Finding AC Leaks in Empty System - No Freon, No Problem
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- Опубліковано 2 жов 2024
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In this video I show you how to find an AC leak on your car. In this case it's my BMW 335i and I'm finally finishing this project by fixing the Air Conditioning. No cold air in your car, no problem! Today we will go through the steps of finding a leak and replacing the AC condenser on my BMW e92. This method should only be attempted when there is no freon in the system and it's completely empty. I would also recommend getting it evacuated by a professional and only then refilling it with refrigerant.
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I fixed my condenser with JB Weld two years ago and it fixed the leak. De-grease, lightly sand, and I used light vacuum (-5) to suck the epoxy into the hole and let it harden overnight. Have not had to add any more 134a.
Do what? No way!? Amazing. Wish you had made a video!
Nice
Very interesting. Thanks for sharing. Is the repair still working?
I JB welded a spark plug into a cylinder head once. It worked for about a year and then I had to slap on a new head as it further cracked around the spark plug hole. JB weld is awesome
I had a radiator leak and just needed to make it home on night so I added a glue I purchased at a convenience store called Goop I believe, it was multipurpose as I just just wanted to make it home. Made it home with out loosing one drop of water the thing held for over 7 yrs until I sold the car.
The yellow line is for the vacuum pump. It is very important to use after introducing air.
I used a 10 dollar can of freon with the uv dye and found the leak right away.It cost me 17 dollars for the dye and the uv flashlight and did it in a dark garage
I can’t believe I didn’t think of putting that air fitting. Thank you 👍🏽
Well, as said at the end, be careful throwing air inside the system, air contains humidity which if not evacuated, will produce moisture and damage your ac circuit.
If you can, use azote instead which is a dry gas.
@@adrienlazac Most of us are using this method because we don't have enough money to use nitrogen. I found the leak using air, evacuated the system, and recharged. Car is blowing cold air with no issues now.
WOW, i was just ordering new ac compressor/ lines and valves, went outside 5 minutes later found air coming out the condenser. Thanks you helped me through this easy leak find method better than the pros 5 STARS *****
Better to use a vacuum pump and a cigar or vape too find holes... Won't introduce water
Damn. Good idea. I have a smoke machine for finding vacuum leaks. I could use the hose with smoke and let vacuum draw the smoke!
Thank you for the video. Your method worked well for me. Was able to find the leak using 100 psi of air and soapy water. Turns out some of the AC seals were bad and leaking. Replaced them all, evacuated the system with a vacumn pump, and recharged. All good now
Simple car guy I know that your intentions are good but this video is wrong. Never use air to pressurize your AC line set system. Air has water and water has moisture. Moisture is a problem to all refrigerants. So you found the leak but now you will compromise the car ac system eventually. Always use nitrogen to leak test.
Thanks for the feedback! Obviously the next step would be to evacuate the system, pull a vacuum etc. by a professional, but as far as DIY method to find a leak and fix the issue before taking it to a pro, I think it’s not so bad.
Air is OK because a vacuum pump will be used... Won't it!!!!!!!!..
If you use a professional air compressor they have water traps and filters to prevent moisture, but consumer ones don't.
Also, when you pull a vacuum on it before adding Freon, theoretically any moisture will boil away, as long as your vacuum pump pulls a hard enough vacuum (it's why your blood will boil in space).
But it's not really a great idea.
I used compressed air on my truck 4 years ago never vaccumed it and charged it I still get 43degree air out the vents
Key word is 'theoretically'. AC systems are not tires.
I almost did not click on this video when I saw the Freon can. However this video can be very effective for DIY leak detection prior to just replacing parts. I believe the T fitting valve is a 134 can tap, available anywhere for about $10.
Good call on compressed air. Make sure to pull a good long vacuum once the repair is complete.
Title should say no vacuum pump or freon
Can you identify the adapter used to connect the airhose connection to the yellow hose?
