time for AC this season

[mjoekingz28]

Last year we got my AC going with a couple cans of refrigerant after going a year without any air. Didn't have a problem the entire season, it blew cold all year long. Now, this spring I tried turning it one and the compressor wouldn't kick in.

So, my car calls for 24oz and I got the 18oz bottle with a hose that has 1oz of oil in it. We started charging and nothing happened for a few minutes until I started shaking the bottle. Then the compressor kicked in and the bottle started getting cold. It was 65-70F ambient when we started last night. The pressure stayed right at the beginning of the range finder on the gauge then after a little time the can of R134a wasnt getting cold anymore and the pressure stabilized for some time and we still weren't getting cold air.

Some time later my Dad got a hold of the can and kept adding until the gauge red right below the red line and still no cold air. What else can I do? I'll ride around today with it like that and see if it will blow cold when it gets warm this afternoon. Other than that I think I will purge some pressure out of it and see if that helps.

Also, there was some stuff left in the can because I cracked the valve open to let it depressurize/drain and it took awhile then the can got really cold and formed frost.

 

[JHZR2]

If your AC has leaked completely out then you need to replace the receiver/dryer and do a long vacuum on the system. Otherwise youll have moisture inside and each subsequent refill will just do more damage.

How do you know that you lost oil justifying the 1oz addition?

Are you aware that there can be an overpressure cutout too?

Id venture to guess that purging refrigerant is illegal and also I wouldnt want to have anything to do with breathing it.

Fix the issue if the car is worth keeping. Then you will not need to refill at all.

My 30yo cars still have tight AC (knock on wood), so there is no reason that your car should not be able to stay tight and functional.

 

[CROWNVIC4LIFE]

Originally Posted By: JHZR2

My 30yo cars still have tight AC (knock on wood), so there is no reason that your car should not be able to stay tight and functional.


Since the late 60's all our cars have had tight functional a/c as well...Knock on wood.

Generally every year the same people have the same issues with the a/c cause they do not use it enough...If they just left the a/c on all the time [all year long] there would be almost zero complaints in the spring in summer.

We just leave ours on in the automatic position all the time all year long...If your car does not have E.A.T.C. just leave it on the bi-level or hi-low position ALL the time.

I know this is going to fall on deaf ears here but if the bulk of you did this there would be almost no one here complaining of poor or no a/c in the spring and summer.

 

[Drew99GT]

Sounds like maybe the expansion valve or something else in the system is clogged up? I know if you add a can of freon with leak sealer each year to a leaky system, that sealer stuff will build up in the system and clog it.

 

[mjoekingz28]

My great uncle told me right when I first started driving (1997) that the seals dry out over the winter due to non-use. But listen here, this Saturn the compressor will not kick on when it is cold outside because I tried it when it was around 40F out.

 

[JHZR2]

There often is a low-temp switch, but not for 40F. Something else is likely wrong.

 

[antonmnster]

Not one of the old systems growing up lasted more than 5 years without seizing a compressor.

It'd be nice to run them for at least a few minutes a month in the winter, but that just won't happen when the temps are below freezing for 6-12 weeks.

 

[rationull]

My car's owners manual specifically says to run the AC for 5 minutes a week or something like that in the winter. It might be 5 minutes a month. I assume to prevent it drying out and leaking like this.

 

[rpn453]

Originally Posted By: CROWNVIC4LIFE
Generally every year the same people have the same issues with the a/c cause they do not use it enough...If they just left the a/c on all the time [all year long] there would be almost zero complaints in the spring in summer.


I agree that it should be used at least occasionally, but I think it's a waste of fuel and will create extra wear to run it constantly when it's not necessary for cooling or defrosting. I don't use AC very often, and there's no chance of it being active from November through February here due to temperatures, but I try to remember to run it at least once a month in spring and fall. I've never had an AC problem, and AC failures are uncommon among those I know who rarely use AC or even the positions that activate the compressor.

 

[mechtech2]

The elusive 40 deg F switch is actually a function of the R134a.
That is the temp when the AC simply won't work - it is too cold and won't turn to gas.

 

[mjoekingz28]

Originally Posted By: JHZR2
If your AC has leaked completely out then you need to replace the receiver/dryer and do a long vacuum on the system. Otherwise youll have moisture inside and each subsequent refill will just do more damage.

