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A/C compressor turns on then a second later turns off. Obviously there isn't enough refrigerant methinks.

Just wondering if anyone has tried the Red Tek self-refill kit? It costs like $60CAD, and i dont need a license to buy it.

I'm sure there's a slow leak, so I dunno if it's even worthwhile to get it refilled only to have it leak out again.

Suggestions?

If there is a slow leak then no its not worth it cause your gonna loose it again anyway.
If it turn's on and turn's right back off it could be low freon ( Or what the hell ever its spelt) but I would have it checked.
Could be an issue with the compressor is self but I doubt it. Most likly not enough refrigerant.
Thanks, but the Red Tek refill kit comes with a sealant for the system. See: http://63.135.115.175/

Well in that case then hell yea. Whats it gonna hurt to try.
Mason,Jun 11 2005, 09:39 PM Wrote:Well in that case then hell yea. Whats it gonna hurt to try.
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Exactly. $60 vs. taking it to a dealer for hours of labour+leak repair+gas per pound.

Also, it's said to perform even better than r134a. Back in the day, i've seen propane being used as a replacement for freeon. Oh my did that stuff ever work! Dangerous, but worth it when it works :D
I know a bit about refrigeration because I completed my first year in HVAC @ Humber. If you A/C is going on and off it's because there's some sort of limit switch being thrown. This switch is being thrown after the A/C has been running for a while so it might have to do with the compressor starting to overheat because of overuse. This may be caused by either a blockage in the lines, not enough pressure in the lines, or possibly an incorrect charge of refrigerant.

On the other hand there might be a possibility that your thermostat might be malfunctioning and sending a signal to the A/C that the house has reached the desired temperature. Although unlikely this may be a possibility.

One thing that I could say for sure is that if you add more refrigerant make sure it is of the same chemical composition or you may cause a larger problem.
Well I dont know as much about that as you. But I dont play with my AC its to important... Go to ford lol.
The compressor is short cycling because of low refrigerant. Ford uses a pressure switch to cycle the compressor. When the ref. is low the pressure rises and drops quickly thus short cycling the compressor.
bluetoy,Jun 11 2005, 11:59 PM Wrote:The compressor is short cycling because of low refrigerant. Ford uses a pressure switch to cycle the compressor. When the ref. is low the pressure rises and drops quickly thus short cycling the compressor.
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Agreed. I'll use the stop-leak stuff to swell the seals, and try from there.

And btw, it got progressively worse ... winter kinda killed it. Not like R134a is any good to begin with :angry:

Remember kids: if it doesnt kill the ozone or doesn't blow up, it will never cool your car right :D
Nuke the whales.... Gotta nuke somthin. lol
fist off if you use the sealant it will clog up every line and the compressor
making it impossible to re charge your system ever again, 2nd releasing freon in to the ozone is illegal and dangourse to your self,,if you dont know what your doing
dont do it,

in all by using a sealer you making it worse for your self
yes it is a cheap fix now but in the long run it will cost you more
paseo,Jun 12 2005, 03:18 PM Wrote:fist off if you use the sealant it will clog up every line and the compressor
making it impossible to re charge your system ever again, 2nd releasing freon in to the ozone is illegal and dangourse to your self,,if you dont know what your doing 
dont do it,

in all by using a sealer you making it worse for your self
yes it is a cheap fix now but in the long run it will cost you more
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I appreciate the attempt to give advice, but I think you're a tad confused.

1) As I mentioned, the sealer is the kind that swells seals. Not the kind that clogs cracks with particles.

2) Releasing freon (R12) is illegal. Releasing R134a is not, as it is NOT freon. It is ozone friendly, and while I agree that it should be recovered by a qualified professional and the system be vacuumed out -- I won't be doing that because:
a) I'm cheap.
B) It will cut down on head pressures if I don't evacuate the system entirely before I fill it with 454g, instead of 754g. The gas is efficient enough to have the same results as OEM when using 35% of the reccomended fill.
c) I'm cheap.