recommissioning aircon
Discussion
My daily beater (A ph1 Citroen Xsara fwiw) is trusty as they come but has one flaw - the aircon doesnt work.
It has never worked in all the time I've had it (18 months) and God only knows how long before that.
Last year I took it to Kwik Fit for a regas/free diagnostic and they told me the system had a pissing leak somewhere, probably the condenser. Sod that I thought, I'll leave it.
This year though I got to wondering and pulled the condenser out for inspection. As it happens one of the pipe stubs was corroded and has completely broken off.
So my question is - if I buy a new condenser and dryer and fit them with new O-rings etc, what are the chances of the rest of the system being OK? That is, I have read that if the system is not used for some time, the o-rings dry up and leak, the compressor seal can do the same or can lunch itself as soon as it is restarted etc.
Do I need to worry about that or is it more likely to be OK?
It has never worked in all the time I've had it (18 months) and God only knows how long before that.
Last year I took it to Kwik Fit for a regas/free diagnostic and they told me the system had a pissing leak somewhere, probably the condenser. Sod that I thought, I'll leave it.
This year though I got to wondering and pulled the condenser out for inspection. As it happens one of the pipe stubs was corroded and has completely broken off.
So my question is - if I buy a new condenser and dryer and fit them with new O-rings etc, what are the chances of the rest of the system being OK? That is, I have read that if the system is not used for some time, the o-rings dry up and leak, the compressor seal can do the same or can lunch itself as soon as it is restarted etc.
Do I need to worry about that or is it more likely to be OK?
In the absense of better-informed contributors, I'll chip this in.
The system has been effectively open to atmosphere for 18 months minimum. Also there's a reasonable chance that the compressor has run without the correct amount of lubricating oil when the system originally failed.
I wouldn't count on it working with just the condenser and drier replaced, there will probably be some other perished or corroded parts in there somewhere. If you're prepared to do a little troubleshooting (or pay someone else to do it!) then go for it.
The system has been effectively open to atmosphere for 18 months minimum. Also there's a reasonable chance that the compressor has run without the correct amount of lubricating oil when the system originally failed.
I wouldn't count on it working with just the condenser and drier replaced, there will probably be some other perished or corroded parts in there somewhere. If you're prepared to do a little troubleshooting (or pay someone else to do it!) then go for it.
My advice, FWIW would be to tak it to where you had it checked last time, they were obviously right & most places will start with a leak check & if this fails they normally don't charge & you have lost nothing.
However as the seals in the system are lubricated by the refrigerant, the likelihood is that after the time it has been dry, they will have perished anyway & there may well be many small leaks.
Having said that, I could be wrong, you could be lucky, but you won't know until you get it tested.
However as the seals in the system are lubricated by the refrigerant, the likelihood is that after the time it has been dry, they will have perished anyway & there may well be many small leaks.
Having said that, I could be wrong, you could be lucky, but you won't know until you get it tested.
HustleRussell said:
Also there's a reasonable chance that the compressor has run without the correct amount of lubricating oil when the system originally failed.
The compressor won't have run anywhere, simply because there was no gas in the system.OP, as long as you put your new drier and condensor in with new o-rings, test it with nitrogen to make sure there are no leaks, then leave it to pull a vacuum for about 30 mins before putting gas and oil in, you'll be fine.
Everyone seems to think all the o-rings dry out if the air con isn't used for a while, frankly its complete BS. An o-ring might have been sat in a box in storage for a good year before actually being used, is it any the worse for it? Of course not. O-rings will only really leak if they are fitted incorrectly and are 'pinched' in the actual fitting.
SilverArrows said:
The compressor won't have run anywhere, simply because there was no gas in the system.
Everyone seems to think all the o-rings dry out if the air con isn't used for a while, frankly its complete BS. An o-ring might have been sat in a box in storage for a good year before actually being used, is it any the worse for it? Of course not. O-rings will only really leak if they are fitted incorrectly and are 'pinched' in the actual fitting.
100% agree about the compressor having gone nowhere, due to the lack of refrigerant failing to reset the low pressure switch to a healthy condition.Everyone seems to think all the o-rings dry out if the air con isn't used for a while, frankly its complete BS. An o-ring might have been sat in a box in storage for a good year before actually being used, is it any the worse for it? Of course not. O-rings will only really leak if they are fitted incorrectly and are 'pinched' in the actual fitting.
On the seals, I was not thinking of O-rings, you are obviously right there. I have in the past been led to believe by the garage's air con guy that the compressor seals "dry out" if not used.
Not wanting to put a spanner in the works, but I believe the Xsara is the same as a Peugeot 306 ?
My wife had one of these a few years ago with failed air-con.
It's avery common thing, problem is caused by the brackets holding the pipe on to the bottom of the radiator, can't recall exactly but I things its a steel bracket, aluminium pipe and it corrodes.
The problem being that there were no aftermarket pipes available, and at the time (only 2 years ago) the Peugeot parts were a fortune....I seem to recall best part of £200 for 2 pipes !
I did look into getting custom ones made, cheaper but not cheap....
In the end the head-gasket went and we decided to cut our losses, and she bought another car.
Worth a google of 306 Air Con though, should put you in the right direction.
My wife had one of these a few years ago with failed air-con.
It's avery common thing, problem is caused by the brackets holding the pipe on to the bottom of the radiator, can't recall exactly but I things its a steel bracket, aluminium pipe and it corrodes.
The problem being that there were no aftermarket pipes available, and at the time (only 2 years ago) the Peugeot parts were a fortune....I seem to recall best part of £200 for 2 pipes !
I did look into getting custom ones made, cheaper but not cheap....
In the end the head-gasket went and we decided to cut our losses, and she bought another car.
Worth a google of 306 Air Con though, should put you in the right direction.
I had the opposite experience. We have a 307 and the aircon had not worked for a couple of years, it just faded out. Two weeks ago a local tyre chain gave a special offer which was less than the price of one of those re-fill aerosols from E-bay or Halfrauds. I decided to give it a try and it worked perfectly.
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