Any tricks to hooking up new AC lines?

Barrpete · 07-30-2006, 09:55 AM

I'm in the middle of the AC upgrade project & I'm about connecting the new hoses. Do you lube the o-rings w/compressor oil, something else or not at all? Does it make any difference? This is for brand new hoses, evap, condensors, etc.

07-30-2006, 11:10 AM

Barrpete,
You should lube the o-rings a little bit. Compressor oil is fine.

Barrpete · 07-30-2006, 11:20 AM

Thanks Mark, that's what I thought but I wasn't sure & I couldn'd find anything when I searched - OK - back to the garage!

Jim Sims · 07-30-2006, 12:04 PM

Make sure the sealing surfaces are clean and that there are no burrs on the fittings. Do not overtighten; all you need to do is compress a soft o-ring. Lubricate o-ring with refrigerant oil (compressor oil) or Nylog.

rgrimm · rgrimm's Garage

Hoses are on my list...and more, although I've not decided on the details. I've looked at Griffin, Rennaire--all the usual suspects. What are you using besides barrier hoses, how extensive is your project, and will you let me know how it turns out?

Barrpete · 07-31-2006, 04:38 PM

Roger,

I guess you could call my project pretty extensive. Since I’m Tucson where temps are routinely in the 100 plus degree range from May until October, AC is not optional. My Nippon condenser was shot – throwing oil from the shaft seal so my options were:

1. Rebuild the compressor, refill with R-12 and hope there were no other leaks or problems in the 20 year old system, also knowing that sooner or later more would have to be done.
2. Rip out the old the old & start from scratch
3. Hope for a miracle.

Over the last year or so I read everything I could find from this board about what others had done to their systems, and what kind of results they had. I finally came to the conclusion that option 1 could work, but the performance in Arizona temps would be marginal at best even if everything in the system was working perfectly. Option 2 would give me what I was looking for in terms of performance as well as the ability to switch to 134a which is available and the industry standard. Besides, I’m not an AC guy so switching to 134a means I can easily have it serviced. And option 3, well… I’ve just never been lucky that way.

So I bit the bullet & I’m replacing everything but the decklid condenser. I bought Rennaire’s system II – new barrier hoses, evaporator, Sanden compressor, procooler plus a new serpentine front condenser. This seemed to be the closest to a “drop-in” replacement that was available. From all I’ve been able to glean from this board the weakest point in the system is lack of condenser surface area and to lesser extent evaporator area. I liked the idea of the procooler since it is essentially adding another condenser. The only difference is that it is a refrigerant/refrigerant heat exchanger instead of a refrigerant/air one.

I also added a fan to my Carrera oil cooler in the front fender. Since the AC system with the condenser in the deck lid adds heat to the engine compartment I wanted to be able to remove as much as heat from there as possible.

I’m almost finished with the upgrade. The hardest part so far has been installing the new front condenser; it’s almost an inch thicker than the old one, & removing the old refrigerant lines from the engine compartment. That is really a 2 person job – you need one underneath pulling and one on top pushing. That’s pretty much all I have left before pulling the vacuum & getting it charged. We’ll see how well it works. If it's not enough, my next step would be to add a rear fender condenser like the Kuehl or Dual Kuehl units from Griffith’s.

I have to say I could never have done this without the collective wisdom of this board. Particularly Kuehl and Jim Sims. Not to mention the shared experiences both good & bad from many, many other Pelicans.

I’ll let you know how it turns out.

cjf · 07-31-2006, 05:58 PM

I just subscribed to your thread. I too am looking at upgrading my AC with the material from Renaire and I am interested as to the fit and effectiveness. Probably won't do the change over until this winter. Already went through (I hope the last) dog days of summer and have spent this summers buget for nice repairs or replacement