matters here.

 
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Flip brackets side to side and upside down to get them closer to their goal..?...MAYBE.


.....leave rubber grommets the way they are now....fabricate simple bracket spacers from sheetmetal or angle iron using vice, hammer, channellocks, drill..




Sounds too much like work.

 
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BAM! Make it work.

 
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Well, that escalated quickly

 
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Just make sure theres no chance of anything rubbing through any of the important stuff on the condensor

 
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Looks like I'll be re-using the sensor on the receiver drier. Is there any chance that it could carry any contaminants into the new system? it looks clean inside as far as I can tell.

 
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It's just a pressure switch (2 wires)
Rinse out the tiny port with brake cleaner (or whatever you have) and blow out with air gun to make sure it's clean?

 
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I emptied the compressor of oil and I noticed that coming out of one side it had a little bit of a pink hue to it and then the other side was coming out grey-ish. I added new oil anyway. Does that seem right or should I flush it out with a bunch more clean oil by repeating this process? If I do, I only have 3oz. of the PAG46 w/dye and a whole bottle of some other PAG46 that came with the compressor kit (no dye)... can I mix them to make the 5 oz?

I'd go get more, but I live in the middle of nowhere, have no car at the moment, and I'm hoping to start this road trip wed. making tomorrow my last day to finish.

 
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Wait, you got odd colors of oil draining out of a NEW COMPRESSOR?
Do you have time to wait for another 'iffy' compressor to arrive?
F-it, bolt it on and pray it's a good one. Hope it's got a good warranty LOL



New compressor, has a warranty, but that warranty probably won't cover a condensor or any other parts if it blows up (you should check into this further for future reference).

It's GOTTA have oil, and it needs 4.6-5 oz of oil total (or whatever the spec was) for the entire system. Mixing plain with dyed oil is fine.

 
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Yeah, I'm gonna flush it out a couple times with some new oil, then... bolt and pray!

Hey, do you know anything about these Deslugger units?
They say they make them for CRVs. I wonder if I should get one for my low mounted compressor. Looks like I'd have to do some wire splicing to make it work, as it looks like they don't make a direct fit to my power connector.

 
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The stuff on the bottom is the grey oil that's coming out of the discharge side. The suction side is coming out just as clean as I put it in. Can I add some of the oil that I'm going to flush out anyway to the discharge side? I read somewhere that you're not supposed to add to the discharge side...

 
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I never thought the CRV issue was slugging, I thought the issue was in the design. The later CRV had a different design compressor from the 02-04.
If there was a slugging issue, I'd sure expect there to have been far more compressor internal failures (throughout the entire fleet, not just CRV) than we have seen over the years.

However, the last 15 seconds of the video makes me think it may be a worthwhile addition to any questionable system.


Kinda looks like it might be some sort of assembly lube that's coming out? Like a moly grease was used for assembly? Ask the manufacturer?

Dump oil into suction port, rotate compressor clutch to pump the oil through the compressor and out the discharge port...?

Some compressor designs tend to trap oil in the compressor body making it very difficult to just dump out the excess.
Depends on your intent and needs.
If you are just trying to get a specific amount of oil into the system, I'd dump it in the most convenient port or hose available.

 
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Well, all I did was do the process a few times, filling/turning/draining til it came out less gray and I started running out of oil, drained it one last time, just turning upside-down till hardly anything came out, filled it back up with almost 5 oz. and called it good.

Putting the lines/hoses back on now. Man, that flush fluid doesn't go very far, I ran out pretty quick. I hit them with brake cleaner first got most of the junk out, then got 4-5 good sprays through all of them, then blew air for a while to dry em out.

 
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Sounds good to me so far.

 
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Got it all put back together. I turned the car on to do the power steering procedure and a little while later the EPS light came on. What do I do about that?

 
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What power steering procedure are you talking about?
Got any other warning lights on?
Got codes?

 
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Just got it recharged. Ran it for a good 20 min and it's blowing cool-ish air. Definitely not cold... They vacuumed to for an hour and said it held it. Any ideas?

 
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Not without a whole lot more info. The ones that charged the system need to figure out what's going on since they have the gauges and ability to add or remove freon as needed.


Wait a sec, let me rephrase that:
The ones that charged the system are the ones that ought to be able to figure out what's going on, but keep in mind there's a huge difference between someone who can run the machine that puts the freon in and someone who can actually diagnose a problem with some amount of accuracy.

Watching the high and low side pressures of the system as it operates tells a whole lot of the story, if one has a good understanding of how it all works. There are a crapton of variables that go into interpreting gauge readings though, and any specific reading may not be absolutely right or wrong--- depending on conditions.
Feeling the pipe temperatures is also part of diagnosis.

What's your center vent temperature after the system has been running for 20 minutes @2000 RPM or so, with a big fan in front of the grille blowing on high?

Does vent temp drop a lot if you spray water into the condensor?

