Use the air conditioner at least once per week if possible. Some loss of freon after a few years may be ' normal ' Seals wear and loose pliability after being subjected to heat and vibration. The 'heart' of the system, pumps refrigerant through the air conditioning system. The hot gaseous freon goes from the compressor to the condenser . The condenser looks similar to, and is mounted in front of the radiator.
Air flowing through the condenser cools the freon.
The freon gives up heat to the air and changes to the liquid state. From there it flows to the receiver-drier. While being stored, the freon comes in contact with a desiccant material that removes moisture that may be in the system. Freon must be dry. Water and freon molecules can combine to form acids that do damage to the system.