Receiver Drier Chimes

A receiver drier, also called an accumulator, is part of the air conditioning system on a car.  The receiver drier's job is to store liquid refrigerant and also remove debris and moisture from the a/c system. They are usually made from aluminum and inside they have desiccant material to absorb and hold moisture.  The receiver drier is replaced when a major repair has been done to the a/c system, like replacing the compressor or condenser.



Here is a receiver drier still on the vehicle.  They
are often located behind the front grill or bumper. 



Another receiver drier still on the vehicle.



After saving receiver driers for a while, I decided to see what could be done with them.  I began by dissembling one.  Using a hack saw I cut the top off of the drier.  Once the top was off, all the guts could be removed and I was left with a hollow cylinder.  I found that it sounded a lot like a chime.        



The internal parts of a receiver drier.



With a Korg CA-40 Tuner, a saw and a file I have been slowly cutting the chimes to tune them as close to each individual pitch as possible.  I do not replace a lot of receiver driers at work so it is a slow process to add new notes.  The goal is a full octave of chimes, like the pulley bells.  As of right now there are 9 chimes total, but they are not chromatic.  The receiver driers that I have now are from a variety of different types of cars including Honda, Toyota, Nissan, Mercedes Benz, and BMW.

For mounting the chimes I drilled two small 1/8" holes near the top of each chime.  Then I strung all of the chimes on a wire above the pulley bells.  They have a good tone and blend well with the rest of the Motor Rhythms set.