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Posted

Watch out what you pay for as you should really have it done properly. This means vacuuming out the system which removes any moisture, weighing the contents and refilling with gas and lube and even possibly a leak detecting UV dye.

 

Some of the cheaper "refills" are merely adding a gas or gas/lube mixture until the pressure on the low side appears about right. You can do the cheaper version yourself with cans from Halfords but in my view this is only for an intermediate top-up or if you cannot afford to have a slowly leaking system fixed.

Posted

A service should at the least include:

  • Evacuate system
  • Drain Oil
  • Fill system with nitrogen and do a pressure hold test
  • Vacuum out system and do a vacuum hold test
  • Refill with new PAG oil
  • Fill with the correct weight of gas
  • Sniff test for leaks and vent temperature test

And I don't see how all that can be done correctly for

Posted
Yes, mine was hooked up to a machine which did all the above automatically and took quite a while. I got a printout afterwards, no leaks or anything wrong thank goodness. Worth having it done properly. A mate of mine also had all that done at his house for
Posted
It was me that recommended going to an agricultural specialist. I have had air conditioned cars for the last 20 years and I can honestly say the very best service and the cheapest was at a tractor dealer. They have all of the equipment, don't muck about, get the job done at a very good price, typically
Posted
If i explain what its like someone can say what they think best option is,its the climate control on our model which means the aircon is on all the time unless you turn it off but haven't yet,heater works a treat nice'n warm,when put on to lo gets cold but not ice cold,but then again do you think be better to wait till warmer weather as might not be able to fully appreciate whether its that cold or not.Any advice appreciated once again thanks.
Posted

1) Theres no way for water to enter the system IF it has some gas in it, it's pressurised to around 180 psi, how is water going to get in there?

That 180 psi is only on the high pressure side, the low pressure side can drop to zero with a leak and is only around 30 psi when normal, the pressure drops in the low pressure side when running. The R134A Refridgerant has an affinity for moisture.

Posted

If the low pressure side drops to zero the aircon would switch off and it would be very short of gas.

 

regards - JB

Posted

30 quid is too cheap to do it properly. (in my opinion), I doubt whether that would pay for the gas, lube and dye !, let alone the half hour it takes for a vac down, pressure test, charge.

 

The cheapest i've found is between 50-60 quid. But that also includes a antibacterial purge

 

ps. R134A and the earlier R22 refrigerants are prone to moisture, more sophisticated systems have sight glasses in the fridge lines to make it easier to check. Remember it's the expansion of the liquified compressed gas that gives the cooling effect. (the same effect an aerosole deoderant has when sprayed under your pits ! cold yeah ? well it's a similar concept !)

 

personally i wouldn't try using the top up cans.... the refrigerant quantity is critical, yet there is no way of telling how much is in there... it's not like topping up a coolant bottle with a water level on it. you need pressure gages and scales to measure what comes out in order to guarantee what should go back in. (hence the requirement for a vac down)

Posted
I have used top-up cans and a pressure gauge and they worked fine. Before there were fancy machines to do it that is how they filled the system up anyway, using a bottle of gas rather than a can though! They still do it this way where there is a unknown quantity of gas required.
Posted
30 quid is too cheap to do it properly. (in my opinion), I doubt whether that would pay for the gas, lube and dye !, let alone the half hour it takes for a vac down, pressure test, charge.

 

The cheapest i've found is between 50-60 quid. But that also includes a antibacterial purge

 

ps. R134A and the earlier R22 refrigerants are prone to moisture, more sophisticated systems have sight glasses in the fridge lines to make it easier to check. Remember it's the expansion of the liquified compressed gas that gives the cooling effect. (the same effect an aerosole deoderant has when sprayed under your pits ! cold yeah ? well it's a similar concept !)

 

personally i wouldn't try using the top up cans.... the refrigerant quantity is critical, yet there is no way of telling how much is in there... it's not like topping up a coolant bottle with a water level on it. you need pressure gages and scales to measure what comes out in order to guarantee what should go back in. (hence the requirement for a vac down)

30 minutes to vac down must mean it's a pretty crummy pump, the guy I use (tractor dealer) can vac the gas out in under 10 minutes, it gets filtered, weighed, topped up (if reqd) and then put back in. The dye should only be added if tehre's a leak, some systems specify that the UV dye must not be used.

 

Regards - JB

  • 4 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...
Posted
hey, heres a VERY interesting article....I advise people like me to take a DEFINITE tea break otherwise your eyes might start bleeding just like when playing the ps2 :D

http://www.airconditioningforcars.co.uk/AC...htm#GeneralInfo

 

it has LOAOOOODS of info

 

p.s there are 15 pages... so watch out

 

Link that works

Posted
Yes, mine was hooked up to a machine which did all the above automatically and took quite a while. I got a printout afterwards, no leaks or anything wrong thank goodness.

Mine did too!!

 

Passed all the tests and a month later the gas was gone again!!! It had the UV dye put in so having it checked tomorrow.

 

Oggy.

Guest MATT
Posted

mmmmm, i have used the top up cans, and although it did improve the cooling, it is a bit of a gamble really.

 

i would suggest a proper job be done lol

 

one of those cost me

Posted
Local Ford dealer are advertising a Air-con service and refill for

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