How do you know that you lost oil justifying the 1oz addition?

Are you aware that there can be an overpressure cutout too?

Id venture to guess that purging refrigerant is illegal and also I wouldnt want to have anything to do with breathing it.

Fix the issue if the car is worth keeping. Then you will not need to refill at all.

My 30yo cars still have tight AC (knock on wood), so there is no reason that your car should not be able to stay tight and functional.


So it could have too much oil, is that what you're saying. I got it cause it was cheaper and the fact that they made it made me think that it may be needed. But I'll excavate and refill with pure 134a and check back if you think it may work.

My window wont roll down so I could be in for a loooong summer.

 

[wtd]

To do this repair correctly requires the use of a set of gauges that hook up to both low and high side and a vacuum pump to vacuum the system down to get out all of the moisture. You also need to know the correct amount of refrigerant that the system holds. Using those little cans with the one gauge attached does not do the optimum job. Whatever you do, don't add any sealers to the system as these can cause all kinds of problems.

I learned how to do Auto AC repair from reading on the internet and reading some books and have sucessfully repaired the systems on eight different vehicles. I learned to do this stuff myself because the cost to have it done is usually sky high and on some of my older vehicles, the vehicle wasn't worth much more than what the AC shop wanted to charge me to repair it.

Wayne

 

[CROWNVIC4LIFE]

Originally Posted By: rpn453


I agree that it should be used at least occasionally, but I think it's a waste of fuel and will create extra wear to run it constantly when it's not necessary for cooling or defrosting.


Actually all our cars have had a/c since 1962...Keeping it on all the time does not seem to create exta wear on the a/c unit...My 300K mile 88 Town Car had it on all the time for the entire 11 years I had it and I only had to replace the O rings in the a/c at 200K miles and it was still working fine at 300K miles.

In the cold weather I would just leave the system on in the bi-level position all the time [if you do not have EATC] so when the temperature does go above 40 the compressor will go on.

You will also save a fortune on window regulators by leaving the system on.

 

[JHZR2]

Originally Posted By: mjoekingz28
Originally Posted By: JHZR2
If your AC has leaked completely out then you need to replace the receiver/dryer and do a long vacuum on the system. Otherwise youll have moisture inside and each subsequent refill will just do more damage.

How do you know that you lost oil justifying the 1oz addition?

Are you aware that there can be an overpressure cutout too?

Id venture to guess that purging refrigerant is illegal and also I wouldnt want to have anything to do with breathing it.

Fix the issue if the car is worth keeping. Then you will not need to refill at all.

My 30yo cars still have tight AC (knock on wood), so there is no reason that your car should not be able to stay tight and functional.


So it could have too much oil, is that what you're saying. I got it cause it was cheaper and the fact that they made it made me think that it may be needed. But I'll excavate and refill with pure 134a and check back if you think it may work.

My window wont roll down so I could be in for a loooong summer.


Need to know exactly what the pressure was when it was not working, and you need to have some reasonably good gauges.

Do you recall at least what the cheapo gauge showed?

Too much oil or a stop leak concoction could clog the expansion tube/orifice and keep the system from working...

 

[mjoekingz28]

JHZ, my coworker just told me today about the orifice could be clogged and that the stop leak will clog it as well.

BTW, went into Oreilley's and plopped down $17 on a 12oz can of R134a with stop leak. Fed it in in the parking lot and voila, cold air now. The gauge was really erratic for a bit, scaring me by going in and out of the red. So I removed it and relieved some pressure on the port then reapplied the gauge and then the compressor kicked on and then it quit rattling, then the air started getting cool and then the can was empty and I left with cold air.

Probably my luck though it will have leaked out by tomorrow, but I was glad to get cold air with this can since I couldn't get cold air with the 18oz can Sunday. Got to 81F today so cool air was welcome...also considering I cannot roll my driver's window down.

 

[JHZR2]

If it is leaking out that fast, you have a real problem. definitely worth getting it looked at. Hopefully it is just an o-ring someplace, but keep in mind that it could be something like an evaporator under the dash, which could be $$$.

I'd seriously recommend finding/fixing the leak, replacing the receiver/dryer and pulling a good vacuum on the system before proceeding any further. Moisture in there will make the system get worse.

Any time that the pressure goes away, the receiver dryer must be replaced. They are cheap and usually accessible.