so i was trying to cut a hose clamp with my dremel when i accidently nicked the small(downstream) a/c line and crap started spraying out for a couple min. so my question now is does anybody know how much that line will cost to replace or or how do i repait it? and does the a/c system need to be recharged? the parts store mentioned it was pressured that was being released and it didnt necesarly mean the a/c was completely discharged. also since its the older a/c system it would have to be converted to the new r134a i think its called system. if so hwo do i convert it?
thanks!

 

If you can find someone that can solder tubing and just coat it in the little spot you hit. Ive seen it done with household AC.. guess itll work here too.

As for the conversion.. Walmart has a cheapo kit that can do it or just take it to your local ac shop.. only cost me 80 bucks locally. (Talking to a back alley shop helps.. bring cash :P)

 

man it sucks my dremmel slip and cut that line. the store said it might be just pressure that was being released. they said to repair it or replace it and to try running the a/c and see if it comes out cold. i got the battery out right now so ill have to try that when i fix that line.

 

JB Weld it. It'll save you some mess. As for recharge....yeah, unless you can find some rare and expensive R-12, you'll have to have it converted to R134 before you can have it readily filled.

 

You will not be able to patch or braze it on the car. JB weld would never hold on that application. The line needs to come off and properly prepared for that type of repair. What I suggest is to post a WTB in the for sale section for that particular AC line. Lot s of folks including me have removed their AC and sold the parts. All of mine are now gone but others will have that line for you. Then it has to be properly evacuated ( air) and refilled to the proper spec by an AC shop.

That is the proper repair route.


Later

 

I had a busted aluminum AC line that I had a friend weld up and it has held up very well. You may want to give that a try.

 

As stated above you need to replace that line. It will be a waste of time and money to have it repaired when it could open back up at any time. You will need to have the system recharged, the pressure being released was refrigerant, there is no air in an a/c system. On top of that if you want to repair it correctly when you replace the line you should also replace the receiver-dryer. This should be replaced anytime the a/c system is opened up.

As far as the conversion goes all that it involves is sucking out all the R-12, adding on R-134a ports (that just screw on) and in this case putting new o-rings on the replaced line then filling up with R-134a

 

I have a alum ac line that had a hole in it from rubbing on another part .I have it welded ,tig , and the dealer price for a new line was $250 . It has been in play for over 6 years now .I would not trust JB weld .

 

ill give ray a call tomorrow and see what hes asking for that line. i was able to disconnect the line and after further inspection it seems to be a a nick with a very small pin size hole as shown above in the picture. before reading your recent posts i took it to advance auto and they suggested the j-b water weld. i got it and patch it up and seemed to be a solid patch. i havent started the car up to test the line since im replacing all the cooling hoses and have the battery out right now. on a good note i was able to replace 13 out of 14 cooling hoses and the fc thermo switch!
thanks as always!

 

Your best bet (if you haven't run it yet) IS TO WAIT let an AC shop pull vacuum on the system and recharge it. If your lucky freon is all you lost (not the compressor oil) if you run it now you may further damage the compressor as well.

 

I'm pretty sure that if there is no pressure, the compressor will not engage. There is a pressure switch that stops it from getting turned on when there is low system pressure.

 

well when i nicked the line it started spraying freon but only for a couple min or so then it stopped. from looking at the spray around the area it wasnt that much freon that it was sprayed. so as long as i dont run the a/c it should be ok for now? when i put the j-b weld on it hardedn up pretty good has anybody else done this and did it hold up at all?

 

advance auto has a kit that has the conversion adapters, gauge and freon. has anybody done this themselves? only thing im wondering is where the adaptors go?

 

Looks like you going to find out - I say it won't hold, along with others. Expansion/Contraction will be the failure and it will leak.

"when i put the j-b weld on it hardedn up pretty good has anybody else done this and did it hold up at all?"

You could of bought this line in the FS section just as easy you know. Now you're going to covert your R12 over by yourself. School of hard knocks.


Oh well....Later

 

i will actually be replacing the a/c line soon as i can either find one in the forum or get a hold of Ray and get a price on it. as far as converting it i was asking what the forums thoughts on it were. i did a little bit of searching the forum regarding that issue and most ppl reccomended not too and stick with r12 which i will do. one other thing i fogot to mention was that the(not sure what is called) maybe compressor that sits in the front drivers side between battery and IC was disconnected at the time.

 

i have the line but it would be hard to sell it and be left with the rest of the ac that no one will buy incomplete.

best bet call ray.

 

just an update and fyi on the a/c line. that little slip up is costing me $30.19 from Ray not bad compared to what one of the members had mentioned earlier as a $250.00 part from the dealer or what i thought would be an expensive part. so after installing the new part next will be figuring out where to get it refilled that im assuming will be the bigger expense.
thanks!

 

he didn't exactly say specifically witch hose he nicked.
there are 5 or 6 aluminum hoses that make up the ac system.