Air conditioning Hack

[Flot]

Good. I hope Ram pays attention this time.

I ordered an inspection camera, in the hopes that I can see the blend door itself. That may or may not be possible, but worth a shot.

 

[Gman]

Man that pudding is so much better with "proof" in it! That is a good controlled test, driving the trucks would not be as controlled. Driving styles, acceleration, gearing and rpms would all be different. FCA should be embarrassed.

Or you could put a fan in front of the radiator of both trucks, like they do on a dyno. If all you do is sit in a hot truck and idle, this test is perfect.

 

[Gman]

As I was sleeping on this overnight, I also thought of something else in the cooling design of the Ram. The Ram uses active grill shutters (as does Ford) to improve engine & transmission warm-up times. I have to wonder if they may come into play with immediate AC cooling?

 

[Hackmunch]

once i clamped heater core hose this bad boy gets cold fast.

 

[Whiskey_tango]

Is there a trick to getting the hose off the Barb? Mine was on there pretty damn good. Warm it up with a heat gun and still wouldn't budge.

 

[User_3336]

Not really. Grille Shutters will automatically stay open when the A/C is on to provide sufficient airlow for the a/c lines in the engine.

As I was sleeping on this overnight, I also thought of something else in the cooling design of the Ram. The Ram uses active grill shutters (as does Ford) to improve engine & transmission warm-up times. I have to wonder if they may come into play with immediate AC cooling?

 

[KcRay]

Is there a trick to getting the hose off the Barb? Mine was on there pretty **** good. Warm it up with a heat gun and still wouldn't budge.

Twist and pull

 

[Whiskey_tango]

Twist and pull

I twisted the hose like 180 and yarded on it even with a pair of quick grips. The hose will not rotate or slide on the barb. Almost like it's glued on. Gave up once I peeled a nickel sized piece of skin off my index finger.

Might try a hook if I get desperate.

 

[rceagle1a]

That's a pretty interesting solution @KcRay ; if anything I'd suggest crack that valve open 10% at the least to ensure you don't have stagnant water in your core.

Too bad you have to do this in the first place - I haven't had a hot enough day to need to crank the AC but I'll keep a gauge handy when I do

Stagnant water? Even with valve closed the other hose is still open and thermal circulation will still occur coolant under pressure would not have stagnation issues anyway.

 

[Tom488]

Stagnant water? Even with valve closed the other hose is still open and thermal circulation will still occur coolant under pressure would not have stagnation issues anyway.

Yeah... I love all the amazingly unthought out theories that abound here: "Don't block off your heater core altogether, or you'll freeze up your evap coil" (even though the heater core comes AFTER the evap with respect to airflow). "Don't just clamp off your hose, you'll introduce too much back pressure into your pump" (even though the feed to the heater core is already off of a bypass port from the pump). "Don't close off your heater core supply, you don't want the coolant in your core getting stagnant" (even though the entire system is closed off).

A+ for effort, and all, but...

 

[rrbhokies]

Yeah... I love all the amazingly unthought out theories that abound here: "Don't block off your heater core altogether, or you'll freeze up your evap coil" (even though the heater core comes AFTER the evap with respect to airflow). "Don't just clamp off your hose, you'll introduce too much back pressure into your pump" (even though the feed to the heater core is already off of a bypass port from the pump). "Don't close off your heater core supply, you don't want the coolant in your core getting stagnant" (even though the entire system is closed off).

A+ for effort, and all, but...

So what it all boils down to is don't do anything, and just accept that the A/C is never going to work right......

 

[TruckDriver]

Stagnant water? Even with valve closed the other hose is still open and thermal circulation will still occur coolant under pressure would not have stagnation issues anyway.

Pardon my sketch; and correct me if I'm wrong here, but i'm making an educated guess - if the heater core is off the main motor>radiator coolant line, and it's blocked off (at the gold circle in my dwg), then whatever is in the core won't move (it'll be stagnant), which is why it doesn't heat up.... so, that?

If I'm wrong, I'd like to see a plumbing diagram that shows that coolant won't stagnate when you stop the flow - because that's precisely what's being done with the valve so that hot coolant doesn't flow into the core.

all that said, it's chemically treated (supposedly distilled) fluids so stangnant or not, I suppose it shouldn't be a real problem i suppose

Yeah... I love all the amazingly unthought out theories that abound here:
A+ for effort, and all, but...

that's a lot of words without any actual substance - it's why this is a discussion forum - go ahead and post your plumbing diagram that shows your thought out theory?