Is it so freekin hot that the undersized AC system just can't keep up with the sun and heat load?
(If it's 110* in the shade and super humid, then 65* vent temp might be OK)

How cold is the evaporator outlet pipe/compressor suction pipe (the line that runs from the firewall and compressor) at the firewall? That pipe should be real close to your evaporator core temperature so if it's ice cold then the AC system is probably working but you've got issues with the box and ductwork area.

Was the evaporator core well sealed around the edges so all air must pass through the core, none can sneak around the edges?

Was the temp sensor probe inserted into the evap core in the correct position, and to the correct depth?





How much temperature drop do you have between the inlet and outlet of the condensor?

Aftermarket condensor, may be constructed different from original (some can be much less efficient than original)...

Condensor could also have smaller internal volume which would necessitate adjustments to the freon charge quantity.
Same goes for evaporator.
Also along those lines, too much oil in the system can affect cooling efficiency as it displaces freon and makes the system act overcharged even though the freon charge weight may have been correct.


Is there any temp drop between the inlet and outlet lines of the drier?

High side line is fairly hot all the way to the firewall?

Does the compressor ever cycle on and off during operation? Cycling as the evap temp sensor reaches in the area of 36-40*F would be another indication the system is getting cold, but there's issues in the dash.
OTOH if it never cycles then the core probably isn't getting cold enough (feel the outlet pipe/suction pipe to verify likely core temp).

Is the heater core water valve closing all the way? Air mix door/servo/linkage/cable all move from max cold to max hot ok?

Do all of the radiator fans run when the compressor kicks on?

Got RECIRC on? The AC can't do much cooling until after the humidity is removed from the air.

 
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I'd try to do more troubleshooting and answer all those questions but I'm on this road trip now and responding via my phone. The shop that did the recharge was along the way in Utah, and when I called back they had the machine running on another vehicle and wouldn't be able to get to me for a while. So I said F it, and headed into Colorado. I'll see if I can get another shop to do some diagnosing asap.

But yeah, metal lines on low side were super cold and quite wet from condensation, high side lines were pretty hot.

I fired it up again on the highway and it seemed to blow pretty cold this time, but not ice cold. One strange thing that I noticed was that with the AC on, about every 24 seconds I'd hear a click (sounded like the compressor clutch engaging) and then about 3 seconds of a sucking or blowing sound in a tube or something, sounded similar to the noise of a basketball or bike tire getting filled with air, like pressurized air moving.. best that I can explain it. Consistently every 24 seconds this would happen, but ONLY while I was giving the car gas... I could not replicate it at all while coasting down long hills, and I tested it several times to make sure of it.

 
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The core temp should be at least as cold as the low pipe. Got an actual temp reading of the pipe?

Got an actual temp reading of the dash vents? Buy a $10 digital meat thermometer at walmart? (I like them, a digital can read fast enough you can watch the temp rise and fall by a couple degrees as the compressor cycles off and on)

Any little errors in the HVAC ductwork? Inefficient core desgn?

IDK All I can do is guess on my end.

Ambient temperature difference between home area and now? The hotter it is, the harder the system has to work. Inefficiencies make themselves known under a high load.


If it's getting cool/cold, I'd have to assume you hear the compressor cycling (normal) and after it shuts off the pressures in the system begin to equalize (part of the hiss noise) and when the comp kicks on again you hear more hiss noise as freon flows through the expansion valve. System may be a little on the low side, seems like I notice the hiss is more prevalent on systems that are a little low.

No idea here. I know the system can kick the compressor off when you mash the gas pedal, but IDK what coasting would have to do with any action on the AC system.

 
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So after getting busy and giving up on this for a long time.. I'm reopening this chapter and thought I'd update this thread with some new info.

Still the AC is getting cold for a bit and then slowly warming up into the 70's. I can shut the AC off and let it rest for a few minutes and it gets cold again only to slowly warm up again. So I took it into a shop this week:

Day 1 @ shop: their first approach was to check pressures and refill refrigerant. They said it was low on refrigerant and so they refilled it. Left there with cold AC for a few hours of driving, then it started to warm up again.

Day 2 @ shop: Brought it back and they said they found a leak where the discharge hose comes out of the compressor. Said they replaced the O-rings on it, put it back on and recharged the system. They ran it at the shop for a couple hours, then I drove it away and had cold AC for about an hour, then back up into the 70's again.

Day 3 @ shop: They confirmed that the leak gone and then they had me drive it around til the AC got warm on me again and then pull back in to look at it. We noticed the low pressure side hose coming off the evaporator/expansion valve was building up a bunch of frost. So they thought that it was a sign that the evaporator is freezing up and maybe the evaporator temp sensor was to blame. They wanted to order the part but couldn't get it locally so I just took the car home because I had to get packing for an out of state trip.

I looked at my service manual and there is a test for this evaporator temp sensor. You pull it out dip it in ice water and check the resistance, also do the same in hot water. It passed the test and operated within spec.

Any thoughts on what else to look into?

 
Rep Power: 223

Give this a read:
https://www.civicforums.com/forums/3...need-help.html

The bag inside the reciever/drier failed and put beads into the system.
Might be your problem as well?