>& >Don't let anyone convince you to convert to the R134a garbage.
Probably not bad advice. There will be R-12 (recycled, mostly) on the
US market for some time to come. That's not saying it'll be cheap or
free of EPA restrictions, however.
>An AC compressor with R134a is less efficient. It takes longer to
>cool down.
Well, sort of. R134a's capacity to move heat from one place to another
is significantly less than that of R12. If a system is designed to use
R134a (meaning it's got a more efficient or larger condenser and evaporator
than comparable R12 system), it's performance is very near that of the
R12 system. Luckily, Chrysler seems to have done it's job. My Dakota's
R134a system has performed extremely well here in the humid South.
>and I think there are some compressor/oil problems that
>might limit compressor life.
The oils are incompatible, making conversion a somewhat difficult
technical task, but it is possible. Systems designed around R134a
are no more susceptible to compressor failure than comparable R12
systems.
> since this is more about politics than the environment.
I'm inclined to agree with this for the most part, since the HVAC
lobby in conjunction with the EPA has pushed hard to keep DIYers from
doing their own A/C work. There are environmental problems with R12,
no doubt, but the legislative response in this country has exploited the
environment as a hot-button to screw over shade tree mechanics, IMO.
Check out George Goble's home page for more on this subject
(http://ghg.ecn.purdue.edu/).
Ron "GMG-12" Rader
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