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Replacing AC Accumulator (dryer)

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Old 07-11-2006, 03:34 PM
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Question Replacing AC Accumulator (dryer)

I did some searching but could not find, which I cant believe because
of the shitty battery tray I have almost blew hole in it several times!
Well, one good launch and the Positive Battery terminal melted a hole in it.
The AC was working fine before this. I bought a new Accumulator and was
going to bolt it up but did not relize you have to evacuate it.
So I left it alone but have been driving around with a hole in it.
My questions are:
What is the cheepest vacuum pump I can get to this (Air Compressor one??)

Do I have to add oil to it or is the oil still in the compressor?

Should I replace the O rings?

The AC was not on when this happened & has never been turned on with the
hole in it. Only Freon (air) leaked out.
Old 07-11-2006, 03:40 PM
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I use a friends vac pump, he bought it at Harbor Freight for 45 bucks I think.

The accumulator should come with new seals for the inlet and outlet connections. No o rings, just a round gasket. I added 4 ozs of PAG 150 oil to the accumulator before connecting it up. The system holds 9 ozs, but the rest of that sits in the compressor and that oil is still there.
Old 07-11-2006, 03:48 PM
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Thanks, I think I am going to try it. I did call one place that quoted me
$170.00 To replace, Evac & recharge the one I bought.
I found this at harbor freight: (ONLY $9.99!)
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=92475
Not sure how much the Oil & freon will cost me?
Oh, how much freon should i add?
Old 07-11-2006, 04:53 PM
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170 is pretty steap. Yea, I asked my buddy he paid 45 for the evac pump and the a/c manifold gauge set. Thats the pump I used, works fine. I would recommend buying the gauge manifold as well. This will help you make sure there are no leaks before you recharge the system and it will let you trouble shoot it later.

I like to evacuate for 10-15, then turn off the pump and the let system sit under vacuum for another 10-15 and make sure everything is staying sealed. Then refill.

I just bought freon and oil, 28.61 with tax at Oreillys. You need 24 ozs of R134a (Oreillys sells 13 oz cans, that works fine) and one 8 oz can of PAG 150 system oil.
Old 07-12-2006, 07:36 AM
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One last question.
So when I do the evac/vacuum I am assuming that it will not take the oil out
of the system since you added it first.
If you wanted to drain all oil how would it be done?
Old 07-12-2006, 07:56 AM
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I replaced my dryer, compressor, and orifice tube last year. It was quite easy and I got all my parts at the parts store after checking part numbers and prices online.

The dryer is cheap and easy to replace. You should replace your orifice tube as well. I remember that the rule of thumb is to add an ounce of oil to each item you replace as you replace it (not counting the compressor or the orifice tube).

Then I got my system evacuated and recharged for about $140, and that included the R-134a they added.
Old 07-12-2006, 10:23 AM
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Oil will not come out during evacuation. For the most part, the oil is only going to sit at the compressor and in the dryer. If you are replacing both, then you will remove most of the oil. If the compressor isn't bad, I wouldn't worry about removing the oil down there.
Old 07-12-2006, 11:05 AM
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The new dryer/accumulator comes with new seals. The existing oil should be enough but if the whole in the system has resulted in any dirt getting into the system it probably should be flushed. Dirt can easily get trapped in the AC jets that spray the freon and cause a blockage.

Cheap vacume pumps are cheap. My unit was $300 and I have used it 5 or 6 times in three years - well worth it IMO. I had a HF vacume pump and it was garbage.

A good set of guages and a good vacume pump is pretty much all you need for AC work. Invest and never look back.
Old 07-12-2006, 12:33 PM
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I have used my buddies 10 dollar harbor freight pump 3 times myself in the last month rebuilding the a/c system in my car. I have it connected to gauges and it pulls a solid 30 psi vac on the system. Seems to work fine. I don't agree with buying a 300 dollar pump unless you and your buddies have a fleet of vehicles and plan on using the system regularly.
Old 07-12-2006, 02:26 PM
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Thanks guys! I did put a piece of Duct Tape over the hole to prevent
dirt from getting in. I would just take it to a shop before I spend $300 plus.
This is the first time I ever needed to use one and I am 33 Years old.
I am going to have to put this project on hold though.
My new procharger (8 Rib) threw the belt at the track last night on my first run!
It went back into the Assy Serp belt then pushed into the AC belt.
Got tangled & melted both AC pulley's & bent one of the AC lines (Bottom).
I bent it back, it seems fine. Not sure what its called?
I went on fred beans website but still not sure. Also not sure if you can just buy the
pulley for the AC tensioner side? They show the whole assy & the idler pulley.



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