Our family recently departed the lovely Smith Mountain Lake area for a visit to relatives in South Carolina in a borrowed van. Needless to say the temperatures that far south could be a challenge for the cooling elements in any vehicle, but we felt the lack of really cold air in this van might be a fixable problem.

After doing a little checking around it seemed some of the information we found might be worth passing along for other folks with similar difficulties.

According to the mechanic there are several possibilities when it comes to air conditioning problems. The good news is that most of them are repairable. The bad news is that if you don’t get the issue fixed, you can end up with worse problems.

There are parts that go bad, namely the compressor (pump). Also hoses, air vents and such can become blocked, and finally the unit can spring a leak and drip out all the coolant. All of these things can cause you to get warm air (or very little air at all) instead of cool when flipping on the AC. If you have a malfunction it is a good idea to have it looked at so you can prevent more expensive repairs.

For instance:

- If you lose too much of the coolant from a broken hose or other leak it can cause compressor failure, which is a very costly repair.

- If your refrigerant is somehow contaminated with anything that does not belong in it, or if there is a moisture build-up,  it can cause serious problems. The compressor bearings can lock up, valves will fail or freeze, and metal parts can erode. To much heat pressure and fluid loss can also lead to compressor failure. 

You might think you can handle your poorly functioning AC, but if you use it at all you may want to get it looked at before it becomes a significant repair problem.