I charged up my A/C the other night in my old Honda and temporarily placed the little valve cover for the a/c low pressure side on top of the engine block and when I went to start the engine and turn on the compressor I forgot about it and it then fell down, who knows where. Wedged somewhere between the carb and the rest of the engine; it’s gone.
Will I lose refrigerant if I don’t replace this or should I even worry about it ?
It’s an 87 Accord with 180 grand. Yep A/c still works, just leaks and needs a recharge every so often. Thanks.
If you’re not going to fix the leak, you may not worry about the service valve cap. I would, at least, replace the missing cap. A quick check with a leak detector may reveal a 39 cent o-ring leaking out your 10 dollar a can freon.
You should be able to buy new caps at any auto parts house.
As to leakage, that’s a yes and no question. If the Schrader valve is not leaking then the caps won’t be a problem. The only downside is that dirt could accumulate in the valve and enter the system the next time it’s charged.
If the Schrader valve is leaking a little (which many often do over time) then the cap can help seal it. Note that inside the caps there is a small rubber 0-ring (or there should be anyway) and this O-ring helps to prevent leakage past the cap.
Often the O-ring will fall out and this will go unnoticed so always look inside the cap before reinstalling it.
you could just put tape over hole I seen cars with
Or, for that matter, any old valve stem cap would work. Maybe the dice kind!
Only if it hasn’t been converted to R 134a.