Air conditioning and heating

Receiver driers

Receiver driers and accumulators for air-conditioning systems: the bottle that stores liquid refrigerant, filters it and removes moisture with its desiccant, made to the fittings and the mounting of the original, for European and Japanese passenger cars, identified by OE reference.

KRONTEK receiver drier: an aluminium drier bottle with a bent inlet pipe and two mounting brackets

The receiver drier is the bottle in the high-pressure line between the condenser and the expansion valve. It does three jobs: it holds a reserve of liquid refrigerant so the expansion valve is always fed with liquid, it filters debris out of the flow, and its charge of desiccant absorbs the moisture that inevitably enters the circuit. Moisture is the enemy of an air-conditioning system: with the refrigerant and the oil it forms acids that corrode the system from the inside, and it freezes at the expansion valve and blocks the flow.

The desiccant has a limited capacity. Once the circuit has been opened for a repair, or has stood empty after a leak, the desiccant is saturated by the air that entered and the drier no longer protects the system. That is why the drier, or the drier cartridge in the condenser, is renewed with every repair of the refrigerant circuit, and why a drier is never fitted in advance and left open.

KRONTEK receiver driers are made to OEM-compliant quality and as aftermarket spare parts: the fittings, the desiccant charge and the mounting of the original, for expansion-valve systems, plus accumulators for orifice-tube systems where the original uses one.

The range covers European and Japanese passenger cars. Each reference is identified by the OE number of the original part; send that number and the vehicle identification number (VIN) and we confirm the matching KRONTEK reference.

For availability and OE cross-references, contact us by email.

Frequently asked questions

When is the drier replaced?
Every time the refrigerant circuit is opened (a compressor, condenser or evaporator replacement, or the repair of a leak) and after any long period with the system empty, because the desiccant absorbs moisture from the air and cannot be dried again. Moisture in the circuit forms acids and ice at the expansion valve.
Drier, accumulator or filter cartridge?
Systems with an expansion valve use a receiver drier on the high-pressure side, between the condenser and the valve; systems with an orifice tube use an accumulator on the low-pressure side; many modern condensers hold a small drier cartridge in an integrated bottle. Send the OE number and we confirm which the vehicle uses.

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