how to make your AC blow harder and cooler.

[2drhoeon4s]

Saw this on Full size chevy and thought I would do it on my truck.

Very easy to do, took me about 30 minutes.

Disclaimer: I am not responsible for anything you do to your vehicle. This is simply a helpful guideline.

This applies to all 88-99 GM.. The writeup is on a 99 tahoe 2wd 4dr. The older dash is a bit different so removal of the glovebox and blower motor might be different.

Tools you will need:

1. washcloths
2. Bowl of water
3. toothbrush
4. garden hose with spray nozzle
5. purple power cleaner (dont use high strength degreaser or you will never get the smell out.
6. Gloves
7. 9/32 socket and extension
8. Patience
9. Air Freshener (optional)

http://a2.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/285272_10150717937660576_820710575_19573552_644550 3_n.jpg

http://a1.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/269768_10150717940500576_820710575_19573594_163882 5_n.jpg
Ok here is how it goes

step 1.

FIGURE 1
http://a1.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/268059_10150717936400576_820710575_19573537_607310 2_n.jpg

open your glovebox and remove it. once it is open you simply squeeze the sides in towards eachother until the tab in figure 2 clears the side.

FIGURE 2
http://a2.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/284417_10150717936530576_820710575_19573538_115575 0_n.jpg

Once the glovebox is removed, it should look like this..

FIGURE 3
http://a7.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/283215_10150717936795576_820710575_19573543_814518 _n.jpg

Step 2.
Locate the blower motor.. It is to the right side of the opening, near the kick panel. It is round. (FIGURE 4)

FIGURE 4
http://a8.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/285470_10150717937100576_820710575_19573547_839967 _n.jpg

Step 3.
Remove the 2 wires that power the blower motor.(FIGURE 5) one will be purple with a white clip and one will be black. Remember which wire goes to which terminal.

FIGURE 5
http://a4.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/284684_10150717936990576_820710575_19573545_590503 9_n.jpg

Step 4.
Once the wires are removed, proceed to remove the blower motor cover. It is simple to remove and slides right out. (FIGURE 6)

FIGURE 6
http://a6.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/282573_10150717937330576_820710575_19573550_140777 _n.jpg

Step 5.
Take your 9/32 socket and extension and remove the 5 screws holding the blower motor in. Take your time, the top 2 screws are the hardest. There is also a screw holding a ground tab onto the motor. No need to remove it.

FIGURE 7
http://a5.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/284829_10150717937835576_820710575_19573554_443675 4_n.jpg

Step 6.

Once all the screws are removed, proceed to pull the blower motor out. It is not that difficult, but it will require a bit of persuasion. it seems to get snagged on the brace that runs across the backside of the dash. (FIGURE 8, 9, and 10)

FIGURE 8
http://a8.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/283266_10150717938555576_820710575_19573564_354361 0_n.jpg

FIGURE 9
http://a6.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/268939_10150717938715576_820710575_19573567_220065 3_n.jpg

FIGURE 10
http://a2.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/267530_10150717938875576_820710575_19573571_229245 8_n.jpg

Step 7.
once the motor is removed, locate the coil to the upper left side of the opening inside the blower motor housing. (FIGURE 11, 12)

FIGURE 11
http://a7.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/281885_10150717939045576_820710575_19573574_737648 4_n.jpg

FIGURE 12
http://a3.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/285532_10150717939685576_820710575_19573583_267424 5_n.jpg

This is what my coil looked like when I opened it up.

FIGURE 13
http://a2.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/284414_10150717940240576_820710575_19573590_905969 _n.jpg

Step 8.
Place a washcloth below the coil housing on your floorboard. It will catch and dripping that comes out of the housing.

Step 9.
Put on your gloves!! Then reach your hand into the opening and feel around for leaves or any other large debris that are lodged in the housing. Mine were all across the bottom and back side. Remove as much as possible with your hands. ( it is best to have small hands or let the wife do this, as I found it is hard to get my hand in the right position to pick up stuff. a small flathead screwdriver helped loosen the debris attached to the wall of the housing.

This is what I removed from mine.

FIGURE 14
http://a6.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/268129_10150717940695576_820710575_19573599_732186 6_n.jpg

Step 10.
Once the large debris is clear, spray your cleaner (purple power or simple green) up onto the coil heavily and let it soak in for a few minutes.

Step 11.
Take your bowl of water and a toothbrush and reach into the housing and scrub the coils. it helped me to cut the toothbrush into a smaller handle to reach all areas. Once again it helps to have small hands. Rinse the brush every few seconds of scrubbing in the bowl of water.

Step 12.
Take your garden hose and set the nozzle on either Jet or center spray.
aim it up into the housing and lightly spray your coils to rinse them off.. You can spray them heavily, but it is best to start off light until you get comfortable spraying a hose into that small area.
(dont worry about the water, most of it will drain out the drain line that is built into the housing (outside of the cab), however a small bit will drip through the seal in the bottom of the housing inside the cab, which your washcloth should absorb.)

