no A/C and heat always blowing..when off!

[PhatzPerformanc]

Having a problem with the heat/ac on the Accord. When on a/c the vents only throw out hot air..and I mean HOT!! Recharged the a/c through the port by the battery and it reads fine now..but still hot as heck! Now crazy problem (and it might be related) is the vents blow hot air through them when the selector knob is "off" and nothing is pushed (the vent controlls..defrost, foot, ect) so nothing SHOULD be coming out yet it does. When we close the vents..it comes out from the defrost holes. When we open the vents..the hot air flows pretty good, force wise. My roomate says sometimes if she closes the vents she hears a hissing sound untill she reopens the vents..like its building pressure. Any ideas? Thanks for the help fellas!!

[BustedLX]

The selector knob is either broken of the air mixture cable is broken. The problem is it's stuck with the heater valve open and the mixture flap is diverting all the hot air threw the heater core.

If she pushes the fresh air switch to not recycle the hot air should stop coming in.

Just fix the cable or knob, sometimes the actual climate control unit is broken, I've seen that too. In which case you could just remove the unit for a sec and actuate the cable with a pair of pliers.

[Grey Wag]

<CAUTION: long and boring post NOT about fun stuff like dropping your ride, tinting, etc>

In my case, the heat is not so much blowing as much as it can be reduced, but never completely stopped, even when the fan is switched off. Let me explain.

Say you have the heat set to full blast (fan at whatever speed, recyc or fresh, any vent choice: all make no difference), and decide to turn the temperature knob all the way over to the coldest setting; there air coming out of the vents will, at it's coolest, always be wamr/border-line hot. Remember, even with the fan off this is still the case.

I have attempted the following.

With the heater control panel removed I drove around for 30 minutes with the air mix cable pulled as far as possible in the "cold" direction (used a tie wrap through the now empty panel screw-hole in the dash.) Success (I thought)! It must be the badly cracked air mix controller (the knob appeared fine,where it's assembly mounts to the back of the panel was badly cracked). So, I got a replacement panel and gave that a spin. Dang. Same problem.
It's almost as if the amount of "pull" on the cable to shut off the heat can only be obtained by doing so manually, and the knob not enough.

With the replacement panel in place, and my head in the passenger foot-well (while PARKED ), I moved the temperature knob back and forth a few dozen times: everything seems to be moving as it should: air mix cable, heater valve cable, etc.

I should note: when the engine is running, and moving the knob from hot to cold, there is WAY too much resistance about mid-way: I actually have to stop the rotation for a moment, then proceed carefuly (same result though: heat never fully stops). I suspect this is how my first know assembly got cracked. Also of note, there is only resistance when going from hot to cold, not cold to hot.

When the engine is OFF, it is easier, but there is still resistance at mid-way.

My next step will be to disconnect and reconnect the air mix rod. After that, it's pull what's left of my dash (remove the steering column!?) and really get at it. Ugh. Also am considering if it's the (hot) water valve in the engine bay. I hope it's not the whole heater assembly that's screwed.

Phatz: did you ever solve your problem? How?

Busted: Helphelphelp!

Any help would be most appreciated. Thanks guys.

[BustedLX]

Grey Wag,
What I would do if I where you is to disconnect the line from the heater valve in the engine compartment and then see how much resistance there is on the knob. It could either be a bad valve or a kink in the mixture cable. I don't see how the flaps in the heater core unit could cause that problem.

Are you sure your A/C is working properly? Do you have gauges to check line pressures? Did you bypass the heater core and have ice cold air coming out?

I would suspect the heater valve not completely closing first before anything else.

When you are driving with everything off and the air cycle switch set to recycle does any air blow threw the vents? It should only vent in on fresh while in motion with everything off.

[GrayCar]

Hey! Another Wisconsin boy! Woohoo!

[Grey Wag]

BustedLX: you rule!

First, thanks for the speedy reply!

