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Air conditioner
- Thread starter Feimer74
- Start date
Dyoel182
Addicted CEG'er
Sounds like you have a slow leak and the pressure dropped in the system. Go to the store and buy a can of R134, a hose with a gauge and fill it back up according to the directions.
CSVT1214
Addicted CEG'er
If there is air in the system, it needs to be vacuumed out before the refill. Too much air in the system will cause symptoms similiar to what you are saying.
absolutely do not do this!
those refill kits are not good to use because it doesn't give you the full picture of what is going on with the system. let alone the fact is to properly fill the system you need to bring it to a vacuum first. Air will degrade the performance of the AC system.
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need more info before we can go in any direction to fix a problem with the AC system.
first does the compressor run? does it cycle?
if so what are the system pressures? low and high side needed.
do you suspect that there are any leaks in the system?
have you check the accumulator for rust and therefor a leak?
have you had dye put into the system to check for a leak?
in the heat it could just be a clutch air gap issue.
never just add R-134A to the system until you check the low and high side pressures! those refill kits you get at wal-mart, etc don't let you do that.
Dyoel182
Addicted CEG'er
Thats why I said to get one with a gauge so they could check pressure. Dont make it sound scarier or more expensive than it has to be.
no, you said a gauge, meaning the refil kits from wal-mart etc that only allow you to check the low side system pressure.
you need an A/C guage set that lets you check the low and high side pressures at one time. no refill kit has this. Do not use the refill kits.
right your talking about something like this?
http://www.jcwhitney.com/autoparts/...&catalogId=10101&langId=-1&rlid=group_listing
or this?
http://www.jcwhitney.com/INTERDYNAM...IT/GP_2002865_N_111+10201+600002308_10101.jcw
this is what you need to properly check the A/C system.
http://www.amazon.com/R134a-CONDITIONING-REFRIGERATION-GAUGE-MANIFOLD/dp/B000MVTU80
and I am not trying to make it sound scarier then it is. its really simple if you have the correct tools!
look you can get a cheap set of the correct guages from autozone for $50 ... yeah real expensive to do it correctly with the correct tools.
http://www.autozone.com/selectedZip...il/initialR,NONAPP2305/shopping/selectZip.htm
the "professional" set was around $80 iirc
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Dyoel182
Addicted CEG'er
You can rent a gauge set for free from autozone if you really feel the need to hook it all up and you can even rent the vacuum from them for free. But the average person is just gonna buy the can on a hose and follow the directions or take it to a shop. You make the stuff you can buy at the store sound dangerous.
You should feel the need to "hook it all up" as its the correct way to test and fill the AC system if not it can be dangerous, you could be over charging the system since the whole picture can't be seen. And over charging can cause very high pressure which could lead to lets say a hose blowing out.
So you are telling me you would buy a house based solely on just how it looks on the outside and never look at the inside? thats what you are saying with this, the high pressure side doesn't matter and you shouldn't bother looking at it, wrong! both are very important in both cases.
you do know that the high side pressure can reach 300 psi right? would you want that blowing up in your face?
so following your thinking you would advise people to remove the airbag without disconnecting the battery? I mean why take the proper steps of disconnecting the battery and waiting 30 minutes to make sure its safe to remove the airbag when you could just go and pull it out right now?
Also what I know about the AC system took me not even an hour to learn .... took some google searches and reading of the shop manual.
so for the love of god if you are going to work on the AC system do it right and not half assed, otherwise take it to a shop.
I really hope that the people here are better than the "average person" in the fact that they want to learn how to correctly service their vehicles themselves.
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Dyoel182
Addicted CEG'er
Yes but you're not connecting to the high side, you're connecting to the low pressure side with no risk of anything blowing up. Thats the main reason the stuff you can buy in the store will only fit on the low pressure side.
I totally agree with doing it right, which is why when I sold the stuff I would only sell hoses with gauges on it so they would actually know what they were looking at when I explained things to them. It can be simple to do and learn but I also know not everyone reads the directions before tinkering with things.
Here are my steps for looking at someones AC thats no longer freezing cold:
1.Pop the hood, turn on the defrost and look for the clutch cycling
2.Connect a gauge to the low side and check the pressure
3A.If the pressure is very low the system obviously has a leak, is probably full of air and needs the vac pump
3B.If the pressure is high and the clutch is cycling then you need to get more tools and check out that high pressure on both sides
3C.If the pressure is high and the clutch isnt cycling you can slowly add 134 to the system to see if the clutch will start and the system will give you a correct reading, if not you need to get more tools and go to the manual
problem is the two side of the system are connected, one effects the other.
also fyi the low and high pressures side are always a different size fitting.
most of the time the AC problems with these cars are the accumulator as they rust out because of the wonderful foam that is on them from the factory. this means there is a leak and the system needs to be brought to a vacuum and filled. not matter what when you fill the system you need to be watching both the low and high sides of the system as the pressures on each side are realted and correlate to the ambient temp.
sure you can fill the low pressure side to what the guage says is right, if it is even accurate, the colors don't mean much but the pressures do, but you still don't know and understand what is going on in the complete system.
Dyoel182
Addicted CEG'er
Why is that a problem though? If the low side pressure is low then the high side will be out of spec as well and you'll still be all sweaty.
With 134 they are different sizes but the R12 fittings on my Mazdas were the same size AND the positions were different on my 89 than my 90. I had to eventually email mazda usa to please look at a schematic since even my workshop book had the same engine bay picture for both cars.
twocontours
CEG'er
I hate to break into the standard gauge rant (yes I have a full set including vacuum pump) but if you read the first post his problem is the blower not the compressor /charge.
Dyoel182
Addicted CEG'er
The problem mentioned first is that the air blows warm instead of cold.
Dyoel182
Addicted CEG'er
Hence why I said first problem.
Lord Stanley
Hard-core CEG'er
Lord Stanley
Hard-core CEG'er
Dyoel182
Addicted CEG'er
Yes but you can also edit things to know things. Its crazy!