Brumby Aircon

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majordad1
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Brumby Aircon

Post by majordad1 » Mon Oct 05, 2015 8:40 pm

Guys after I bought my 92 Brumby last year I had the Aircon re-gassed as it was not working. Noticed the other day having used it for first time in a while that there was no cold air coming through the vents. Checked the bleed valve thingy on top of compressor and it appears there is still gas in the system and the compressor is turning on ok. Any body have any experience with these things, what to look for etc. Majordad

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steptoe
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Post by steptoe » Tue Oct 06, 2015 6:39 am

vents working OK and not making AC compete with heater core ? If yours has anything like mine did after a number of years the fridge part under glovebox was covered in fluff, fur, dust n crap. More modern cars with cabin filter - the cabin filters can if filthy, reduce efficiency quite a lot.

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majordad1
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Aircon

Post by majordad1 » Tue Oct 06, 2015 3:57 pm

Steptoe,

When I purchased this Brumby last Year noticed from Books it started life on an Aboriginal reserve in the back blocks of W.A. so I figured I best strip the cab out and do a de-dust. Got enough out to start a veggie garden I reckon. Cleaned or blew out everything that was standing still so don't think fluff would be the issue. My electronics wizz son reckons more likely a valve stuck some were blocking the gas, but don't have a clue were to look. Majordad

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Silverbullet
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Post by Silverbullet » Tue Oct 06, 2015 6:24 pm

Have you had any other parts of the system checked or worked on when it was re-gassed?

Maybe something blocked internally. Here's a test; turn the A/C switch on and leave it on for a while, does the compressor/rad fans cycle on and off? Or does it come on and stay on indefinitely. If it stays on then the evaporator (under dash part) is not getting cold pointing to a blockage maybe. If it cycles on and off but there's no cold air coming through the vents then maybe the heater is stuck on (rusty heater tap letting hot water through) or could be an air leak in your ducting.

Just hope it's not the TX valve attached to the evaporator :( if it's the "factory" A/C system they use a unique and old fashioned thinga-majig that is well and truly NLA.
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Proton mouse
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Post by Proton mouse » Tue Oct 06, 2015 6:36 pm

The bit Steptoe is talking about, is the face of the evaporator which sits between the blower and the heater core/multi vent centre piece.
Without a cabin filter, these older evaporator faces can get so gunked up it will completely stop air flowing through them.
It is not as easy as a blow out either as it really needs the evap removed and the outer box dismantled to clean it properly.
I've had to use a wax and grease remover to clean the evap face and core sufficiently on several.
John

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tambox
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Post by tambox » Wed Oct 07, 2015 6:37 pm

Bushies method;
If the compressor is turning on, have a look in the rec/dryer/filter glass window.
Do you have two pressure switches or only one?

What can happen is some gas has leaked out, again, (re-gassing will not fix the original leak).
If you have one pressure switch it is a high pressure switch and will turn off the A/C in overload. The second is a low pressure switch that will turn it off when the gas pressure is low (leaked).

Whenever you have the A/C re-gassed, see what it looks like in the rec/dryer window, then you can see if it varies. What you see in this window will vary depending upon the gas type and who did it.
Basically you will see bubbles, if it looks like 33% or less bubbles, gas should be in the ball park. If it looks like more bubbles than liquid, there is a fair chance there is not enough gas.

Look for oil on any connection or the front of the compressor, this is a sign of where the leak is.

Professional;
Buy pressure gauges and and a leak detector :)
L serious, still.

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Ethi69
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From a fridgey

Post by Ethi69 » Wed Oct 07, 2015 11:01 pm

First thing to do is have a mate sit in the car and sitting the throttle at about 2 thousand revs. Obviously neutral, windows up, bonnet open. Get him to switch the a/c on as you watch the compressor. When switched on the front of the compressor will pull in and start spinning along with the belts therefore starting the cooling process (circulating the gas around like a pump, well yeah it is a pump). If there is enough gas in the system then the bigger pipe going into comp (with a blue cap) should be cold. The smaller pipe (with red cap) should be hot up to about 40 or 50 degrees depending on day temp. If working properly then air out of vents should be about 4-6 degrees when on after 5 minutes. If there is gas in the system and not working properly with no heat or coolness on pipes then its most likely short of gas. Just won't work. Definitely check for blocked evaporator inside though like others suggest. Fluffy socks over a period of 25 years will defo eff that shiz up... But not very common. I hope this helps and no other Fridgey's read this incase I've got something wrong! Good luck bud
Kind regards Ethi... Sent from iThrash

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Ethi69
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From a fridgey

Post by Ethi69 » Wed Oct 07, 2015 11:05 pm

First thing to do is have a mate sit in the car and sitting the throttle at about 2 thousand revs. Obviously neutral, windows up, bonnet open. Get him to switch the a/c on as you watch the compressor. When switched on the front of the compressor will pull in therefore starting the cooling process (circulating the gas around like a pum). If there is enough gas in the system then the bigger pipe going into comp (with a blue cap) should be cold. The smaller pipe (with red cap) should be hot up to about 40 or 50 degrees depending on day temp. If working properly then air out of vents should be about 4-6 degrees when on after 5 minutes. If there is gas in the system and not working properly with no heat or coolness on pipes then its most likely short of gas. Just won't work. Definitely check for blocked evaporator inside though like others suggest. Fluffy socks over a period of 25 years will defo eff that shiz up... But not very common. I hope this helps and no other Fridgey's read this incase I've got something wrong! Good luck bud
Kind regards Ethi... Sent from iThrash

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Ethi69
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Post by Ethi69 » Wed Oct 07, 2015 11:12 pm

Oh yeah, if you get it checked by a pro and they say "it just loses gas over some time, these things happen" then it's a bit dodgey. They should never lose gas and have to be refilled every coupla months after first re-gas.
Kind regards Ethi... Sent from iThrash

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steptoe
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Post by steptoe » Thu Oct 08, 2015 7:20 am

and don't do that excellently described test in enclosed space or you and your mate may not be back in here ever again - be six foot under :(

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