I suppose 1cm^2 before it sublimates.

 

after reading this whole thread and the "reprogramming thread" I just want to kick a puppy.


fyi, i have some magic beans for sale

 

dam...well my lady was complaining that the ac wasnt as cold as she would like...so since i felt bad telling her to suck it up since shes caring my baby boy in her stomatch. had a buddi supply me with some carbon fiber sheats and i insulated the ac pipe...i dont knowthe technical **** about all this but is seems to be colder...and she hasn't complained.... by the way...i used carbon fiber because 1. it was free, and also cuz someone told me it deflected heat...this true???

 

yeah thsiis def a great mod to do

 

Steady, Jack. The reprogramming actually makes a huge difference, if you have the applicable "amplifier".

 

you and I have a different definition of the word "huge"

 

That's what she said

 

adobe clay works much better, those indians weren't stupid you know ....

 

Not necessarily. Note, I said "if you have the applicable amplifier". In my case it was (Jan 2004 build).

This was no placebo. I went from a system that could barely keep up with low-90's temps with fan at max and recirculate, to where I am comfortable with fan at 1 up to about 85 degrees, fan 2 will take me into the mid 90's. I recently drove through 116 degree temps and was switching back and forth from fan4 to fan3, max fan was just too cold after awhile.

In short I went from an AC that was basically uncomfortable on an average summer day, to one that has more than enough cooling for scorching temps. So, does that sound like a huge difference to you?

In my zeal to "fix" the lame AC, I wrapped the pipe and made the programming change at the same time. Logically I don't think the wrap contributes much but there you are. No other changes were made.

 

I just did this with some Thermotech Thermoshield by cutting it into small strips lengthwise. My problem is that it isn't staying stuck down completely. When I turn on the ac, it will not stick as well, but it will still stick a little. What can I put over it to fix this issue? Thanks.

 

zip ties

 

So put zip ties on every single strip?

 

Summer is coming up.

There is still debate if insulate AC pipe helps or not.
But the project cost $2.5 and 5 mins, it worth a shot.


I use pre-slice, peal and seal insulation foam tube, designed hot water copper pipe.
One insulation foam tube from Home Depot is 2 yards, cost around $5 &
can be installed for 2 cars.

Peal and seal. No zip tie.

Planing is 10 mins, and you can skip this.
Installation is < 5 mins.


Picture is pretty self-explanatory.

Note: Length of the tube will change a little if tube diameter change.
Better engine bay view coming up. I just took a snap shot with my phone.

 

looks much better than zipties. i might have to try this out.

 

I did it this way and didn't notice any difference. The heat transfer from that pipe is minimal. Cost me $7 and 15 mins and didn't hurt the car so go for it!

 

I did it this way and didn't notice any difference. The heat transfer from that pipe is minimal. Cost me $7 and 15 mins and didn't hurt the car so go for it!

By the same logic, why not paint it a soothing shade of cool blue?

No difference, didn't cost much and can't hurt?

Go for it.

S

 

Uninsulated AC tube: 62.4-62.7 degrees...engine at normal operating temperature and 1500 RPM when AC turned on...using outside air at 84.5 degrees...fan speed on 1...77% humidity...car parked in shade.

Insulated AC tube: 54-56 degrees...same conditions 2 days later. It took awhile to get the temp down because the compressor kept cycling on and off when the air temp got to 62. It seemed like the compressor was engaged less than half the time.

[Temps were measured with a little SkyScan Atomic Clock. It agrees within a fraction of a degree with a couple of other Atomic Clocks I have.]

The insulation: Armacell foam hot water pipe insulation. Home Depot item #803014117517. Set me back $1.46 including sales tax. HD sells it in 6' lengths. The display box says it's 5/8", but the inner diameter is a 16th larger so it isn't a tight fit. The outer diameter is 1.25". The wall is 5/16" thick. The surface is not totally smooth, but it's dark gray with a slick finish and I think the color looks nice in a TGM engine bay. HD also sells a black foam insulation without a slick finish that would collect dirt fast and be tough to clean unless you could find something to seal the surface. Multiple very light coats of clear spray lacquer?

