hclll

For my car, can I just go to Pepboy and buy a can of R-134a and add it?

I heard from somebody a kind of oil needs o be added before the R-134, what is it? ANd where to put the freon can ? How much should be the pressure?

ANd also, some tycoon here said he can get a throttle position sensor for $35, can you let me know bx I want one to put on my choking max.

eric93SE

iTrader: (1)

Yes there is a simple recharge kit that you can buy at pepboys or whatever. but IMO you should replace the 'filter dryer canister' or you leave the filter dryer alone and just add a can of r134a with oil already in it (they sell a small can that has both the refidgerent and oil together).
When you do the recharge, it must be done on the low pressure side. there should be a blue cap that covers the valve that you will be connecting to (near the compressor, it will be on the larger tube leaving the compressor). The red cap is the high pressure (dont touch it). When you do the recharging, it done when the engine is running.

I do all my air conditioning myself and probably better than most shops. I can pump down the system with a vacuum pump and I've got all the guages to do it properly.

lophix

iTrader: (3)

hey eric, do you have an faq on how to recharge the freon? Otherwise could you walk me through the process of either recharging it or replacing the filter? I would really appreciate it.


lophix

N34JZ

iTrader: (1)

hey Eric do you think If I threw you a few bucks and got everything I needed you could help me do mine? Heres the thing my system is completely empty (new ac condensor so everything was let out)
if I remeber correctly you dont live more then 10 minutes from me.
anyways let me know.

Jason

eric93SE

iTrader: (1)

lophix, well it depends on what you want to do, what tools you have, and how complete of a job you wanna do. I dont have time to do a write up right now, but maybe later.

Jason, maybe we can work something out.

DanNY

iTrader: (14)

Eric...can u get R12? if so how much?

keener

Eric, a write up would be much appreciated. My A/C has not worked since I brought the car out of storage (over 2yrs of sitting). All the pressure $hit confuses me because I don't have the proper gauges to do the job. Will the pressure gauge that comes with the R134a conversion kit do the job? does the system need to be vacuumed? etc.......

DanNY

iTrader: (14)

if your car is R12..then you need R12 hoses/gauges/adapters..etc etc
R134a have their own deal.

eric93SE

iTrader: (1)

my system uses r134a, I forgot that the older max's used r12. Unfortunatley its pretty much impossible to get r12 (worth more than gold or even diamonds maybe). So the fittings for the r12 setup will have to be replaced, they sell them its very simple to install, it simply screws on top of the old fitting!
b/c the r134a is a smaller compound it can somewhat easily bleed through the old hose on the low pressure side. So either the hose would have to be replaced or If you dont want to pay the cash for it, you would be putting something like one can of r134a a year to keep the pressure where it should be. r134a is pretty cheap so thats not a big deal. A word of warning, too much refridgerant is bad for the system, it can cause excessive pressure build up, clogs, and possibly burning up the clutch plate on the compressor.
Also when changing over to r134a from the old r12, it is necessary to drain the old oil from the compressor and using new oil ment for the r134a system. If you are going to do this I reccomend replacing the filter dryer. I just looked at a technical service bulletin for the ac system and they say that the filter dyer should last 10 years. the filter dyer for r12 is different for r134a, the r12 filter dryer does not last and its reccomended to be replaced everytime the system is opened or worked on.

If you really have no idea about the ac system, then I reccomend taking it to a shop you trust.

Guages do not come with the recharge kit and ideally the system should be evacuated (vacuum pump). Only if you have the r134a set up can you simply recharge the system with the store bought stuff. Unless of course you do the above work.

any more questions?

keener

thanks, but it sounds like a pain in the a$$ job. I called around and most shops want around $100/lb for R12, plus $40 to check for leaks and then labor cost to replace o-rings, dryers, etc... With an empty system, I would be looking at a minimum of $240 before taxes.

TightBlack97

iTrader: (1)

That is pretty expensive for a change over. I have really no air condition right now because there must be a little leak so where. I guess I will get my mechanic to check it out and intsall the r12 kit. More money that I dont have.

keener

This is not a change over, rather it is just charging the system with the original R12 that came with the car in '89. Like Eric said, R12 is as rare as perfectly cut diamonds, therefore, buying the stuff at a shop costs an arm and a leg. also the shop won't install the R12 unless they test the system for leaks. R12 has a half-life of 150 yrs, whereas, R134a is around 6 yrs. Now think about it, do you think the EPA has driven the cost of R12 up or is it just my imagination.