A/C needs a charge DIY or not

88porsche911 · 88porsche911's Garage

My A/C last year was a lot colder so I think it needs a charge. Does anyone know if this is easy to do yourself or should I get it done. I have the original AC. Also, where can I get the product to charge it. Thanks in advance, it is mighty hot up here in NY.

Joeaksa · 07-06-2002, 08:38 PM

88,

Are you trained at A/C? If not its probably better that you take it to someone who works at it. A novice can do it but hooking the wrong hose up to a fitting can be "not good" for your hands, eyes and such so to save a bit of money is not the way to go.

You need to know what was put in the system, but I would assume R-12, which is not available over the counter now. You could convert to R-134 but it does not work as good as R-12.

Do a search on air conditioning on this forum and you will have reams of reading material.

Joe

Gspin · 07-06-2002, 08:40 PM

Forget charging it yourself. First, unless you have the appropriate license you can't buy the R-12. Next, you will need gauges,etc. to do the job correctly. Also, you will not be able to determine if you have a leak without either the leak detector dye or freon sniffer. Keep in mind, that these cars do seep some freon out in a years time. Also, the Nippondeso compressor is famous for leaking out of the front seal.

zuerchers · 07-06-2002, 08:41 PM

you wrote that it is all stock so you still have a r-12 system. the hardest part about doing it yourself is getting the r-12 freon. you need a 609 certificate to purchase it over the counter. there are alternatives, such as freeze12, that are much cheaper and can work with your existing system. go to their site and check it out. they have a kit that has everything you will need to recharge it yourself for around $70 - $80. i ordered it without the 609 certificate and they still sent it to me! i guess they dont really check. it took me about 20 minutes and i have ice cold a/c. i did this about a month ago. i was lucky, i didnt have any leaks or other problems. i figured the cheapest way to find out what was wrong with my system was to put a couple cans of this stuff in ($12.00 total) and see if it works and how long it lasts. if there were any leaks, it would only last a short period of time. anyway, good luck and below is a link to their website. you might also want to try a search on this bulletin board for a/c, r12, freeze12, etc., to get more info.
http://www.freeze12.com/

Joeaksa · 07-06-2002, 09:32 PM

88,

I have used the "alternate" gasses with good success.

The reason why I recommended that you get a professional involved is that if you hook the hose up to the high side of the compressor, it turns the can into a hand grenade. Loss of hand, hearing and eyesight can result...

If you are not familiar with this it can end up bad. If you are handy with tools, cars and have done a lot of work in various areas, many people can accomplish this but ???

If you do it, pls be careful.... and get someone who has done it before to assist you! ALWAYS WEAR SAFETY GLASSES!

Joe

zuerchers · 07-07-2002, 08:31 AM

good advice joe. during my lasr recharge i was checking the pressure in the system and i wasnt holding the guage "straight." i shot of freon and oil sprayed directly into my safety goggles. it could have been ugly. that stuff freezes SO fast that it can cause frostbite when contacting your skin. i wear gloves as well.

the bentley manual, as well as 101 projects, does a great job on identifying the low side.

Joeaksa · 07-07-2002, 09:02 AM

The best way to identify the high pressure side is that this is the hose that goes directly to the condensor coils on the motor hood. This is unless someone has switched around the hoses! Also, the pressure hose coming out of the compressor will be smaller, the suction hose larger.

Always put the can on the suction (low pressure) side but IMHO its well worth buying the gauges and getting some training on the subject or letting a pro do the work. Freon or other gasses will freeze you upon contact and can do wonders to your eyes!

Joe

warment · 07-07-2002, 12:38 PM

My father and I recently performed a cheap R-134 conversion using a kit purchased from SuperTrak on a 1990 Ford F-150. The kit was not high quality, but I wanted to give it a shot since the kit was around $30.

All we had to do was drain the existing refrigerant(system was completely empty, so this step was easy), screw on two new fittings, make the connection to the appropriate hose, insert a 12 oz can of R-134 upside down, insert a 6 oz can of oiling/sealant agent(rightside up), insert a 6 oz can of oiling agent(rightside up), and then inserted another 1 1/5 cans of R-134(rightside up).

We didn't measure the pressure of the system, and we probably should have, but we didn't have any problems. The R134 refrigerant is like $5-$6 for a 12 once can, so it is pretty cheap. I don't know how many cans your porsche system takes, but my father's ford truck took 3.5 lbs.

The system has worked great for the past month.

The great thing about buying the conversion kit is that the kit includes the hose/fitting to recharge again. Be careful if you do decide to mess with this refrigerant stuff!

Bill

Joeaksa · 07-07-2002, 12:51 PM

Bill,

That will work with many water cooled cars but the 911 has so little condensor space that it really does poor on R-134 unless it has a new style condensor.

A/C was an afterthought on 911's anyway until the 90's and not designed well. The newer cars work fine from what I hear.

joe

pkfrdh · pkfrdh's Garage

You need to have the system completely drawn down to a negative (read vacuum) pressure for several hours to draw out any moisture in the system. This, along w/ the proper conservation of the existing gasses in the system, is what is the hard part to do at home. It is best to do a major service to remove any moisture in the system at a shop. If that has been done recently and you are only adding gasses to "top off" the system, then DIY is ok as long as you don't blind youself in the attempt.

This is not just simple ratcheting...there is more to it than that.

Check it all out first before messing with it.

JGL

kepperly · kepperly's Garage

some of you guys that post on this board are "way too anal". Do
you have your owners manual? It details how to "top off" your
a/c. Easy tset to see if its low, under the right front is your a/c reciever/ dryer. There is a yellow plastic screw off plug that covers the sight glass. With the a/c running full cold and someone
holding the rpm at 2000rpm look at the sight glass, if the ballisn't floating all the way at the top, it need to have freon added! If you
haven't lost it all (broken or cut line) then you can "top it off".
Simply hook up a can of Freon (r12) and have someone hold the rpm at 200 and watch the sight glass. Once you have hooked the freon to the low pressure or suction side of the compressor, set the can upright under the oil tank and close thew lid so it pulls air through your rear a/c condensor and watch the sight glass until the ball is all the way at the top . If you need freon email me
off board at keithepperly@earthlink.net . I've done three porsche 911s in the last week and everone is cool.

kepperly · kepperly's Garage

or email me at work!
kepperly@stanion.com
keith