Hello! I am trying to fix my air conditioning before I head down to the Midwest meet today. I got the things I need to convert it over to the new r134a. I removed the r12 from the system, an dnot i am tring to add the ester oil charge. I have the hose hooked up, but the oil charge does not seem to be going into the compressor. What are some things i can check? Any help is appreciated! Kurt

I did that conversion once, and it worked for a while.....

 

did you create a vacuum in the system first? (I didn't which led to it's early demise I believe) I put on a different compressor, so the system was empty.

 

I used a kit from a parts store, but only one of the fittings was covered by the adapters in it, but luckily, it was the only one needed...

 

I just hooked onto the low side, and with the vehicle running/AC turned on to do the compressing, I opened up the vavle on the r134 charge/oil, and it sucked it in....

 

if yours isn't pulling in, you may have a bad hose someplace, and not creating enough vac pull....

I just fixed my a/c - I actually did not use R134a, but an alternative refrigerant called Enviro-Safe http://www.btt.org/ES.html - no funky license required, and it works a LOT better than R134a - it is actually cheaper right now, but be sure to read ALL instructions, there are some specific handeling procceedures that MUST be followed - you still have to swap fittings

a good thing to do also is replace ALL your O-rings with nitrile ones - (CHEAP at autozone) make sure to lube them prior to install

and I used the good ol' fashoned mineral oil, which is a better lubricant than ester, and what your system was designed for

pulling a good vacuum in the system before adding refrigerant is CRITICAL to system performance - maybe pay a shop to do that

you should also replace your reciever/dryer if you haven't already - it is supposed to absorb any moisture in the system, and gets saturated if the system is open for any length of time

 

I have had the system running for over 2 weeks now with NO problems. Last time, I tried R134a and it lasted 3 days!