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Posted: 7/9/2010 1:13:04 PM EDT
Hey Guys,
My A/C is about as good as a hair dryer. 11 years, and I'm not surprised it's dead. So, I figured while at Walmart to pick up one of those kits that is for DIY recharges. It was $24, included a hose and gauge assembly, and a can of R134a and a sealant. So, directions say to let it run for 3 minutes, and see if the clutch engages. Mine did not, so following the instructions, I emptied about half the can into the system (on the low side). Now, the clutch engages for about two seconds, every 10 seconds. Also, when the clutch is engaged, the pressure gauge reads about 20PSI (middle of the green zone), but when it disengages, it spikes to 65PSI, right at the beginning of the 'RED- May cause mechanical failure' zone. In true ARFcom fashion, I'm tempted to empty the rest of the can in the system. 
So... am I wasting my time with these DIY kits, or am I just doing it wrong? |
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Posted: 7/10/2010 3:25:41 AM EDT
[#1]
You just made it very expensive to fix. Now you will have to replace every piece in the A/C system, all the lines, the condenser, evaporator, compressor. No shop will hook their A/C equipmebnt on to a system with sealant in it as it plugs up their machines. Looks like now you will spend between $3000 and $4000 to get your system working.
No professional shop uses anything with sealant in it. |
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Posted: 7/10/2010 3:47:11 PM EDT
[#2]
Quoted: Hey Guys, My A/C is about as good as a hair dryer. 11 years, and I'm not surprised it's dead. So, I figured while at Walmart to pick up one of those kits that is for DIY recharges. It was $24, included a hose and gauge assembly, and a can of R134a and a sealant. So, directions say to let it run for 3 minutes, and see if the clutch engages. Mine did not, so following the instructions, I emptied about half the can into the system (on the low side). Now, the clutch engages for about two seconds, every 10 seconds. Also, when the clutch is engaged, the pressure gauge reads about 20PSI (middle of the green zone), but when it disengages, it spikes to 65PSI, right at the beginning of the 'RED- May cause mechanical failure' zone. In true ARFcom fashion, I'm tempted to empty the rest of the can in the system. So... am I wasting my time with these DIY kits, or am I just doing it wrong? You are waisting your time and you are doing it wrongThis will get you through the summer... maybe. Sealant in this or the coolant system will many times end up with blockage in the system resulting it larger repair bills then just fixing the leak correctly. If the pressure is 20 and the clutch cycles a lot then you are still low on refrigerant. Check the AC label under the hood for how much you should have in your system and then look at how much is in the can. Then start doing math!
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Posted: 7/10/2010 3:48:00 PM EDT
[#3]
Quoted: You just made it very expensive to fix. Now you will have to replace every piece in the A/C system, all the lines, the condenser, evaporator, compressor. No shop will hook their A/C equipmebnt on to a system with sealant in it as it plugs up their machines. Looks like now you will spend between $3000 and $4000 to get your system working. No professional shop uses anything with sealant in it. He can do what most people do and just not say anything costing the shop thousands in repairs on their AC machine. |
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Posted: 7/12/2010 12:47:05 PM EDT
[#4]
Quoted:
Quoted:
You just made it very expensive to fix. Now you will have to replace every piece in the A/C system, all the lines, the condenser, evaporator, compressor. No shop will hook their A/C equipmebnt on to a system with sealant in it as it plugs up their machines. Looks like now you will spend between $3000 and $4000 to get your system working. No professional shop uses anything with sealant in it. He can do what most people do and just not say anything costing the shop thousands in repairs on their AC machine. I have a tester for sealant, I charge $30 just check for sealant and refrigerant type. Now you can go down the road let some clown fuck it up, or you get it fixed right my way. |
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Posted: 7/14/2010 11:40:43 AM EDT
[#5]
This is the stuff I used. |
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Posted: 9/12/2010 10:58:52 AM EDT
[#6]
Well, after three bottles, the A/C is pretty chilly again, and lasted me through summer. This $50 fix sure beat the heck out of dumping tons of money into a system that would then be worth more than the vehicle!
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Posted: 9/12/2010 3:48:42 PM EDT
[#7]
Quoted:
Well, after three bottles, the A/C is pretty chilly again, and lasted me through summer. This $50 fix sure beat the heck out of dumping tons of money into a system that would then be worth more than the vehicle! In tough financial times you have to weigh the cost of a repair against the value of the entire vehicle. If the cost far exceeds the vehicle worth...that's when a lot of people make the decision to try something that isn't always the best solution. If it doesn't work they didn't lose much and it's either live with the problem, or get rid of the vehicle. |
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Posted: 9/12/2010 4:05:32 PM EDT
[#8]
Quoted:
You just made it very expensive to fix. Now you will have to replace every piece in the A/C system, all the lines, the condenser, evaporator, compressor. No shop will hook their A/C equipmebnt on to a system with sealant in it as it plugs up their machines. Looks like now you will spend between $3000 and $4000 to get your system working. No professional shop uses anything with sealant in it. I'm with you on that, replacing my A/C machine is not an option right now so I won't take the chance. If I identify anything..I just kindly pass on the job. I don't charge for this, BUT I do ask them to inform the next shop that they have some sealer in the system instead of paying me. I think they actually do that..at least once or twice. I try to help out my fellow techs in the area whenever I can. The same thing goes for VAG cars with aftermarket stereos installed. They have been known to damage scanners and that's another item that would really suck if I lost it by simply checking a car for codes. I have a cheap $75 generic OBDII scanner for those situations...but an A/C machine is another story... there are no $75 A/C machines that I could use as a substitute. |
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