So I bought one of those recharge bottles and doesn’t say what to do if the pressure is going up and down. It does say if pressure is in the red do not charge. Duh. The compressor seems to turn on and off and the pressure goes up and down as it turns on and off. Is it turning off because of the lack of gas or…?
It seems this condition should be mentioned in the instructions. Lol
Your compressor will turn off if the system if over pressurized
The thing I learned with AC is take it to someone who knows wtf they’re doing the gauges on those cans suck.
Up and down is normal like said. Just fill till it’s in the green. Should just cycle in the green if it’s properly charged.
What causes over charging? It seems like pressure is at the correct level when not running then drops when running.(?) not sure though.
What kind of recharge system did you use? I bought a shitty one that was a waste and then gave A/C Pro a shot and it worked beautifully. I think what I liked best was that you could control the flow with the squeeze lever. When you let the lever out, it takes a pressure reading, then you squeeze for another 10-15 seconds, and release and check the pressure again. Worked like a charm.
How long is your compressor cycling on and off for? Could be a bad pressure switch? Or expansion valve?
It will cycle if both over and undercharged …
I do AC for a living, I’ve done mobile AC too,
The system has safety pressure switches, if pressure gets too low it will cut off power to the compressor clutch, if pressure is too high it will cut off too.
I have the manifolds to charge the system and I have 134a.
If you need help I can help you.
^^Yeah I bought the pro. It cycles for maybe 3 seconds.
^ good to know. I can’t see how it could be over charged because it stopped working with adding any to it.(?)
It’s probably just low on charge, when its low on charge the suction side will drop too far and trip the low pressure cut off.
You only have the one gauge that comes with the kit so you’re only seeing half the picture. It’s probably just undercharged tho
Wahoo, maybe it is dropping pressure when it kicks on then shutting down for lack of pressure?
Thanks!
When you charge put your fans on highest setting/ coldest setting and meter it slowly in. I haven’t charged with those charge kits in a super long time so I’m not sure on which side its adding it too but it should be the suction side that your charge with.
The gauges are side specific so you can’t accidentally install it on the wrong tap.
Time for my bed but in the morning ill read and check to see your progress.
---------- Post added at 10:59 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:56 PM ----------
Yes when the compressor turns on the low side pressure will drop, the safety switch is to prevent it from dropping too low because if there’s no charge and you have a leak you don’t want to suck moisture/ non condenseables into the system. Also oil mixes with the refrigerant and travels with it(residential/commercial), so you don’t want to run it dry.
---------- Post added at 11:04 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:59 PM ----------
If you add too much refrigerant it will cut the high pressure cut out also, so you can over charge and you would see it on the high side of the system but I don’t think you get the gauge for that.
the gauge should read in between 30 - 40 and it should cycle.
I thought the PSI range was directly related to the ambient temp and not a static range?
Thanks, it is ice cold again!
There is a pressure temperature relationship, on a hot day the load is higher so the pressures will be higher, if its colder outside the pressures will be lower. That’s why the recharge kits usually tell you to adjust/charge with the ambient temperature in mind. Some have a dial on the gauge you set to the outside temp, but like I said earlier i have more experience with actual gauges with both hoses. I don’t know by memory what pressures the system should be running at without looking at a pressure temperature chart, but that’s how you charge like every system, residential, commerical, automotive.
Still ice cold after driving 6 hours today to PA and back. Thanks again Wahoo (and others)!