Keep rinsing until your water draining out is clear.

Step 13.
Repeat steps 10-12 until you feel that the coils are clean to your liking.

Here is what mine looked like when I was finished.

FIGURE 15
http://a4.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/285109_10150717941405576_820710575_19573608_729753 5_n.jpg

Assembly is the exact reverse of taking it apart.

Step 14.
Wipe the inside of the housing with a washcloth to clean any leftover residue.

Step 15. (optional)
Spray an air freshener or cologne into the housing. This will add a nice smell to your system, and it should last a while.

Step 16.
Re install your blower motor, hook up the wiring, and reinstall the cover and glovebox, and you are good to go.

[puckhead]

Wow thats pretty awesome!

[jem556]

Holy crap...that's got to work better now!

[2drhoeon4s]

yeah it works much better now... the 2 setting blows like the max setting used to.

[SunlitComet]

you live or drive in a swamp or something?

[2drhoeon4s]

haha... I think this truck used to be lifted and went mudding before I bought it.... funny cuz its 2wd and lowered now.. oh well..

[AtomicHoe094]

Nice write up!!

[clkelley]

Excellent write up indeed! That is absolutely amazing that there was that much crap up in there. Makes me want to do mine for sure just to make myself feel better...

[01tahoenjn]

wonder if this works for 00-06?!?!

[2drhoeon4s]

if i recall you nbs guys have cabin filters... the only reason ours get this way is no cabin filter..

[Daytony]

There is a cabin filter on the other side of the evaporator coils, all it is 2 pieces of window screen with a plastic mesh in between. I cheated and replaced my evaporator coils when I snapped both AC fittings off in front of the firewall and put a new blower motor in, Im good for a few MONTHS lol

[SunlitComet]

There is NO cabin filter in the 92-99.

[Daytony]

True, but there is a screen on the other side of the evaporator.

[SunlitComet]

Every vehicle has that it is for large debris not dust type stuff.

[chauncey0337]

Nice write up and awesome improvement. My cabin filters actually looked like those coils before I replaced them.

[ChiTahoe]

god do I wish we had cabin air filters.

[gmcconvert]

hey thanks for the write up. went and cleaned mine out after a day out with the family and thinking I wouldnt mind if this thing cooled down faster. shouldve taken some pics but too late now. not really blocked up with dust/grime too bad but a ton of leaves. nice difference.
man you did a good job getting pics of the coils. i was thinking I was just going to look up in there and get a view like your picture. I was impressed with the images as I was reaching in and scrubbing blindly.

[XxBIGxTEXxX]

So i just finished doing all of this and it actually feels as if i had lost power or lost freon... Now to some people they said that after cleaning it out, it felt as if the motor would spit out more power where if u had it set on low, it felt as if it was on hi.. To me it feels as if it lost power.. idk.. Has anyone else had this sane problem or did i do something wrong? i also sprayed OZIUM freshener inside...

[HotCarl]

Just did this on my '97. I pulled out a lot of pine needles, dirt, hair, and small leaves and other crap. However, after I got it all back together the AC and fan blew just the same as before, no difference... :think:

[Ceejkay]

i did this because i was backing up into the pass side of the truck, removed alot of sand(florida truck),mud, leafs, and hair .Thanks for the write up

[WiCK3D_SiX]

I really wish I had seen this sooner. I just replaced my blower motor O_o. Guess its coming back out again. Thanks for the writeup!

[TTZ06]

Thanks! Great work

[Jaycenk]

Great write up. Just finished mine. Mine was not that bad but it got rid of a nasty smell I had for a since the rains finally came 2 months ago. Had a small pile of rotting stuff in the back lower corner and hair and lent clogging 2 rows up and down on the front side. Gets cooler quicker. Also gave me a good look at the Fresh air door and got to watch it move and found out that it keeps falling open even with no vacume so that will be replaced as soon as I get the part. My A/C should be nice and cold just in time for cooler weather lol.

[SunlitComet]

It does not use vacuum. when 12v is on it it will actuate when power 12v is removed it opens.

[K-DuB96]

Excellent write up! I finally had to replace my blower motor because I was tired of banging on it just to get it going when it wouldn't start up. When I looked at my grate it was fairly clean besides of a couple twigs and leaves. Now my blower works all the time when I turn it on. :rocking:

[Skeletoy]

Kind of off-topic but fairly related to this thread. Has anyone measured temperatures coming out of their vents before/after? I know it's all subjective to the inlet temp, ambient temp, humidity, etc though. I came across some base line numbers in a repair manual. Mine is maybe a few degrees higher than these numbers. I haven't looked at the evap to see if it needs cleaning or not.