I'll break it down for you since i engineer piping systems:

"Don't block off your heater core altogether, or you'll freeze up your evap coil" (even though the heater core comes AFTER the evap with respect to airflow).
>I saw that argument in the thread, if you're right, that's a fair point

"Don't just clamp off your hose, you'll introduce too much back pressure into your pump" (even though the feed to the heater core is already off of a bypass port from the pump).
>restrictions in the paths of flow will increase backpressure, but would it be significant enough to be an issue? prob not

"Don't close off your heater core supply, you don't want the coolant in your core getting stagnant" (even though the entire system is closed off).
>well yes, the coolant is a closed system, but it's also a liquid solution - meaning mixed liquids which stagnate will eventually separate - so the heater core being stagnant means the stopped volume of fluid in the core will not mix with the rest of the motor; leaving a pocket of 'unused' fluid? in 1-5 years, no big deal, and if you're opening the valve every season, prob no big deal either; but the fact stills stands - the fluid will stagnate.

 

[Hackmunch]

he is my $.02 i closed mine off and i freeze my *** off in my truck when its 90 degree out.

 

[Whiskey_tango]

With regards to stagnation, the "cold" water will sink and the "hot" water will rise. Therefore the water in the core will be in constant flux while the motor is running. This is called convection.

 

[User_3336]

I'm enjoying the 40 degree vent temps!

he is my $.02 i closed mine off and i freeze my *** off in my truck when its 90 degree out.

 

[Repsol69]

If some very cold air is coming out of defroster vents, the windshield glass gets chilled down and moisture condenses just like your "scotch on the rocks" glass does on outside, especially if its humid. The wipers will take it off temporarily but the defrost vent air temp is cause. I assume climate was set for other vents and this is "leakage" of air out defrost vents. I had a Mustang rental car back in 80's that did same thing in hot humid Virginia weather.

I seem to be having this problem with my defroster vents also....bottom of windshield is staying wet on the outside..??? But my A/C seems plenty cold..

 

[riccnick]

I seem to be having this problem with my defroster vents also....bottom of windshield is staying wet on the outside..??? But my A/C seems plenty cold..

What trim / which HVAC system do you have? If its the manual A/C, then this is normal, if it's Climate Control and you have it on Auto this is not normal.

 

[kjn86]

Finally got the clamp and put it on. Noticed no difference at all. Temps were the same, mid-40s. I was hoping to get into the 30s. It wasn't that hot out so maybe it will make a difference after sitting all day in a parking lot in the 90-degree weather. I am underwhelmed. Maybe my A/C isn't so bad. Still feel like it should be colder though.

Used a thermometer. Put it in the vent, drove around the block, put the clamp on, noticed no difference after 5 mins, then took it off and it barely changed. Left both the thermometer and clamp in the truck so I will play around with it this week in other conditions.

 

[User_3336]

If you already had vent temps in 40's, that's about as good as it gets....30's....nah...

You have good a/c with those vent temps.

Finally got the clamp and put it on. Noticed no difference at all. Temps were the same, mid-40s. I was hoping to get into the 30s. It wasn't that hot out so maybe it will make a difference after sitting all day in a parking lot in the 90-degree weather. I am underwhelmed. Maybe my A/C isn't so bad. Still feel like it should be colder though.

Used a thermometer. Put it in the vent, drove around the block, put the clamp on, noticed no difference after 5 mins, then took it off and it barely changed. Left both the thermometer and clamp in the truck so I will play around with it this week in other conditions.

 

[kjn86]

If you already had vent temps in 40's, that's about as good as it gets....30's....nah...

You have good a/c with those vent temps.

I redid it this morning. Got 51.3 driver's side and 44 passenger side. Less than one degree change after clamping.

I am not clamping the whole house as tightly closed as I can. I figured clamping mostly closed would reduce temps. Am I not clamping enough to make a difference? I am cautious not to damage anything, hose or system. The OP method would be a full closure so maybe I am not going far enough. Thoughts?