where to buy R12
 

Hi,
Does anyone know where I can buy R12? I am out in California.
Thanks.
Rene

R12
 

You need to be licensed to buy R12. It is no longer manufactured but you can at times find some old stock on eBay. it is not legal however for them to sell it to you unless you are certified.

Try old car swap meets. Again not legal but i see cans of r12 at most of them.

It's easy to get on Ebay - you just need to sign a form that sellers will provide. It gets them off the hook. Technically not legal, but not much of a problem either.

"Not Legal" Three times... without mentioning how simple and cheap it is to make the guy Legal ?

This has been discussed well in the archives... you can take an online OPEN BOOK test , send in about $20 and get your license..

search for 608 or 609 ... the number of the test ( one is mobile one structural or something like that )

PRESTO !!!! You are then LEGAL !!!

legal and liable...

Around here, Napa still carries it. Very expensive and you can tell the cans have been sitting a while.

"legal and liable"
What does that mean ?
If you own a car you are those two things already.

Got my mechanic to use his license info for me to buy a few cans off of Ebay. He pays $25 can when he gets it and was glad for me to buy my own........He also indicated the license is just a tax as any moron could complete a open book test.......

The license may be a small tax, but the open book test is simply a test to let you know the affects of letting freon into the air. It's not a test of your ability to do AC work. Many parts houses can get you the test booklet for free, you only pay when you submit it for the license. It is recommened reading.

This only costs $15 from ASE and it is even an OPEN BOOK test. You even get a nice ASE certificate! :D

HERE is the test online!

Took the test while half asleep, got my cert. Buy R12 at Checker (Kragen/Shucks) for $16-$18 a can.

You can use a R-12 replacement called Freeze 12. I have used it before and it is colder than R-12 and 134a. They have a site freeze12.com. :cool:

Thanks.....I'll try the test and have my own certificate.......

Freeze 12
 

You need the certificate to buy Freeze12 too. I got mine for that reason. The only thing that is certificate free is R134. (Maybe something else called Envirosafe). Freeze12 is part R134 part something else. I tried it on my old 92 Saab 900 and but had issues with the expansion valve. I have to evacuate the system when replacing the valve and used R134 instead. I made sure I only filled it to 75% of capacity. I was getting 20degrees from the vent in a Texas summer (this was a convertible too). As long as the tempreture didnt go over 100, the A/C was ice cold with R134.

The little mom 'n pop A/C shop I took my 300SD to didn't have any trouble getting it. They tested the system and added about two pounds of R12 for $80. It was late summer in the San Fernando Valley and I gladly paid. :cool:

R12
 

You do realise that in Mexico R12 is dirt cheap... I am sure that there is a huge racket going on.

Well, at first the gov put a tax on it... then the number of cars which came from the factory with a beefed up system which could use the 134 without detriment as to cooling started to overtake the number of old cars which needed it... Supply and demand... except for shops which will let you think it costs huge amounts and pass that price on to you.

The sale or possession of R-12 produced after a certain date is against the law in the US, however it is still made and sold in other countries. Hence the high price.

I know in TN you do not need any certificates to buy Freeze 12. I have used it on several vechicles I own with no problems. Finding F12 is a different matter. It is a little hard to find in my area. :cool:

R12 Possession and Sale not illegal!
 

That's not exactly true-what IS illegal is the manufacture of R-12 (and any other CFC/chloroflurocarbon based refrigerant)-sale of "factory purified" recovered/reprocessed refrigerant is perfectly legal(at vastly inflated prices of course ;) ). I personally know of US vehicles running MP39 as a drop-in replacement; of course, as a refrigeration tech I've got plenty of R12 lying around(bought a bunch before the price gouging got really bad). Good luck(and be sure to fix all those little leaks!!! :P ).

That is still produced before that cutoff date, just recycled.

BTW, has anyone noticed the price of R134a climbing?

Mexican R-12
 

Got a friend that goes over every so often just to go, and while he's there he picks up ever how many cans he/his friends need, usually recieves about 10 bucks/can. It's nothing but a racket (good work if you can get it). I've read/heard somewhere that Duponts patent on it was about to run out and then it could've been made by anybody, thus R-12 conveniently became 'evil'. I HAVEN"T investigated this put plan to...........................