For 1994 Yukon:

Ambient Temp Outlet Temp
70 --------------> 50
80 --------------> 56
90 --------------> 63
100 -------------> 75

[nurkvinny]

Because of this thread, I bought new cabin filters and installed them. Man, were they disgusting and looked much like that coil. This was in a mint, exceptionally clean Tahoe. I can't imagine how the filters/coil must look in a Tahoe in a dusty climate or a smoker, or pets, etc.

[Jaycenk]

It does not use vacuum. when 12v is on it it will actuate when power 12v is removed it opens.

Yea I ment vacume from the fan. Since the opening at the bottom inside the truck is not big enough to creat zero vacume with fan on high it pulls the door down and sucks from out side.

[Gzes]

Damn good thing I have no ac in my hoe. Not!!!!!! When I get it fixed I will heck this out since it was from sc then it should have slot of crap in it. So it's aroun the same area for the 94?

[Jaycenk]

Damn good thing I have no ac in my hoe. Not!!!!!! When I get it fixed I will heck this out since it was from sc then it should have slot of crap in it. So it's aroun the same area for the 94?

Should be the same.

[Gzes]

K cool

[vtx1800sba]

Excellent! I bought a 96 hoe that'd been stored for years. So far pulled out two mouse nests; one in the head liner and one in the air cleaner box. I wonder what's in behind the blower motor. I know what I'm doing this weekend after reading this. Great write up and excellent imagery!

[SunlitComet]

I wonder if there is a mouse in you intake plenum.:puke:

[Gzes]

Wonder if you find Jerry? Hope you don't hire Tom to kill him lol

[vtx1800sba]

I did have a cat camp out in the engine bay of a chevy nova I owned once. I drove all around town one day. And for whatever reason had to open the hood to check on something. There were a pair of eyes attached to a balled up cat hunkered between the power brake booster and the wheel well hump. It took off like a shot once I got the hood open. Maybe the cat was lookin for Jerry that day?

[Hammer450R]

I never heard of someone calling their girl friend "AC" before but try to get her to put ice in her mouth
:jawdrop:

[Gzes]

I never heard of someone calling their girl friend "AC" before but try to get her to put ice in her mouth
:jawdrop:

Wait what?

[SunlitComet]

Exactly.

[vtx1800sba]

Ok guys I took on the project. Was easy to do. Fortunately the coils were squeaky clean in mine. Pulled out a few pine needs was all. The foam insulation stuck to the inside of the motor cover tore loose in one spot but I stuck it back on. Had it all back together in about 30 minutes.

[ISRT-HOE]

Very Nice Tip! Will be checking into mine and will let you know how it looked.

Thanks!!

[SeriousSide97]

u sup

[DefendHawaii]

Though I am not pumping aC in winter. (My dogs love the cold so sometimes I gotta) When my dash control assembly goes in next week I will do this too just as a "full job" heater core is done, and this and the control assembly should hopefully make the tahoe complete and up to date on the big things.

[countrykorn81]

I just replaced my blower motor and never looked at the coil. Great write up! what a great help..

[NorCal]

This is a great write-up. I just disassembled my system and removed a ton of crap. Squirting the water out of the hose up there a weird feeling, but you were correct and it all drained out. I took it one step further thou. I used a tooth brush and get the crud out, and then used my shop vac and jammed it up there cause my hands are too big to move around in there well.

Once its all back together, I'll crank up the system and see how he works. . .

[NorCal]

Alright I put everything back together and I didn't notice a huge different in performance. It doesn't blow any harder but the air coming out of the vents smells nicer, on account that I sprayed some Pumpkin scented Fabreeze onto the coil. Now I'm driving around and my rig smells like pumpkin pie, lol. :gr_grin:

[SunlitComet]

Weirdo.

[NorCal]

Weirdo.

:Moon:

[willxfs]

Here are before and after pict's of my '98 2 Door. Used simple green and an old tooth brush. Worked great. Great write up. Thanks.

[Krazyasslunatic]

Just did this on my 2000 limited, basically the same but screws are 7/32s and there's just one plug in the blower motor

[noJeepshere]

I never heard of someone calling their girl friend "AC" before but try to get her to put ice in her mouth
:jawdrop:

Wait what?

Exactly.

I must be a perv because I got that.


I'll have to see what mine looks like sometime, the fan seems to blow pretty well but it has parked under trees alot and I live on a dirt road. Well, right now it's an ice road.:)

Kind of off-topic but fairly related to this thread. Has anyone measured temperatures coming out of their vents before/after? I know it's all subjective to the inlet temp, ambient temp, humidity, etc though. I came across some base line numbers in a repair manual. Mine is maybe a few degrees higher than these numbers. I haven't looked at the evap to see if it needs cleaning or not.

For 1994 Yukon:

Ambient Temp Outlet Temp
70 --------------> 50
80 --------------> 56
90 --------------> 63
100 -------------> 75
These numbers must be different for 99's, because when I had mine serviced and refilled(?) the tech measured the temps and found with an ambient of 73 the outlet temp was 35:Big Laugh: