Aircon not working ...

[Howard]

Well ...

Had it re-gassed at jays , Jay warned me that it may not hold though ....

Now the aircon isn't working again , just blowing warm air ....

Have split the rad and condensor apart and there is no oily residue , so presumably the condensor hasn't had it .

I was warned that the seals might have gone hard ( the car was standing for 6 months before i bought it ) ... is there a fix to this that isn't going to cost the earth ?

With the seals become more rubbery with use if i have it regassed again ?

 

[robert.saunders]

...the seals become more rubbery with use?

There's a joke in there somewhere

 

[nickcc101]

When i had my aircon recharged the local agent told me that the seals go on the compressor/pump and that if it failed again i would probably need a new pump/compressor.

 

[robert.saunders]

Well ...

Had it re-gassed at jays , Jay warned me that it may not hold though ....

Did Jay spot something amiss to therefore make the assertion?

 

[Mark300SL]

Get it UV Dyed. The UV dye will be visible at the point it leaks and at least you will find the problem.
Once it comes apart replace every seal along the way as its a false economy not to.

So speaks he who has just has A/C fail on his SL


Mark

 

[jaymanek]

basically it had no gas in it whatsoever, this usually indicates a slow leak somewhere.. as the car had been standing, I would guess at either a hole in the condensor or a hard seal at the compressor somewhere.

You will now need to have some dye put in the system to see where its escaping from...

 

[Dieselman]

Or change the seals on the back of the compressor then have it tested and filled with UV dye.

 

[vijilants]

The leak could be anywhere. I once had one of the crimped hoses leaking at the crimp.

The only way to test is using the UV dye.

 

[Mark300SL]

Or change the seals on the back of the compressor then have it tested and filled with UV dye.

But that raises more questions

If you change the seals on the compressor and it was them, you cant be sure of anything for at least a few days
I would fill with dye and check religiously - you will then at least find the fault and be sure. It is obviously still holding some pressure so the leak is slow. over 1/2/3 days you may find a single leak or maybe even 2

Once you have the leak locations sorted you can then replace seals to your hearts content before having the system regassed.

 

[Dieselman]

The reason I mentioned those seals is that we've had a couple of posters with them gone, so thought rather than refil knowing the refrigerant will escape, why not replace two cheap seals that are known to leak first.

 

[Mark300SL]

That assumes you are going to refill with refrigerant rather than dye and nitrogen (or whatever they use for testing)

If I was doing a proper recharge then I would change every seal I could get to as a matter of course

 

[mattc]

Have to laugh Jay, my A/C has stopped working Tuesday too!!!

But thats because the no.12 fuse has gone. looks like some previous idiot prized the metal "seat" in the fuseboard out. eplacement fuseboard on way and a competent auto electrician required to fit. how long would people guesstimate for this job?

 

[jaymanek]

how did the fuse go?

thats the one for the blower motor, been testing the A/C too much?!

 

[C240Sport97]

just drop the roof, and don't bother with a/c .. more trouble than it is worth ...

 

[Howard]

Thats what i've been doing mate !!

Lovely in London today ( and yesterday ) .... :bannana:

 

[Frank O' Phile]

Haven't yet tried to refill the aircon on mine but may go for the dye test first.

Where is this available and how much?

 

[jaymanek]

well you do the filling and dye test at the same time...

basically fill it with gas and mix in some dye... then wait for it to seep out, can bee seen under UV light

 

[Howard]

Jay , can any aircon place do this ? do they all have the UV kit or is it a specialist job ?

 

[jaymanek]

yep pretty much any AC place... I would have put it in but as we werent sure if there was a leak or not, its not the best idea just to have it floating around in the system..

 

[imadoofus]

Jay , can any aircon place do this ? do they all have the UV kit or is it a specialist job ?

Howard, I think I mentioned on Sunday that it might be worth doing a vacuum test as well as a pressure test. I know I said it to somebody...

I was told that if a seal is dry and leaking, then a pressure test could 'pop' the seal back into place and not show a leak. If so, then a vacuum test will 'pop' it back again and the leak will show up.

Having said which, if a UV dye-fill and pressure test show the leak, then the vacuum test wouldn;t be necessary.

I had some chap come round to my house and do both my cars recently for £100.