Refrigerant Leak Detectors and leaky air conditinoners

As summer approaches, it is time to start making sure your car's air conditioner is working properly. Before the temperature gets too hot, go out and crank up your car's air conditioner and see if it is cooling properly. If the air is not blowing cold and everything else seems ok, you may have a refrigerant leak somewhere in the system. Lots of times it will be a small leak that is difficult to detect and find. In the old days you could "top" off your refrigerant and just fill it up every few weeks with a can of R12 from the local autoparts store. Today, the EPA requirements are much more stringent. Your best option is to find and repair the source of the leaking refrigerant. I would recommend using a refrigerant leak detector. This handy little device sniffs out the leaking freon and alerts you with an alarm as you get closer to the source. Refrigerant leak detectors also have a sensitivity setting that allows you to turn up the sensitivity when you find the general area of the refrigerant leak. Now you can effectively correct the problem and have your A/C blowing cold in no time!