A/c only works on max a/c

I have a a/c problem. I recharged my a/c yesterday and today I was using itand the ac only comes on at max ac. When I switch to ac it cuts off the ac and hot air blows out.

Anyone have this problem?

Derrickmd18 said:

I have a a/c problem. I recharged my a/c yesterday and today I was using itand the ac only comes on at max ac. When I switch to ac it cuts off the ac and hot air blows out.

Anyone have this problem?

Click to expand...

Is it HOT air or just not cold air? Does the compressor stop engaging when this happens? Do you have manual HVAC controls or automatic?

It could be your blend door or the bleed door actuator isn't working. I had this problem about a month ago. My blend door actuator stripped it's gears.

Hot air. Manual controls.

Derrickmd18 said:

Hot air. Manual controls.

Click to expand...

That's got to be blend door related. It's open when it should be closed if the TEMP knob is all the way down. I quess it could be the TEMP switch, but they're pretty reliable, the actuator and blend door... not so much.

I didn't feel like buying a new actuator right now, so I removed it, took it apart and saw the teeth were stripped. I removed the large crescent shaped gear from the actuator and stuck it on the blend door. This way I could open and close the blend door manually. Problem is when the blower fan is turned on the door want to slam open, so I glued a piece of rubber behind the gear to hold the blend door shut. The A/C now blows cold again. I'll worry about the actuator in the Fall.

Ok checked it today and the a/c compressor is still on in the ac mode and max ac mode. But it goes from cold to super hot when I turn it to ac. So it's the actuator or door? Also how hard are they to replace?

Derrickmd18 said:

Ok checked it today and the a/c compressor is still on in the ac mode and max ac mode. But it goes from cold to super hot when I turn it to ac. So it's the actuator or door? Also how hard are they to replace?

Click to expand...

The actuator is behind the glove box. Drop the glove box door to the floor and look at where the white plug is. That's the blend door actuator. It is held in place by 3 5/16's screws. The front 2 are easy to remove. The rear one (which is located directly behind the white plug) is a PITA. Once all 3 screws are out, it just lifts straight up.

Test it by turning the TEMP control knob from cold to hot. The "D" shaped shaft should move (it moves very slowly).

If the problem is a broken blend door, most people cut a hole in the heater plenum to replace it. There's a STICKY on how/where to make the cut. If you like challanges you can remove the dash.

Dorman makes replacement blend doors and actuators. I think chefduane has a new set he's been looking to get rid of.

im going to pull it out tomorrow if not saturday to see if it moves.

When you turn the dial to Max AC there's a valve in the hot water inlet that shuts off heat to the heater.

Flash said:

When you turn the dial to Max AC there's a valve in the hot water inlet that shuts off heat to the heater.

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Max A/C does not turn off the heater control valve. It shuts a door that lets in fresh air for outside the vehicle and basically recirculates the air inside the cabin to make it colder faster. The TEMP knob turns off the heater control valve (if the truck even has a heater control valve, Ford did away with the valve on some years) and shuts the blend door, which isolates the heater core from the evaporater.

koda2000 said:

Max A/C does not turn off the heater control valve. It shuts a door that lets in fresh air for outside the vehicle and basically recirculates the air inside the cabin to make it colder faster. The TEMP knob turns off the heater control valve (if the truck even has a heater control valve, Ford did away with the valve on some years) and shuts the blend door, which isolates the heater core from the evaporater.

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I stand corrected then.

What I said I heard on this forum. It sounded right because my AC only worked properly on Max.
I had a leaky blend door.

Same issue here for the past few years. My blend door is stuck on hot, but the actuator works fine. I have AC when I want it, and heat when I want it, so I never even bothered to go in and repair the door.

I just looked at mine and I hear it clicking. It got open then when I had the ac on and was switching the temp it stopped working all together. So I'm replacing the actuator Saturday.

Derrickmd18 said:

I have a a/c problem. I recharged my a/c yesterday and today I was using itand the ac only comes on at max ac. When I switch to ac it cuts off the ac and hot air blows out.

Anyone have this problem?

Click to expand...

Mine's doing the same thing

Derrickmd18 said:

I have a a/c problem. I recharged my a/c yesterday and today I was using itand the ac only comes on at max ac. When I switch to ac it cuts off the ac and hot air blows out.

Anyone have this problem?

Click to expand...

When you say "ac only comes on at max ac," do you mean that the compressor is not engaging in other positions? If you don't know the answer, it will be the first thing to look at.