AC Refrigerants

[Patrick H.]

Hello All,

Has anyone else heard of or had experience with a new replacement for R-12? I have heard that it is called HC-12, is cheap and environmentally friendly, and is a "drop-in" replacement for R-12, with no change of hoses or oil needed.

Is this true, or is my source wrong? I have not yet hooked up the system in my 71 due to the cost of setting it up with R-12, but don't want to use something that may not work, either.

Thanks in advance,

Patrick

[Rob Carnegie]

Re: AC Refrigerants

All such "plug in" replacements contain propane. If your a/c gets a leak you can just imagine the kind of scorch mark you and your car will leave on the road. I think these replacement refrigerants are also illegal in most places. R134 is the only safe (albeit inadequate) replacement.

[Rob Carnegie]

Re: AC Refrigerants

All such "plug in" replacements contain propane. If your a/c gets a leak you can just imagine the kind of scorch mark you and your car will leave on the road. I think these replacement refrigerants are also illegal in most places. R134 is the only safe (albeit inadequate) replacement.

[Patrick H.]

Re: AC Refrigerants

Rob,

I have heard about this HC-12 stuff from two totally different sources recently, and both said that it was new, and did NOT contain propane as did the replacements of 3-5 years ago.

Does anyone have hads-on knowlege of this stuff, and what it is REALLY made of?

Patrick

[Patrick H.]

Re: AC Refrigerants

Rob,

I have heard about this HC-12 stuff from two totally different sources recently, and both said that it was new, and did NOT contain propane as did the replacements of 3-5 years ago.

Does anyone have hads-on knowlege of this stuff, and what it is REALLY made of?

Patrick

[Tom Freeman]

Re: AC Refrigerants

Check out these web sites, they may be of some use:

http://aircondition.com

and the EPA site on alternative retrofits:

http://www.epa.gov/spdpublc/title6/609

good luck. tom...


EPA

[Tom Freeman]

Re: AC Refrigerants

Check out these web sites, they may be of some use:

http://aircondition.com

and the EPA site on alternative retrofits:

http://www.epa.gov/spdpublc/title6/609

good luck. tom...


EPA

[Roger Coen]

Re: AC Refrigerants

Tom was right about the EPA site address but didn't give all of it.

You have to ADD retuid.html to get to the article. Lots of good info on other referigants at that site also.

I just retrofitted my 67 a/c system w/R134. We will see.

Roger Coen 67 BB w/ac

[Roger Coen]

Re: AC Refrigerants

Tom was right about the EPA site address but didn't give all of it.

You have to ADD retuid.html to get to the article. Lots of good info on other referigants at that site also.

I just retrofitted my 67 a/c system w/R134. We will see.

Roger Coen 67 BB w/ac

[Larry Sherman]

Re: AC Refrigerants

If you research this thing long and hard, you will find that the EPA will not allow or accept a flammable refrigerant for automotive use. There are many EPA accepted replacements for R-12 available on the market today. Check out Pennzoil's Frig-C on Pennzoil's home page. This is a product that performs as well as R-12 with a changeover price of about $100 including the new EPA required fittings. It is compatible with the old oil in your system. I have seen several other products with the same or similar claims advertised here and there. R-134 is NOT the only game in town!

[Larry Sherman]

Re: AC Refrigerants

If you research this thing long and hard, you will find that the EPA will not allow or accept a flammable refrigerant for automotive use. There are many EPA accepted replacements for R-12 available on the market today. Check out Pennzoil's Frig-C on Pennzoil's home page. This is a product that performs as well as R-12 with a changeover price of about $100 including the new EPA required fittings. It is compatible with the old oil in your system. I have seen several other products with the same or similar claims advertised here and there. R-134 is NOT the only game in town!

[Carl R.]

Re: AC Refrigerants

Hi Dr. Hulst!

Al at Classic Auto Air in Tampa has forgotten more than most of us will ever know regarding old automotive A/C systems. And he is very nice & willing to spend time helping.

R-134 requires changing out the oil/replacing the filter/dryer/and possibly the hoses to retrofit. If the systems was only "semi-adequate" initially it will not function well retrofitted. This may be ameliorated to some degree with higher-coil-density condensors.

I would rccomend calling Al. Certainly he was a lifesaver on my 66 convertible (dare I mention it here?) mustang - and he would know about the new HC-12 or "Freeze-12" refigerants.

Carl

[Carl R.]

Re: AC Refrigerants

Hi Dr. Hulst!

Al at Classic Auto Air in Tampa has forgotten more than most of us will ever know regarding old automotive A/C systems. And he is very nice & willing to spend time helping.

R-134 requires changing out the oil/replacing the filter/dryer/and possibly the hoses to retrofit. If the systems was only "semi-adequate" initially it will not function well retrofitted. This may be ameliorated to some degree with higher-coil-density condensors.

I would rccomend calling Al. Certainly he was a lifesaver on my 66 convertible (dare I mention it here?) mustang - and he would know about the new HC-12 or "Freeze-12" refigerants.

Carl

[Tom Buddie]

Threat Of Fire

With all due respect, and I know most of you guys are a lot smarter than I am, I would be a lot more worried about 18 gallons of gasoline sitting in a tank directly behind me in an accident. This "threat of fire" has been a favorite discussion on a lot of boards... and it is certainly something to consider. But... the gasoline would seem to be a far more greater threat than the refrigerant. I have 30 lbs of R12 to use up before I have to switch over, but I'm not sure the "fire" aspect will be a big determining factor, given that 18 gallons of fuel scares the beans out of me. Just wanted to present a birds eye view.

[Tom Buddie]

Threat Of Fire

With all due respect, and I know most of you guys are a lot smarter than I am, I would be a lot more worried about 18 gallons of gasoline sitting in a tank directly behind me in an accident. This "threat of fire" has been a favorite discussion on a lot of boards... and it is certainly something to consider. But... the gasoline would seem to be a far more greater threat than the refrigerant. I have 30 lbs of R12 to use up before I have to switch over, but I'm not sure the "fire" aspect will be a big determining factor, given that 18 gallons of fuel scares the beans out of me. Just wanted to present a birds eye view.