Is it dangerous to refill freon in my car if I have a minor leak?

Question

I took my 2001 ford focus se car in 2 weeks ago to tires plus(they not only sell tires but fixes cars also). The car got it's pvc valve and hose replaced b/c my car was shuttering causing to cut off. When I got my car back the ac was blowing just air, so I took it back & they said there was a leak in my evaporator behind the passenger dashboard. The repair was going to be about $1400. I was so pissed off!!! How can my ac be working and blowing cold air that same day. I denied service, telling them it was just too coincident. As I went to pick it up, it started to work again until 1 wk later. So I was wondering if someone could tell me if I could get sick from breathing in freon if it was leaking in the evaporator.

Answer 1

yes you need to find the leak and repair it or you'll just be adding more 134a all the time.

Answer 2

no, it won't make you sick. it's harmless in the amounts you would be exposed to.

Answer 3

R 134 is bad for your health, though, if the a/c cools you may not have a freon leak.
People have it in their head, that if they go to a dealer they get screwed, but it's the opposite, independent shops are the one's who do it.

Answer 4

First of all it sounds like when they were fixing your car, they broke a seal somewhere or cracked a pipe if your a/c was working fine before you brought it there.  When it worked when you left they probably just re-filled the system without finding the leak they made.  I would call a general manager and make this an issue.  They wanted $1400 for an evaperator???!!! That's insane, I would suggest never going to a Tires Plus to get service done, go to a repuatable shop.

Now to answer your question.  The chances of you getting sick are very slim.  You need to have long term exposure to have any affects, unless you directly breath it in.