Recover and weigh
Our A/C station recovers all the refrigerant from the system and weighs it. Set against the factory figure, it shows how much your car had lost.
When the vents stop blowing cold, a quick top-up is the easy answer and usually the wrong one. We recover and weigh the gas left in your system, prove it holds a vacuum, recharge it with the correct refrigerant to the manufacturer's specified weight, and hand you the measured results on paper. Everything is done in-house at our Paralimni workshop, for drivers from Protaras, Ayia Napa, the rest of the Famagusta district and across Cyprus.
Air-con trouble often creeps in over a season rather than arriving overnight. These are the symptoms worth acting on:
None of these tells you by itself whether the culprit is low gas, a leak, the compressor, a choked filter or something electrical. So we diagnose before we recommend anything. What we find goes into a free written estimate, backed by photos or short videos sent over WhatsApp, and no work starts until you have said yes.
A cheap top-up pours gas into a system nobody has measured. We work the other way round: measure first, test for leaks, then recharge and prove the result. We service the A/C on hybrids and fully electric cars as well. For the engineering background behind each stage, read our full guide to car air-conditioning service in Cyprus.
Our A/C station recovers all the refrigerant from the system and weighs it. Set against the factory figure, it shows how much your car had lost.
With the system empty, we pull a vacuum, which draws out air and moisture, and hold it. A circuit that lets the vacuum slip has a leak, and we go looking for it before a single gram of new gas goes in. Holding vacuum rules out the bigger leaks; the smallest may only show once the system is back under pressure, which is where the UV dye in Stage 3 comes in.
Recovering the refrigerant also draws out part of the compressor's lubricating oil, so we replace the oil as well. If we are hunting a leak, UV trace dye goes in with it, making the escape point show up under an ultraviolet lamp.
We refill with the correct gas for your car, charged to the exact weight the manufacturer specifies. Not "until it feels cold".
With the system running, we read the temperature at the vents along with the high- and low-side pressures, then give you the printout. You drive away knowing how your A/C performs, in numbers rather than impressions.
Modern cars run on one of two refrigerants: the long-established R134a or the newer R1234yf. They are not interchangeable. Charging a system with the wrong one contaminates the gas and can harm the components it flows through.
Our station is equipped for both. Before any hose goes on, we confirm which gas your car was built for — from the label under the bonnet or by decoding the VIN. That is also why our quote is always written for your car's specific system and gas type, never a one-price-fits-all offer.
When the system will not hold its vacuum or the readings do not add up, a service turns into a repair. You get it in writing before any work begins.
The vacuum test tells us a leak exists; UV dye and a careful inspection tell us where. We show you the source on photos or video before quoting, because recharging a leaking circuit only sends the new gas out the same way as the old.
A noisy or unreliable compressor does not automatically mean a new one. Faults in the magnetic clutch, its coil or the external valves can be repaired without replacing the compressor itself. If the compressor has failed internally, the proper fix is a new unit plus a flush of the whole circuit, so debris from the old one cannot destroy its replacement.
The condenser behind the front grille is where the system sheds its heat, so a clogged or damaged one leaves the cabin warm however much gas is inside. We inspect it on every A/C service, and condenser work is carried out in-house too.
A blend flap — the small door behind the dashboard that mixes hot and cold air — can stick and make a perfectly healthy system feel weak. Faults like that, and other climate-control electrics, are traced with scan tools and an oscilloscope by our auto-electrical fault-finding service.
That stale whiff when the fan starts up comes from the evaporator: the cold, permanently damp part of the system hidden behind the dashboard, where bacteria and mould find ideal conditions. Air-freshener sprays only mask it; we tackle the source, with a new cabin filter and an antibacterial clean of the evaporator.
If the smell hangs around after that, we check whether the A/C drain is blocked. When that drain clogs, the condensation has nowhere to go, which is also a typical reason for a wet passenger footwell — so if you have noticed both, mention it when you book.
There is no need for a separate trip. We can carry out the A/C service at the same visit as a routine service, and our Full Service already includes an A/C sniff and performance check, which flags a system that is starting to struggle. The two service levels are compared on our car servicing in Paralimni page.
As a rule, we recommend a regas with a leak test every two years, and sooner if the air is no longer as cold as you remember. Heat, dust and salt air take their toll on far more than the A/C — our article on looking after your car in the Cyprus climate covers the rest.
Describe the symptoms on WhatsApp or by phone and bring the car in. We check the system before suggesting a fix: gas, leaks, compressor, condenser and the electrics that control it all.
You receive a written estimate for your car's own system and gas type, with photos or short videos of anything we found. The estimate is free, and nothing goes ahead without your approval.
We carry out the agreed work in-house: recovery, vacuum test, fresh oil and a recharge by weight, plus any leak, compressor or condenser repair you signed off.
The system is run and checked before you collect the car, and the printed vent-temperature and pressure readings come back with your keys — along with a complimentary exterior clean.
Send us the make, model and registration on WhatsApp with a line about the symptoms, or give us a call. We'll book you a time to bring the car to our Paralimni workshop, and we'll diagnose before quoting. For major work that keeps your car with us for longer, there's a courtesy car.
We recommend a regas with a leak test every two years, or sooner if the cooling has faded or you notice any of the symptoms above. Because the refrigerant also carries the compressor's oil, a system left to run low for years is harder on the compressor than one that is kept correctly charged.
It depends on the car, and it is not something we guess. We read the label under the bonnet or decode the VIN before connecting anything, then charge the system with the gas it was designed for. Our station works with both R134a and R1234yf.
In most cases the smell comes from bacteria and mould on the damp evaporator behind the dashboard. We replace the cabin filter and carry out an antibacterial evaporator clean, which treats the cause rather than perfuming over it. If the odour is still there afterwards, we check for a blocked A/C drain, which can also leave water in the footwell.
From the driver's seat you cannot reliably tell. Cooling that fades gradually often points to lost gas, while a rattle or squeal that follows the A/C button, or cold air that cuts in and out, points more towards the compressor. A sticking blend flap or an electrical fault can imitate either. Our diagnosis tells you which it is, and some compressor faults can be repaired without replacing the whole unit.
Yes. The A/C service can be added to a routine service so the car only comes in once, and our Full Service includes an A/C sniff and performance check as standard.
We diagnose first. You then receive a free written estimate for your car's specific system and gas type, with photos or short videos over WhatsApp showing what we found. Nothing is carried out until you approve it. For major work that keeps your car with us for longer, a courtesy car can be arranged.