Hey guys,

Thanks for all the input. However, im still searching for an answer.. Is being overcharged Dangerous? Afer dumping an aditional pound of R-134a im willing to bet my system is overcharged.

The AC has been working well for the past 3 days since i added freon. However do i have to worry about anything or can i just be happy?

Thanks,

 

Nah, the high pressure cutout switch and/or the pressure relief valve on the manifold line will prevent any serious misfortunes from being overcharged.

 

Thanks for all your help Quintin, Now i can sleep easier at night. haah.

 

D - I - T - T - O !!!!!!!!!!

Amen!

Too many people just go get a can of whatever at the auto parts store and add it to their system w/o knowing what the problem really is, much less know about what they are adding. Many times just adding refrigerant (wrong kind, too much, etc.) can make the problem even worse. Read these posts to see how many people DON'T EVEN KNOW WHERE TO ADD THE REFRIGERANT?????

Many people try to just replace a bad (they think) compressor by themselves not knowing what else needs to be done, or how to do it. In MANY cases you also have to replace other parts besides the compressor when you DO replace the compressor.

Just putting on a new compressor may not even fix your problem, and because you only did that you MIGHT just blow that compressor too, and if you don't do it properly they MIGHT not even warranty it when it does go out prematurely.

Some of these auto parts are getting really picky about warranties on a/c compressors to DIY'ers, I hear because the mfg's are getting picky when the parts place turns in a bad compressor to them.

THIS is a job for those that are trained to do it!

 

Hey Guys,
My 97 F150 4.6 188k miles is taking very long to get cold..if in park it will take a looong time to get cool, if driving is shorter, but still a long time. I had it looked at by a local yokel, and he told me the comp is going to just wait till it does then replace it...well it gets cold when it finally comes up..so Im thinking its just low in freon??? any feed back.. is appreciated...Thanks...

 

I added a can before I went on vacation and it worked but a month later I had to get the truck inspected so I told them to check the a/c and it was still low. Much better now, with no problems.

 

EVACUATION removes the moisture, the water in the air in an open system along with the Freon, the oils, the various metals in the system form acids which eat metal components.
Evacuation is not expensive. All AC shops do it before charging.

A 10% overcharge of Freon cools WORSE than a being UNDERCHARGED by 50%!
So an EXTRA 3 oz in a 30oz system cools worse than just having 15 oz in the system.

Here is how its done, GO to the AC shop, have them evacuate and charge the system.
Case closed.
Saving the $30-$50 an AC shop charges to do the JOB RIGHT is FAR cheaper than SCREWING UP or Injuring yourself by not knowing what you are doing.

 

As an A/C mechanic myself I can tell you a few things....EVACUATION is the most important part of a good repair. What zziggy said is exactly right. You need to remove the moisture non condensibles. Yeah....you may have done two of them side by side and they both blew out cold air, but that doesnt mean that the ones not going to leak down the road because it wears a hole in a line somewhere, or takes out the compressor from non condensibles. Open up a system, charge it with out an evac and hook up a gauge to the high side, head pressure will be way high and act up.

Unfortunatly the only way to get the right charge in your truck is to evac it and recharge it. There is no way to know the amoung in the system without doing that.

Also, when you're checking the pressure from the gauge that is on the can, you should have it set to max a/c and rev the motor up to a high idle and go by that pressure. The compressor at idle is not working like it is designed.

$200 may be a little high. Youlll probably get charged around $50 for the freon Im guessing. If you lived by me, you could bring it over and we could do it for the cost of gas.

Good Luck

 

I'm also an A/C tech. I've been servicing residential and commercial systems for more than 20 years. TT is right, you need to have it recovered and recharged, also if you run it overcharged it stresses the compressor and hoses, and could shorten the life of the compressor. Compressors are designed to pump vapor, so if it's overcharged more than likely it's got liquid running through it and can damage the valves in the compressor. I would have them recover, flush it, replace the drier/accumulator pull a good vacuum, and recharge it, oh and have them do a leak search too. I don't understand why the e-fans are making Ford deny any warranty work. They should still do the work under warranty. The charge is weighed in, so the e-fans shouldn't matter.