Is it a good idea to use a secondhand condenser? Yes the condenser itself is in good nick, but on these models the dryer is the tube attached to one end and as the unit has been open to the air for ages that dryer will not be working. Combined with the fact that using compressed air will also add a lot of moisture, this approach is quite likely to make your oil too acidic, which will be fine for a while but will cause something to fail eventually. I'm not sure that just vacuuming for half an hour after doing this will be enough to get the water to boil out of the hydrophilic oil. Allegedly running a sufficient vacuum for 8 hours or so might do it. Buying a bottle of dry nitrogen (and an M10x1 regulator) to provide the test pressure, and a new condenser with a new dryer is a much better plan.
I agree xxwookey. But buying a bottle of dry nitrogen and a regulator costs a lot of money. And I just want to fix my ice cream machine which has a leak. So the nitrogen is not cost effective for me. And I know I also need the nitrogen to braze the leak in my case. Now Argon is less expensive. Can I use that for brazing the leak and will that prevent soot on the inside? And is Argon completely moisture free?
@@rolandberendonck3900 I found that the dry nitrogen and cheap welding CO2 cannisters have the same thread (M10) so a cheap welding regulator is sufficient (even though the nitrogen is much higher pressure, it worked fine for me). I had the same question about welding CO2 gas dryness, and could not find out. Even the manufacturer didn't know. So I suspect that the people who make CO2 and argon for welding don't have a spec for moisture so how dry it is is quite random, and depends on the process, or maybe where it bottled. and only dry nitrogen is guaranteed to actually be dry. Which is a pity because all we want here is a dry inert gas, and argon is certainly inert (and I assume it doesn't dissolve into the oil). N2 bottle is 38 quid, argon 28 quid. CO2 20 quid. So yes N2 is not cheap, but it's not _that_ expensive either.
What makes you think that BMW does not Chinese parts as OEM?
your nail connector 1/4 are not same thread pitch !!!
So i tried to find my leak by using dye and uv light, but i never seen any dye anywhere. I'm almost sure it's a leak in the condensor. Good video. I just don't have compressed air to use.
if you can't see it most likely the leak is in the evaporator.
Thank you for your video. But how to remove or vacuum the Air From inside the system before you but the freo please is there any video?
They make vacuum pumps for that, but I don't know if you can rent one or if you have to buy one.
Got a dumb question. When connecting ac lines do you screw them down to open the high and low valves? I’m guessing yea to allow the air in system.
Yes
Hey mate great video, would u have a link or name to the air adapter thanks
Hi, I bought mine locally, but it's the standard 1/4 NPT connector like this: amzn.to/3GmZsyx
Hi brother thanks for your videos I'm a subscriber.
Question please...
I have a 1995 Lexus LS 400.
The radiator fan is not activating.
It does work because i tested it.
I disconnected the connector that's connected to the receiver drier and the radiator fan turns on and stays on continuously the whole time.
But when I reconnect the connector the radiator fan turns off.
I'm trying to fix the fan so that it turns on when I turn on my air conditioner but the fan does not turn on when I turn on the AC.
I feel like it has something to do with that connection but I'm not sure.
Do you think I might have a bad sensor that's connected to the receiver drier?
Thanks.
Anybody knowledgeable please reply soon.
40psi not enough for some small leak. put 140psi to be safe because the high side can go more than 200psi
Useless video. You don't explain which valve should be open or closed before injecting air.
Already change it but after 7 8 day ac cooling down
I wish you could see how much moisture you just introduced into your A/C system.
That's what dry N2 tanks are for.
As mentioned in the video, description and comments, this is a way to find the problem. You will then have to pull a vacuum and refill the system. I took mine to a professional and paid $100 instead of $1000.
Great points and explained in a very fast way. The AC system of a car can be one of the most difficult ones to diagnose, keep maintained, and overall to reliably fix.
Found the leak use soap a water. THX for idea.
I was able to pressurize with the rubber tip use for blowing out the system.
Thanks for posting. I just found the leak in my system I believe and it was my red hose not the system. You help me figure it out with the pressure and the soap thanks, boss man.
Compressed air when mixed with 134a creates a FLAMMABLE VAPOR
This system had no 134a left. That’s the whole point of the video, to find a leak when there is no refrigerant left at all
What is the leak detector tool you had?
A very cheap and simple automotive stethoscope
Excellent video. Thank you.
