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Topic: Dash A/C Repair Facilities (Read 997 times) previous topic - next topic

Dash A/C Repair Facilities

Today I called the Cincinnati dealer for Thermo King Transport Specialists, Inc.  The Service Mgr. said that if it's not a TK unit, they will not work on it...period.  I told him that I had heard that other RV'ers have used TK dealers to repair their dash A/C's in other states.  He held his position.  Anecdotally, I realize that there are a zillion TK units out there and TK certainly has enough work to keep 3 shifts going year round.
 
I talked to the Cummins Serv. Mgr. who has a commercial relationship with this dealer and is going to give it a try to see if TK will service the unit and finnaly find the slow leak in the system.
 
Can anyone share which outfit I should be looking for?  The Cummins folks mentioned Williams & Williams here in Cincinnati, but I'm not getting anything from Google.

Re: Dash A/C Repair Facilities

Reply #1 –
Persistence pays off.  I believe this outfit may be able to help.  Carrier is a division of United Technologies, a huge company.  Maybe I'll have some luck.
 
http://www.wwwilliams.com/refrigeration_index.cfm
 
I wonder how much it would cost to just start all over again and replace the whole darned thing...all components, hoses, you name it?

Re: Dash A/C Repair Facilities

Reply #2 –
Have you considered buying a leak detector.  http://hvacmegastore.com/Inficon-705202G1-TekMate-Leak-Detector-Inficon/M/B000H6OZJ4.htm?traffic_src=froogle&utm_medium=organic&utm_source=froogle  How bad is the leak?  Any system with rubber hoses like automotive systems will loose a little as the refrigerant slowly migrates through the rubber (same way tires loose air).  My dash air didn't work when I bought it.  Put in some refrigerant and dye thinking it had a leak, but it has worked ever since, more than 2 years.  I don't have a detector, nor do I know if this is a good one, just found it googling "refrigerant leak detector".

Re: Dash A/C Repair Facilities

Reply #3 –
Quote from: Jerry Whiteaker –
Have you considered buying a leak detector.  http://hvacmegastore.com/Inficon-705202G1-TekMate-Leak-Detector-Inficon/M/B000H6OZJ4.htm?traffic_src=froogle&utm_medium=organic&utm_source=froogle  How bad is the leak?  Any system with rubber hoses like automotive systems will loose a little as the refrigerant slowly migrates through the rubber (same way tires loose air).  My dash air didn't work when I bought it.  Put in some refrigerant and dye thinking it had a leak, but it has worked ever since, more than 2 years.  I don't have a detector, nor do I know if this is a good one, just found it googling "refrigerant leak detector".
Jerry,
When I purchased the coach in 2003 under a 6 month warranty, TN Foretravel, now TN TV replaced the condenser and compressor...leaked.  Then I took it to FOT where I argued with Mark Harvey, and they replaced a schrader valve...leaked. Then I took it to American Motor Coach in Columbus, OH where they replaced two hoses from the condenser to the compressor and another one which I don't remember the routing...FOT paid 1/2...leaked.  Then I took it to Cummins for the last five years each where they repaired the evaporator and recharged several times, this year Cummins gave up on it.  Now Cummins is recommending I take it somewhere else.
 
So each year I have owned it the leak comes back.  Each time the refrigerant holds for 3 months.  Last year when Cummins had the evaporator repaired, the charge lasted 6 months.  So it's getting close...
 
When I purchased the coach in 2003, I told Roger Sellers at FOTN the leak was in one of the hoses.  So far, no one has found it.  But I bet money, that's where the leak is.
 
I'm going to give WW Williams a try here in Cincinnati and see how competent they are.  But as you know, it's a matter of wanting to do the work the right way without concern that it's a bear of a job to find a leak.  Usually, the technician stops looking for a leak whenever they find one.  I just figured  seven years later I would have exhausted all possibilities of having any more leaks.  The only thing left to replace are the hoses from front to back, eh?
 
Wish me luck...I hope I don't have to purchase a leak detector because even if I found the leak, I don't have the ability to repair it.  Then telling a refrigeration tech that the leak is "here" always pisses them off.

Re: Dash A/C Repair Facilities

Reply #4 –
My coach also leaks freon, I suspect it is the long rubber hoses that go from the compressor to the front.  I would love to replace those with hard lines.  In modern vehicles most of the A/C lines are metal, there is very little rubber because the newer freon's molecules are smaller and can escape through the rubber.  If I every get to build a building for my coach it will have a full length pit so I might then attempt to do that.

Re: Dash A/C Repair Facilities

Reply #5 –
We found our 5 year leak finally by having green florescent dye put in the system and taking a simple black light at night to look for leaks.  Mechanics don't work in the dark, so we had to find it ourselves.  Our dash air has been working GREAT for the last 3 years.

Re: Dash A/C Repair Facilities

Reply #6 –
Barry,
Cummins did the dye injection last year and the leak at the evaporator was found.  As a replacement evaporator is no longer available, they sent it to a shop to have it refurbished.  That fix lasted from May 2009 to May 2010 when the compressor started to cycle on/off again from the low pressure switch activation.  The coach sat in storage from Nov 2009 to May 2010.
 
If neither Thermo King nor WW Williams is willing to repair the A/C, I may have to resort to finding the leak myself and then having Cummins do the repair, or another facility if Cummins no longer wants to work on the coach A/C.

Re: Dash A/C Repair Facilities

Reply #8 –
I for one did have Thermo King work on my dash AC. No problem or concern. I went to the thermo king next to cummins in cloverdale VA.  In fact cummins called them and they had a couple techs walk over to look at my AC and they said bring it down and they would fix it.

Re: Dash A/C Repair Facilities

Reply #9 –
Quote from: John Sichenze –
I for one did have Thermo King work on my dash AC. No problem or concern. I went to the thermo king next to cumin in cloverdale VA.  In fact commons called them and they had a couple techs walk over to look at my AC and they said bring it down and they would fix it.
John,
You are lucky.  The folks in Cincinnati, of German-Irish descent, are a bit different.  But, I'll keep working on them... 8)