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Old 10-13-2018, 06:42 PM   #1
Mini-Skoolie
 
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Join Date: May 2017
Location: Miami, Fl.
Posts: 14
Year: 1996
Engine: 5.9 Cummins (545)
Drive Air Conditioning issues......

Let me first say.....I love the skoolie community!!! You guys have helped out so much. Thanks.
I have gotten my build all the way to the end. I went to move her out today and wouldnt you know it,,,Stuck. Just wanted to drive around in a finished bus.

Well, was out trying to dig her out and I'm in the Florida heat. Didnt take too long until that AC was turned on and one didnt cool. Ahhhh...the frustration.

This bus has both a front driver AC and a back AC unit. The back one still pumps out cold air but the front one, not so much.

Back story is this......when I first bought the bus, whenever the front AC kicked on, I would hear the belt give little chirps here and there. Ac worked great, blew cold and strong then just stopped... Do you think belt got to loose to turn the clutch or maybe something worse?

I did everything myself on the build, where, or who would I even take it to to check out?

Any thoughts?

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Old 10-13-2018, 07:33 PM   #2
Bus Crazy
 
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: Cincinnati, Ohio
Posts: 1,001
Year: 2000
Coachwork: Blue Bird
Chassis: International
Engine: TE 444
Rated Cap: 12
Needs to be charged
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Old 10-13-2018, 08:00 PM   #3
Bus Crazy
 
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Join Date: Oct 2017
Posts: 1,222
Year: 1999
Coachwork: BlueBird
Chassis: TC1000 HandyBus
Engine: 5.9L 24V-L6 Cummins ISB
Rated Cap: 26 foot
The front one may need more airflow through the condenser - i.e. you need to be moving down the road. The back one does not share a fan with the motor's radiator, and if it is like my rooftop unit, has two fans.
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Old 10-14-2018, 02:09 AM   #4
Bus Crazy
 
Join Date: May 2018
Location: topeka kansas
Posts: 1,771
Year: 1954
Coachwork: wayne
Chassis: old f500- new 2005 f-450
Engine: cummins 12 valve
Rated Cap: 20? five rows of 4?
okay,, hold on there....

Before you spend any money,, find out what is wrong. Then decide what to do. Unless you trust you take it to or have come out to check it, get more than one opinion. if opinions dont match the go for three. If you are good enough diagnose this yourself. But please dont spend money on this for repairs until you know what you need to repair.

william
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Old 10-14-2018, 07:34 AM   #5
Bus Geek
 
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Columbus Ohio
Posts: 18,760
Year: 1991
Coachwork: Carpenter
Chassis: International 3800
Engine: DTA360 / MT643
Rated Cap: 7 Row Handicap
its possible that it lost ts charge as kubla mentioned.. but first thing is to get under the bonnet and take a look.. there will be 2 compressors.. turn the driver unit on by itself. you should see the center hub on one of the compressors spinning, if you do or see it stopping and starting rapidly then your refrigerant is low..



if it doesnt even kick on then it can still be refrigerant but could also be electrical.. at that point time to get a gauge and stick on it to see what the pressure is.



and obviously make sure the belts are on both compressors..



it very well could be that the front unit had a leak and the school just kept charging it up when it leaked out to keep the bus on the road so when they sold it there was freon in it, you drove it home, parked it, converted it and now its empty..



what kind of units are these? carrier? Trans/AIR?
-Christopher
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Old 10-14-2018, 07:53 AM   #6
Mini-Skoolie
 
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Join Date: May 2017
Location: Miami, Fl.
Posts: 14
Year: 1996
Engine: 5.9 Cummins (545)
They are carrier units. I am heading out right now to check on clutches. I'm hoping tension on belt is slacking...guess these are problems we all have to deal with sometimes.

If this is a more difficult fix, who should o take it to? Diesel mechanic?
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Old 10-14-2018, 08:34 AM   #7
Bus Geek
 
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Columbus Ohio
Posts: 18,760
Year: 1991
Coachwork: Carpenter
Chassis: International 3800
Engine: DTA360 / MT643
Rated Cap: 7 Row Handicap
Quote:
Originally Posted by Weldon2880 View Post
They are carrier units. I am heading out right now to check on clutches. I'm hoping tension on belt is slacking...guess these are problems we all have to deal with sometimes.

If this is a more difficult fix, who should o take it to? Diesel mechanic?



if its just low on 134a. then it has a leak in it somewhere.. putting a gauge on it with the system shut off on a warm day in florida you should see at least 40 on the gauge to trip the low pressure switch into turning on the compressor.. if its at 0 you have a pretty decent leak, if its down at 10,20 or so you can pump it up... assuming it is R-134a you can use cans like you charge a car with.. if you arent familiar with charging up a car A/C then I wouldnt try to mess with it.. a diesel shop should be able to look at it, it will be pricey as if it is low on charge they will need to fully leak test it (EPA laws dont allow a shop to knowingly re-charge a system without performing a test to try and find the leak.. if one is found it might be reasonable (loose fitting) or Pricey (Leaking coils or compressor seal)..
-Chris
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