Hey, I attached the hose to my cars low pressure line without the hose being attached to the coolant. I was trying to see if it was low or not, but it might have been a bad idea. After I removed it, it sounded like air was escaping from the line. Was that just the air that entered through the hose escaping or something else? Can I still add coolant or is did I mess up?
I understand that this is an old post, but I believe what you have is an a/c Schrader valve leaking, it is basically like the valve steam on your car's tires to put air in or to check the pressure within the tire. They can be replaced with the proper tool but then you would need the use of a vacuum pump to remove all Non condensable gases. So basically, you can check and see how much it will cost to have the schrader valve replaced and freon added to the system. I'm sure you can do it after all if I can do it.
Thanks a lot for another great video, very helpful video. GREAT IDEA and job. Thanks
Glad it was helpful!
This story has a happy ending.
Great idea, bro! Thanks! Ima go try this right now
Water in compressed air no good
Bad advice. Try this at you own risk. NEVER pressurize an AC system with air! There are so many things wrong with this video, on so many levels, it would take a completely new video to explain all the errors and bad suggestions.
Of course, as always: "A little knowledge is a dangerous thing"
Thank you
you can rent a vacuum pump from the parts store. that's the only other thing you needed to do the professional quality evacuation and recharge by yourself. you would connect the vacuum pump to the yellow hose for the evacuation, and then attach the cans of freon to the same yellow hose to charge it.
actually like other people said, ideally you would still want to flush the system and replace certain parts like the receiver-dryer. however if there wasn't a catastrophic compressor failure then you may get away with not flushing it
@@dummkompf for sure u could get away with it if the compressor wasn't the issue
@@dummkompf You can't flush the condenser on these r134a horizontal fin ones bc the Holes are wayyy too small often you just move the debris to make a serious clog... Always replace them with the condenser they cannot be serviced... Also replacing the dessicant often ruins the plug and there is not clearance with the hard dessicant pack these use so... Plus then you get a new Power Steering cooler toobc it is built into the condenser
Hi,
Very useful video!
What were the symptoms along with hot air from vents?
My ac doesn't hold freon longer than a week and I hear hissing noise from vents. I'm afraid it's the evaporator😬
Having this same issue condenser was replaced cuz was leaking the. Run for like a hour and out sudden smelled weird and all the freon went out again any ideas
@@chapincillo evaporator
Great Video Awesome!
great idea!!
This is a really good video, thank you
Glad it helped! Thanks for watching.
can ac gas leak from
the radiator?
From the condenser yes, not from the radiator which is for engine coolant.
The condenser looks similar to a radiator and is usually located in the same general area as the radiator. Not to be confused with the compressor which is a common point of confusion for people. The compressor is located as an accessory part that's turned by the serpentine belt.
How to do it without buying any fancy tools? So here's what I bought??😂
Welll. If you get actual AC tools, it’ll be hundreds to thousands
Bad idea. For those who did this, make a comment when your ac system fail after several months had to have a mechanic replace the evaporator coil. The dryer cannot handle the amount of water introduced in the system and the dirt and oil from the compressor Lol 😂😂😂
Note that I have noted a couple of times that you should only use this method to find and fix the issue and then have the system evacuated and then fill it with Freon.
@@SimpleCarGuy You need a flush kit to evacuate the system. Shop vacuum pump just remove moisture and most shop vac are substandard for refrigeration use ( 500 microns of vacuum is minimum standard) and the system still rely on the dryer to remove moisture which is only capable of very small amounts (less than a drop of water). Well anyways as long as there are people who does this I will always have an evaporator coil replacement job (it’s the thinnest part of the system and first to develop a hole due to acidity from moisture). In fact I am working on one right now. I charge a lot of money for such jobs and unlike a typical shop, I always flush the system. Hybrid AC system like the Prius uses electric compressor that operate at 240 volts. Moisture in such system will wreck havoc. Requiring compressor replacement as well as system flush.
@@ronaldoquintos1675 Does it really need 500 microns to remove water vapour? Water will boil at 18C/65F at 0.3psi, which is 15500 micronhg, and at 0.1psi (5000 micronhg) it boils at 2C/35F which really should be sufficient in all but the coldest shop. Does it need a lower pressure than the boiling point to get dissolved water out of the oil?