I have a question about the spacing on the A/C condenser in front of the radiator. I have always made brackets to hold it 3/4" to 1" away from the radiator. I was looking at a car the other day that had the A/C condenser mounted to the radiator core with tie wraps, right up against the core. I thought they needed space in between them. This car looked like it was together a long time. Hoping someone will know if it makes any difference. Regards, HonestFrank....Merry Christmas to all.
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"VEO DINDICE"

Hey Frank, I asked that question a few weeks ago & was told to mount it close. I have mine about 3" out right now & the engine runs hot supposedly because of eddy currents set up after the air passes through the condenser and breaking up the laminar flow of the air current before it can enter the radiator fins.
Look up the long discussion post in the archives earlier this month or last month to see the responses.

Frank, You might want to check out www.ackits.com they have a message board. One of there staff will give you the info you need.


Rick
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awsum34

Remember the only dumb question is the one you don't ask.

1 inch is about what everybody recommends.I dont think mounting on the radiator is to smart.I beleive you will get some heat tranfer. I have seen them 1-3 inches away and work ok ,as long as you are getting airflow.Dont forget to clean the condenser out every know and then also.(reverse flow with water or air) Same with your trans cooler if its a remote.
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Drive like you stole it !!

You can mount the condenser as close as you'd like. Not touching though, as that would cause rubbing. Also you should leave enough room to "clean" with a garden hose and have room for the dirt to fall. So anywhere from a half inch to three inches is advisable. However, you MUST close the space between them. Foam, such as is sold in places like Home Depot, can be used to pack the sides. The airflow must not be able to come around the sides. Proper fan operation is also a must.. Hope this helps..

Lost and Found and I have a little bit of a healthy disagreement on this subject, whereas a 3/8 inch space vs a 3 inch space is a lot of difference. He is correct, they do ideally need some space. I run them frame to frame with rubber spacers and depending on radiator or AC coil design, this leaves about 3/8 to 1/2 inch in between.

My friend (actually a part time rodding buddy) here in town who owns 5 differing FROSTEMP locations across the southeast, a company specializing in all kinds of automotive and truck airconditioning needs and installations, says no more than 3/4 inches for the best or ultimate positive transfer of airflow from front to back for the entire coil and radiator unit. But this depends somewhat on speed and design of course.

Ideally, the coil can be run up against the radiator, but it won't be as effective. I know of alot of them that work fine but I would be afraid of core to core rubbing and eventual problems on that front than anything else.

The air coming thru the AC coil will be set up or straightened to an extent when flowing past the fins and tubes of the AC coil. Because the fins and/or tubes of the radiator do not match exactly the same spacing and line up correctly with the AC coil, it is advised to design a space in between the AC coil and the radiator to let the air move in semi straight/deflected lines, but not eddy or build unorganised pressure to any extent behind the AC coil. If this happens, the air that was coming thru the AC coil that was all formed and mostly straightline becomes disarrayed, (the more space the more eddys and unorganised it gets...kinda like walking away from a floor fan....close up its very forcefull and organised...but the further you get from it it becomes unnoticeable and not moving due to eddys and air friction....same principle here) and bogged down and doesn't enter the radiator in effective straight line motion and creates a dead zone of trapped air. This produces two problems. One is that it traps conducted heat from the AC coil in front and diminished the airflow CFMs greatly.

By having the coil no more than 1/2 to 1/4 inches, the incoming air will permeate the radiator in a relatively organised and straight line matter and result in more CFM. The heat conduction from the AC coil (when in turned on) WILL take place in ALL systems. Your radiator and cooling system has to have the capacity to take on what the industry design standard is of around 15 degrees higher ambient temperatures going into the radiator. This is why if you have overheating problems in any car, the turning off of the air conditioning helps enormously to help cooler air get to the radiator.

This is also why Griffin (and the OEM boys install larger radiators for AC cars) recommends most applications without air to use their 1 inch tubed radiator and with air their 1.25 incher, for increase in cooling capacity expecting the incoming air to be higher. Their combo unit by the way is spaced 3/8 to 1/2 inches depending on design from the factory if that's any help.

Fred, move that sucker forward and watch what happens with your cooling down the road. I will guarantee it will cool better!
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Steve Jack
Engineering & Marketing Technologies
ConceptOne Brackets and Pulleys

Steve, are you saying to move the condenser further AWAY from the radiator?
I thought you said it was already too far away at 4". I was going to move it in.

Yep.....move it towards the radiator. I guess my "forward" was meant to be differing than it appears.


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Steve Jack
Engineering & Marketing Technologies
ConceptOne Brackets and Pulleys

THANKS for all the great information. You guys are great. I thought that streetrod looked odd with no space. Good idea about sealing with foam. Merry Christmas to all. HonestFrank
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"VEO DINDICE"

Dont use foam as the amount you use is the amount you will be blocking the radiator off(not a good thing if your allready running a small grill area,you need every square inch)
It also looks like heck and very shoddy.Do make sure all the gaps are tight around the radiator dont worry to much about the condenser.Also think about getting the air out from under the hood if its a closed motor compartment.Fixed a few by adding holes to the inner fender to get the air to travel out.Keep the pressures correct on the A/C also as the wrong pressure will run hotter in the condenser. Happy Holidays hope yah get a lot of parts for the rod from santa.
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Drive like you stole it !!