I would not have thought of disconnecting the line to the heater valve to test: I would of just tried a new valve. I will do as you suggest tonight after work. Before disconnecting, should the valve be set to "cold" (pointed towards driver's wheel-well) or to "hot" (towards front of car)? Once disonnected, should any fluid (water?) be coming out at all? Thanks.

[How about just manually cranking the heater valve to the shut (cold) position instead of disconnecting it? Ohhh, I see: I would not be able to tell if in fact the valve is working correctly from the outside. If it is not working correctly, and is set to "cold" I should see fluid once it is disconnected]

My A/C compressor blew a couple of years ago, and has been removed but not replaced. First things first (heat). Am I wasting my time trying to fix the heat issue without a A/C system up? I know they are "related", but did not think they "depended" on each other.

I agree about the heater valve. I am heading to the dealer in a few minutes for some un-related cheap, small parts: I will ask them for a quote on both the valve and a replacement air mix cable (in case it is actually kinked). Some things are just worth getting from the dealer, methinks.

As for recycle/fresh vent: I will check that tonight as well. You suggest this BEFORE all above steps?

Again...thanks so much.

[Grey Wag]

Sorry man: Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Where the poutine (fries with gravy and cheese) is hot, the women hotter,
and the snow is only good for skiing!

[GrayCar]

No man, the dude that started this thread is a Cheesehead.



Though I do miss a McPoulet et frites.

[Bluejayde]

Bro, Mcchicken's are nasty! That shit isn't even real meat. Upgrade to a Mcgrill or Crispy Chicken(Add Cheese) That's the shit!

[GrayCar]

hahaha, McPoulet all the way!

[Grey Wag]

No luck tonight

Guys,

Wife got home super-late with the Wag; gonna try tomorrow or Sunday, as tomorrow should be Salvage Yard Pickin' time.

BustedLX
Just to be completely clear before disconnecting the hose from the valve
1- Only test the cable for resistance; do not actually start the engine while hose is disconnected (as coolant will spray all over)
2-I should expect to loose a bit of coolant when disconnecting

'Later

[Grey Wag]

Duh.

Ignore all posts above asking for clarifications.
I understand now that you suggest I disconnect the cable to the valve, not the actual valve from the hose.
Will do ASAP and update.

[Grey Wag]

VICTORY.....kind of

Good, bad and worse news.

1- Disconnected heater valve cable from the valve, and was able to move valve arm even further towards closed (about 5mm)

NO MORE HOT AIR BLOWING/SEAPING INTO CABIN!!

2-No difference in difficulty turning temp. knob (vents inside box sticky?), in that the "tough to turn" problem persists. I can live with that if need be. I really don't want to yank (what's left of) my dash and pull the unit. Opinions welcome, though.

3-Premise: is it the cable adjustment or the valve that is out of whack? To find out I followed these steps http://www.honda.co.uk/owner/AccordManual/400/15-30.pdf which was fine until it came time to return the heater valve cable to the clamp; it's hard enough working in that area with one hand, but two is impossible. Is that a "hinged" clamp or a classic pressure one?
Access it better from underneath the car? I will try again tomorrow. For now, I can no longer control the heater valve at all until I re-clamp the cable...

[BustedLX]

I've never taken that cable off but I assume from the instructions that it just snaps in. It could be a cable adjustment or a bad valve. I would first try to adjust the cable and see if you can fix the problem if not replace the valve.

[Grey Wag]

The odd thing is, if the cable to the valve is disconnected (only at the valve end; i should also undo it from the inside end to make sure it't not the cable kinking) the heater control knob still turns with great difficulty.

Therefore, seing that the valve is not being actuated, and that the heater knob is only moving the air mix rod, it is looking more like a problem inside the heater assembly (sticky door, etc).

To isolate and test the valve, I will disconnect the air mix rod, and reconnect the cable to the valve: if the knob turns smoothly I have my answer...the problem lies within the assembly. If it still turns with difficulty

I dropped the car last night at my mechanic's to get the A/C running again, so I won't get it back until at least tomorrow.

Thanks everyone. I can't wait to get to more interesting projects.