re charging air conditioning.

Post by **ultimatehandyman** » Tue Jul 07, 2009 8:48 pm

If your air conditioning needs re charging on your vehicle you can now do it yourself.

The kit to do this cost £40 from Halfords but you can get it cheaper on ebay. The kit did my air conditioning on my van and also my mates on his 4*4 and there is still some left in the container-

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Avocet · Post by **Avocet** » Sun Jul 12, 2009 9:43 am

Thanks for posting that - very useful.

I believe that these DIY re-gas kits have now been banned though. Shops are allowed to run out their existing stocks, but when they're gone, they're gone!

The refrigerant is very bad for the environment (not sure whether it's an ozone depleter, a greenhouse gas or both)! and the authorities don't want loads of DIY cans of it floating round. Although most aircon systems will naturally loose their gas over a period of time (say 5 years or so), they can also loose gas because they've developed a leak. Filling them up with a can of gas will temporarily make them work, but obviously, unless the leak is fixed, the gas will just escape again. I believe that some cans come with a leak sealant mixed in with the gas. That ought to sort out very small leaks, but obviously couldn't cope with big ones. That said, I've always had a slight worry about the sealant blocking up other bits of the system (like the expansion valve!) as well as the leak they're suppose to fix!

If you go to a "proper" aircon place, they're supposed to fill the system with nitrogen first and check for leaks. I've a feeling it's illegal for them to fill a system with a leak, but I'm not sure. Also, they're supposed to apply a vacuum to the system before they put the refrigerant in to make sure there's not atmospheric moisture in there (which could have happened if the system has had no gas in it for a while). I believe the refrigerant (or maybe the lubricating opil that's in there) reacts with moisture to form somethign very corrosive - which ultimately can do more harm than good!

Post by **ultimatehandyman** » Mon Jul 13, 2009 4:48 pm

Not sure, but it does say that it is illegal to discharge any of the refrigerant into the atmosphere.

Sounds like an excuse to get some revenue for the garages.

It's still for sale on ebay etc.

pyro_maniac · Post by **pyro_maniac** » Mon Jul 13, 2009 4:54 pm

i would rather pay 45 quid to quick fit, they pressure test the system for leaks, take the old stuff out and refill it then test again
a lot safer then the diy death kits, and its free if they cant get it below a certain temperature

Post by **ultimatehandyman** » Mon Jul 13, 2009 6:07 pm

pyro_maniac wrote:i would rather pay 45 quid to quick fit, they pressure test the system for leaks, take the old stuff out and refill it then test again
a lot safer then the diy death kits, and its free if they cant get it below a certain temperature

They should advertise then

I didn't know that they offered that service.

You probably also have to book the vehicle in, which I don't have time to do.

pyro_maniac · Post by **pyro_maniac** » Mon Jul 13, 2009 6:10 pm

very true, i have seen little advertising about the service, and as far as i know you can just turn up, takes about an hour to do and you can be sure its working at the end of it

EJJ150847 · Post by **EJJ150847** » Mon Jul 13, 2009 6:37 pm

My tame mechanic did my car, drained the system (3 ml), flushed it through, topped it up with 750ml including dye for future leak visibility for £60.

Last car I had he did it for £40 for a top up, I wanted a bit more of a test this time as it is still under a years warranty.

Did say the car was worth more than I paid for it

He didn't know how much I paid just asked him what he's probably sell it for.

John

sweeper · Post by **sweeper** » Fri Aug 14, 2009 12:31 pm

Avocet wrote:Thanks for posting that - very useful.

I believe that these DIY re-gas kits have now been banned though. Shops are allowed to run out their existing stocks, but when they're gone, they're gone!

The refrigerant is very bad for the environment (not sure whether it's an ozone depleter, a greenhouse gas or both)! and the authorities don't want loads of DIY cans of it floating round. Although most aircon systems will naturally loose their gas over a period of time (say 5 years or so), they can also loose gas because they've developed a leak. Filling them up with a can of gas will temporarily make them work, but obviously, unless the leak is fixed, the gas will just escape again. I believe that some cans come with a leak sealant mixed in with the gas. That ought to sort out very small leaks, but obviously couldn't cope with big ones. That said, I've always had a slight worry about the sealant blocking up other bits of the system (like the expansion valve!) as well as the leak they're suppose to fix!

If you go to a "proper" aircon place, they're supposed to fill the system with nitrogen first and check for leaks. I've a feeling it's illegal for them to fill a system with a leak, but I'm not sure. Also, they're supposed to apply a vacuum to the system before they put the refrigerant in to make sure there's not atmospheric moisture in there (which could have happened if the system has had no gas in it for a while). I believe the refrigerant (or maybe the lubricating opil that's in there) reacts with moisture to form somethign very corrosive - which ultimately can do more harm than good!

R134a is a greenhouse gas, which will soon be phased out, best practice if you need to refill is to do a leak test, this can be very dificult, usual suspect is condenser followed closely by pipework. one way is to check with a sniffer or using dye, maybe look for oily stains around condenser or pipes. Once satisfied where the leak is, discharge and recover old gas (recycle if you can) vac the system to boil off moisture and allow space for refrigerant gas, repair leak, refill with correct quantity and test system pressures and functions ie controls, fan etc.
Moisture and refrigerant = hydrochloric acid, my advice (having worked on vehile a/c systems for over 20yrs) is to get a book and learn about how the system works and the dangers of the gases and dangers of refilling (liquid on low side and running compressor when filling on high side, are very important not to do) or maybe get yourself on a course (they are not too expensive) by yourself some kit and earn a bit doing all your mates cars?