Putting propane in R12 ac system?

[Tractor Seabee]

R29 (CARE 4) Propane | Linde Gas

Particularly red the line : It is a flammable refrigerant and therefore not suitable for retrofitting existing fluorocarbon refrigerant systems.

Andy

Good piece of information. Confirms my response that it is used as a refrigerant. A number of the Linde refrigerant products are highly flammable. Large industrial systems using R717 (ammonia) can have a ton or more in the system. Fire departments are never excited to be around those plants. Not only is 717 a lung irritant and nasty/deadly in its own right, it is also very flammable in certain mixtures with air. We used to burn it when welding on an existing system to keep the fumes away from the welder till the root pass was finished.

Ron

 

[Tractor Seabee]

That seems like more internet bs. If 2 pounds of propane in an ac system is going to blow up the world imagine the dangers of a propane vehicle with hundreds of pounds on board. Or transporting a BBQ propane cylinder. Or just having 30 gallons of gasoline on board.

I always move away real fast when I see those propane double trailers on the highway with mega tons of the stuff on board or worse, the empties. Empties are a bomb waiting for an igniter. Same with gasoline trucks.

Ron

 

[Jstpssng]

That seems like more internet bs. If 2 pounds of propane in an ac system is going to blow up the world imagine the dangers of a propane vehicle with hundreds of pounds on board. Or transporting a BBQ propane cylinder. Or just having 30 gallons of gasoline on board.

With all due respect you're comparing systems which are designed to carry propane to a system which is not.

 

[4570Man]

With all due respect you're comparing systems which are designed to carry propane to a system which is not.

They’re probably less likely to leak undisturbed but they could easily be damaged and leak in an accident. 2 pound of propane leaking out just isn’t of much concern compared to the other scenarios.

 

[RalphVa]

If it just seems like a bad idea to you please go away. If there痴 an actual safety concern based on fact, voice your concerns. Next question will it actually work? I致e got a 1992 truck with an r12 ac system. I already tried charging with 134 and it didn稚 work very good and currently doesn稚 work at all. Maybe the not working at all was unrelated but it still only cooled to like 55 degrees out the vents. It was better than not having it but not very chilly either. If the propane did work would it be an improvement?

I was a chemical engineer for 31 years and worked much of my career in dewaxing plants either almost totally filled with propane or used propane or propylene as a refrigerant.

Propane is heavier than air. This makes is very dangerous because it will pool on the ground in low spots or drift down a hill and find a source of ignition way far away. Given a choice (and I have it), I do not want propane anywhere on my property. When looking at a whole house generator, I went with diesel rather than have a huge tank of propane around and with having to mess with propane in the generator. My little Isuzu 12.5 kw is a gem, only using about 1 1/2 gallons/yr of diesel if it only runs the required 15 minutes every other week. Propane would require about 3 to 4 times more fuel. Diesel is so much safer.

Propane is almost a dead ringer for R12 as far as being a refrigerant does, but R12 won't ignite. Propane will. I have changed old R12 systems to the 134, and they have worked quite well. On our 1983 240D Benz, the system worked better with the 134 than on the R12.

Ralph

 

[TractorGuy]

HA! I backed my brush cutter over the top of a buried propane tank I forgot about. It had 250 gallons in it. It broke the regulator and started leaking but didn't ignite. I know I was extremely lucky but just saying.

Story on the tank was I went all electric. Hounded the gas company to come get their tank for several years then gave up and forgot about it. Fire department didn't have any trouble getting them to come burn it off and dig it out.

 

[sandman2234]

You just reminded me: I have a 20lb.(?) tank of R12 that I need to put on E-bay and sell.

Me too, lol!!
Lets just not do it at the same time. I also have a couple of 30 pound tanks of R-22 that will need to go, since my mother in law just replaced her leaking system with a 410 system. No more need to keep it around.
David from jax

 

[fried1765]

I have a 30 pound tank of R12,, from when Sams Club sold it,,,
I bought it, then sold the Suburban that used it,, so, the tank sets in my shed,,,

Want to borrow some?? :confused2:

:laughing:

Same here.
I thought my tank was 20lb, but it is 30lb.
Bought mine in the Bahamas.
I need to find the right place/way to sell it.

 

[LouNY]

Aw he!!, the bottom line is that propane will work in an R12 system,
the few ounces of propane in that system are NOT a safety hazard.
That said I wouldn't smoke while blowing the system down.
The system will actually work better with propane then it did with R12.
:2cents:
If you haven't tried it don't try and get on a band wagon with made up stories.

 

[Tractor Seabee]

Same here.
I thought my tank was 20lb, but it is 30lb.
I need to find the right place/way to sell it.

As I stated earlier only licensed/certified refrigerant handlers can legally buy, sell, or dispense bulk containers of R-12. Below a certain amount, that sold in consumer one time containers, are not regulated. This now applies to all refrigerants. Used to be the fine was $25K if caught w/o proper license or not maintaining a proper log of buys, sales, dispensed. My old log is around somewhere, maybe. An HVAC or refrigeration company can guide you to how legally get rid of it. A lot of R-12 has been burned. The change over happened too fast to use up all the residual stock. Maybe one of our TBNers currently in the business can bring us up to date on this subject.

Ron