Heater and AC box removal/cleanup...

[Guest Floid]

15 minutes of work = 20 questions.

 

Got the driver's side and passenger (blower) boxes off easily. Why did I not know that those resistor coils were in the blower box, not the heater box in the middle? Anyhow, if anyone else still hasn't caught on, they're right down in the connecting duct by the blower motor on this model... or is there more than one blower/resistor pack?

 

No decayed mice in the blower, anyhow. No *crud* in the blower, just two beech-nut shells and a leaf. Lucky me.

 

Next up- unlucky me. The A/C box, and moreso the heater box next to it, are full. I can see how they pull apart, but, while I could probably drain the coolant if I wanted and take out the whole heater core (not sure what it'll come to, need a look at it first), I'm not so sure about the A/C. The heat-exchanger in there (evaporator?) is full of refrigerant, so I can't exactly go unbolting it, right? Just want to make sure I'm not stupid before I go through the trouble of working around it. Does the whole defroster flap assembly still pull out with the upper half of the A/C box in place, and how does the heater box disentangle from the rear-seat duct, anyway? (Just want to know before I crack any plastic.. I've left the dash bracket in place in front of it, so between that and the carpet, I can't get a good look.)

 

I can tell that the rear duct will be my downfall- hopefully it'll be vacuumable-clean when I shine a flashlight up it, because I don't think I have the time to pull up the carpet and still have everything back together before the end of the month...

 

Almost the last question- the foam on the vent flaps (the things that control the airflow to the defroster, climate control vs. vent, etc) is pretty well crumbling... I can weatherstrip the areas around the vents, as was done stock, but what have you guys done for your flaps? Scraped them clean, left what you could on, weatherstripped the edges, found a source for squooshy adhesive foam sheets? The last thing I want to do is put everything back together, and find decaying foam chunks shooting out my vents in a year!

 

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As an aside, I've traced out mouse-territory pretty well now; it starts in the unused(?) storage cavity in back, the one opposite that where the jack is stored- someone plugged some sort of hole there with spray-foam, in an attempt to keep the guys out, but there was plenty of insulation-bedding wadded up inside. I presume they would scurry from there to the rear heater outlet, and up into the heater box. The vent flaps were adjusted to keep them out of the defroster, and the AC as well, I think.

 

Which brings me to the actual last question- someone else mentioned the fresh-air intake as a likely source; while I imagine it will All Become Clear to Me when I have the heater box apart, where's that supposed to be, again?

[Guest Floid]

Okay... Got the evaporator box off without much trouble, though I did a number on the bottom insulation. (Anyone ripped all theirs out, had any condensation troubles to show for it?) I hope it's okay to bend the tubing a bit with the system charged, because it had to be done to get the top off.. Please ignore anything truly stupid written in a fit of sleep-dep above!

 

Now, the tubing connections were sealed/wrapped with a sticky gasket tape, and that stuff is studded with filth. Am I going to risk discharging anything if I peel it off completely, and do regular shops carry replacement material, or should I see if my mechanic's got some?

 

The more I look at the heater box itself, the more a mystery it becomes; any tips on what to unbolt/unclip first would be appreciated. (Note that "heater box" refers to everything left in the center- the defroster flap unit, central box with some the of heater/AC switching flaps- *very* disgusting- and the core itself, which I guess is sitting down near the bottom?)

 

Still wondering what to do about the flap foam, too.