The instillation: It was a bit of a battle with some swearing and was done in sections. This thick walled foam insulation does NOT like being bent and I probably got more Super Glue on my fingers and palms than the seams and joints. Acetone, fortunately, is a great Super Glue solvent. There is a 7" strip where I had to cut a slot in the Armacell because the AC pipe is too close to the firewall insulation to get the Armacell around the pipe. Also had to use some spray detergent on the firewall to get the insulation around the pipe in another spot. I used electrical tape on the joints in an effort to keep hot engine bay air out.

Kudos to Tigster for suggesting the MOD!!! It never would have occurred to me. I wish I'd done the MOD on my black IROC and my arrest me red Z28 with a black roof and huge amount of glass.

 

Great post. But does it translate into colder air blowing on me? Use your equipment to measure that.

 

I'm going to start selling my polar bear repellent. 1 dollar + s & h, never get attacked by a polar bear in your home, guaranteed.

 

After several years of thinking about doing this mod, I bought some "Cool Tape" by Design Engineering, Inc. and wrapped the tube that others have suggested to wrap in this post. I used "Cool tape" because it is extremely thin and there isn't much room between the back wall and the tube. I used forceps to apply the tape, it's hard to use your fingers. It took me about 15 minutes to do.
I don't know if it makes the air colder as I didn't measure, but comparing back to back on identical days I definitely noticed a difference. Most importantly, during city driving, I could turn down the fan speed one setting below what I would usually use to achieve and maintain the same comfort.
The "cool tape" was $20 and looks like webbed aluminum when finished, a clean look. Do this mod!

 

Afterr eading this thread it is apparent there are strong feelings on both sides. Is it a waste of time? Is the analysis of the engineering dept. a correct one?

Well, like elbows, I've got two and I've been known to be an even bigger one. Sometimes in product development there comes a time when you have to "fire the engineer and ship the product."

Funny how everyone forgets what is at the heart of a placebo..... it "fools" you into thinking you're getting cured. What most forget is that sometimes people heal themselves unexplicably (and some on placebo.) Could it be that they just needed to "feel" they were getting better so their body would kick in and heal?? Dunno, I'm not a doctor.

As for the mod here's my .02 - MY AC SUCKS so I will try it. My friend has an AC Master's licence and was formally in the electronics field where he worked on some contained liquid cooling systems for processors before starting his own business. My cost for the armorflex insulation = $0.00! I'll just re-use some old one off a house that got new stuff.

Hopefully I won't get friggin critiqued for "WASTING" 10 minutes of my life trying this. It's been over 100 for many, many days around here in Texas and the AC in my 1993 POS Grand Cherokee feels much better than the RX-8. While I'm at it, I will check the Cabin Air Filter also but I'm not sure this will have much to do with it as the CFM at the vents seems fine. Funny, I don't remeber seeing any mention of the CAF in this thread but maybe it was because I was skimming?

 

i actually just did this and am yet to try it out ... will post here if i notice any change

 

hmm... I'm somehow dubious this procedure will yield the claimed results. Perhaps the colder A/C temperatures was due to different atmospheric conditions--clouds, cooler day, less humidity etc-- or perhaps the temperature variance was falsely perceived by the subject, ie it was all a placebo effect.

 

It would certainly be easy to set up controlled before-after test. Not as easy as doing the mod and NOT testing of course. Then again...if the mod does nothing but make people feel like they're cooler maybe that's good enough!

I'd try it but..my AC worked fine before it stopped working completely. No amount of pipe wrapping can help me now!

jds

 

I have a natural way of getting colder A/C.

The Nature MOD.

While driving in the country at midnight with your wife and 6month old in the car and still 1h30mins to go on your trip...

1. Hit a Racoon at 125km/h on the road.

2. Inspect damage

3. Rip off front lip and complete undertray

4. profit... uh I mean COLDER A/C.