Hey, I finally got around to looking at the looking glass part for the ac... and im a little confused as to what i should be seeing. The glass part is nice and clear but it looks kindof a cloudy white inside, is this right?


~Jesse

 

What are you trying to diagnose?? Is your A/C working??

Mike

 

is it cloudy or is there maybe a stream of tiny bubbles? under high load or when the system is low on refrigerant there maybe a stream of tiny bubbles through the sight glass,when the A/C is running. a properly operating system under normal load will be clear when the A/C is running. if it is cloudy there could be moisture in the system or another contaminant that is causing the the glass to be cloudy. is the A/C working at all?

 

Oh, sorry... nope, it definetly does not work. Also, when I checked, the car wasnt running.. I iddnt think it would matter since my compressor doesnt run anyways. I just wondered what i should be seeing if the system was in fact charged with good refrigerant(im assuming the compressor doesnt work because the fluid level is too low) Thanks!


~Jesse

 

Your compressor will not cycle without refrigerant. I am assuming that either the charge is to low or you have none. I believe the window is showing some moisture in the system.

First, Do you want your A/C to work?

Are you willing to spend what could be big $$ to get it to work.

Most vehicles built before 1994 had R-12 refrigerant. R-12 has been banned by the EPA and is no longer made. A 30lb tank now costs $1000 or more.

You can retrofit the system to R-134. This is a REALLY good idea if you are planning to keep it working. Most systems can be retrofitted with only new shrader valves, some o-rings and an a special oil. I am unsure if the RX is one of them.

If you want to do this, you will need to have a vacuum pulled on the system to see if you have any low pressure leaks. If none are found, then a full charge of refrigerant should be added and the system checked for leaks under high pressure. If the compressor does not cycle with a full charge, it's most likely toast.

If you have no leaks, the retrofit and refrigerant charge should cost no more than $300. A R-12 charge will be close to the retrofit & charge.I use conservatively high estimates. If you do have leaks such as at the condensor, TXV, evaporator, or the compressor is bad, you can count on a grand or more.

Hope your news is good news,

Mike

 

Well, doesn';t sound like good news... I'm not willing to spend anywhere near that much just for my ac, i was just hoping the autozone recharge kit would fix the problem Oh well, i've survived this far without it, guess i'll be ok.. it will be winter soon enough anyways. Thanks Mike!


~Jesse

 

The Autozone kit may work. It is not at all uncommon for systems to lose charge over 3 or so years.

How long has it been inop?? If it just went out, the chances are better because the seals and o-rings are still moist with oil. if it's been a year or so, they will be dry and may not seal.

If the kit is cheap enough, try it.

Mike

 

I have an 88 convertible.
I was not getting any cold air at all out of vents, so I kept my eye out for posts in this regard. Dale Clark out of Florida, one of the all time experts in regard to our cars suggests staying away from 134a. He says and I agree based on the research, that there are a variety of alternatives out there that are improvements on 134a.
With these posts in mind and the site for the ASE test to satisfy EPA regulations, I took the 30 question test for A/C technicians to satisfy section 609 of the EPA rules. Its easy to pass but will not make you an a/c mechanic by any stretch of the imagination. But it does allow you to buy R-12 with your certificate that you download after you pass. With that in hand, I went to the autoparts place, they sold me R-12 at $24.95 for a 12 oz can. I needed 2 cans to recharge my old system and get it blowing to 40 degrees. I also had to buy a charge hose which comes with appropriate can top so you can use the R-12 ($3.95) 134a has different fittings. All that is detailed in the review material for the test including alternatives to R12 and 134a. With your Service manual in hand, you can do a lot yourself, but to evacuate the system, you WILL have to take it away to a licensed repair facility. Don't vent the R12 into the air. Bad juju for the Ozone!
Luckily I did not find any leaks in my system, but interestingly, even if I had leaks, it is considered consumer fraud for an a/c place to tell you you can't top off a leaking system. Oh, you'll spend good money to let it blow off, but they can do the top off, again, right out of the review materials. I haven't looked at local state statutes on this twist yet.

 

you must not have studied the EPA test materials very well as you are not allowed to add refrigernat to a system known to have a leak, especially with a system that contains a CFC. A/C systems do not as a matter of fact just loose refrigerant after 3 years. As a commercial A/C mechanic for more than 10 years I have seen and worked on systems that were 20 plus years old that had not lost the refrigerant charge. proper maintenance and early repairs are the key. unfortunately the ASME(automotive repair trade group) has reccommended to its members to do retrofits of R12 systems instead of repairing them and recharging with R12 or using one of the many R12 replacement refrigerants. this adds alot of costs to A/C repairs. there are alot of alternatives to R134a conversions and I would not do a R134a conversion to my cars. car A/C systems do not have a large amount of refrigerant so a small leak will have an impact. if your system needed 24oz of refrigerant then you have a good size leak. the entire system can't possibly take more than 30oz total. cars are some of the hardest A/C systems to leak test, but you cannot add refrigerant to a leaking system legally. the fine is at least $10,000 last I checked.

 

Tim,
It is not polite to make a statement like "You didn't read the materials..."
From the ASE materials, I quote:
"It's wise to advise your customer of the economy of a leak-free system. Leak repair often pays for itself in the long run, by avoiding repeated"top offs" of increasingly expensive refrigerant. Although this is sound advice, you should never imly that leak repair is required under federal law. To do so would constitute consumer fraud. In most areas of the country, your customers can simply choose to have their systems "topped-off", if they desire. Some states and local jurisdictions, however, do require that all leaks be repaired....parts of California."
You obviously live in an area of CA requiring this fix and that it is therefore true what you imply, but do not broaden your jurisdictional understanding to all 50 states. I also stated I had not yet checked my jurisdictions statutes.
Further, my service manual states that I should not add more than 3 cans. I did not do so. I also checked for leaks.
Though I respect your knowledge, a/c techs have a vested interest to make money at their profession (like anyone else). Therefore, individuals in your profession have a tendency to slant the truth to the extreme for unwary customers, especially since those customers are already primed to pay a lot of money for a/c work.
I welcome your insights, but when it comes to reading the law carefully, I daresay, I understand those rules probably better than you since its MY profession.
Please, no flames, just professional input!
R.Wilms, JD, LL.M

 

my mistake a search at the EPA turned up this document. http://www.epa.gov/ozone/title6/609/recharge.html#q3

 

Tim,
Good call on that site. I read it with interest.
Hope that the guy who posted originally got the most out of our conversation. Thanks again for your able and timely input.
Ralf

 

Thanks guys, i appreciate everyones input!