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Thu Aug 07, 2025 8:30 pm

Yeah, VR sucks. But I think these were Elring gaskets. They had to have been leaking through the gaskets. I RTV'd the hell out of them. There is no way it's leaking past the gasket. It had to have been through the gasket. The mating surfaces were dry.

I went down to NAPA, got generic shitty Fel Pro gaskets, cleaned all the RTV off which took forever, covered all mating surfaces with Gasgacinch, and installed them.

Next up on the list was charging the AC system with the cans of R12 that I have. I put two cans of R12 in there.

Unfortunately it wasn't holding a very good vacuum. It was about -25inHg after an hour so I was putting these cans in really as a diagnostic. Was it leaking at the expansion valve that had an extra copper fitting that I snipped, folded over, and soldered? Or was it leaking at the brass coupler I modified to because my original dryer was male-male and the new dryer was male-female? So after vacuuming it down for a few hours I put the cans in and waited to see where the leaks were.

At least it wasn't my work that was leaking. Unfortunate though. I will need to pull the lines and take them to a hydraulic shop. It worked really well. I saw 24F for a bit. I have burned through 5 cans so far, but I still have 5 more cans of R12 so I am trying to decide between that or R134a. Either way, AC will be a future project.

Fri Aug 08, 2025 8:25 am

I tried to get propane the other day and it wouldn't take again. So I figured the valve needs to be replaced. But I took apart the original Manchester valve and it's a very simple affair. I didn't realize the green valve can be pushed/pulled externally to open/close the intake. It's a bit of a complicated system with the bleed valve going back down to auto open/shut the valve. I cleaned it up and used compressed air and I could see it open and shut no problem now.

But, I am not doing this a 4th time. So I replaced the fill valve with one sourced just a few blocks from me on the other side of the train tracks, big industrial area. I couldn't find a bleed valve, but I did fine an engine coolant bleed valve that was brass from NAPA. It was a bit too small and uses a 7mm hex instead of a thumb screw. But I went to home depot and bought a brass reducer and everything screwed in appropriately.

I went to Cherry Hill Park Campground, nearby, because they have a propane fill service on site as a convenience for guests but they will also take walk ins. 3.1lbs sounded about right!

And an update on the valve cover gaskets. The Fel Pro gaskets with Gasgacinch are holding perfectly so far. No oil drips and the covers are completely dry. I will continue to monitor though.

Fri Aug 08, 2025 8:56 am

4Gears4Tires wrote: I have burned through 5 cans so far, but I still have 5 more cans of R12 so I am trying to decide between that or R134a. Either way, AC will be a future project.

Curious of your thinking on this. What had you use no-longer available/if it (likely) leaks bad for the environment/expensive r12 rather than readily-available/less bad for the environment/relatively cheaper 134a?

Fri Aug 08, 2025 9:00 am

I would have much preferred to use R134a, but the oil in the compressor is all wrong. I'd need to purge the lines, take the compressor out, drain the oil, and then refill with R134a, then repeat the process. Your point is valid though, I thought of the same initially.

The best method is to fill the system with Nitrogen and then use soapy water to check for leaks. Unfortunately I do not have can of Nitrogen and didn't want to spend $150 at a welding store for one.

Fri Aug 08, 2025 10:20 am

4Gears4Tires wrote: I would have much preferred to use R134a, but the oil in the compressor is all wrong. I'd need to purge the lines, take the compressor out, drain the oil, and then refill with R134a, then repeat the process. Your point is valid though, I thought of the same initially.

The best method is to fill the system with Nitrogen and then use soapy water to check for leaks. Unfortunately I do not have can of Nitrogen and didn't want to spend $150 at a welding store for one.

I follow your logic. And a nitrogen tank is an amazing tool once a person has one.

..... Also that oil incompatibility in 134, the retrofit studies have shown that they'll initially it was a concern to do quick conversions that did not involve flushing and getting the correct oil in there, the results have shown that the quick conversions have worked well and haven't really effective the old systems. So specially in a temporary use like yours you probably would have been okay with the 134.

Sometimes I'm trying to completely questionable system my pressure test with compressor air. Sure it only gets 150 psi and sure it might have some moisture, but for a system that was open previously and to find initial gross leaks that has helped at minimal cost. And I'm not too worried about entering and question compressed air if the receiver dryer will be replaced anyways and the vacuum at 500 microns will draw any moisture.

Fri Aug 08, 2025 9:01 pm

I wonder how much you could have gotten for those cans of R12 to put towards your Nitrogen tank

https://refrigerantfinders.com/refrigerant-12/#quotenow

Wed Aug 20, 2025 7:57 am

Yeah, I mean now it's going to get new lines, a parallel flow condenser, and r134a. It was a hope, but yeah, in for a penny, in for a pound.

One the day that I was to leave for the Nova Scotia trip, a few hours before, I filled up the tank. I heard a terrible sound as I did so, fuel gushing to the ground.

At first I thought the tank rusted through a seam, but I looked and it appeared that a vent hose and grommet had popped out. Considering I had just gotten an alignment, I suspect that when they moved a wrench forward they knocked the line and with a weak grommet there, the line just popped out.

The small vent hose next to it was also completely cracked, so I replaced that, cleaned the area, popped the grommet back in, and slathered the area with RTV since the grommet wasn't tight.

I tried to be really careful, but cleaning this area probably knocked dirt into the gas tank. I wonder if I would have been better off just popping the grommet back in and RTVing it from there. Either way, the next time I drove the van (fully packed and headed off to Halifax, NS) the fuel filter was clogged. Turned around, unpacked Penny and packed the Syncro.

Once back from the trip, I added a low pressure carb filter as a pre filter. They're much cheaper than the high pressure filter that is after the fuel pump. I still need to boroscope the tank. If it looks good, I'll just go through a few of these carb filters until it's clean. If the inside is trash, then it gets replaced of course. Even if it is clean, a winter project will be dropping the tank and replacing all the lines and grommets above it.

Wed Aug 20, 2025 8:03 am

I love using the clear pre-filter. It allows me to see what is going on, is easy to replace, and saves the screen in the fuel pump inlet side from clogging (hopefully).

Wed Aug 20, 2025 8:08 am

Can you use fuel grade propane in an AC application? Did you research the water content of said fuel?

One reason you should not refill 1# green cylinders from a BBQ tank is water content.

Mon Aug 25, 2025 7:43 am

Here is the above fuel filter after 175 miles.

I replaced it and then drove another 100 miles over this past weekend.

It's looking a lot better! I'll keep an eye on it and probably replace it in a few months. It's most likely that this is what killed my original fuel pump on that NC trip, of course. I think it's very likely that with the original pre pump filter being clogged, the pump had to really struggle to pump fuel and burned itself out.

Experience is proportionate to shit broken.

I had flushed the fuel tank and then filled it when I got it running originally. I thought this was sufficient. I should have realized that all the fresh fuel would eventually dislodge all the crap sitting on the walls of the tank, anything that was in the fuel and then stuck to the walls as the fuel evaporated over 25 years. It's probably a good policy to replace or at least remove and really thoroughly clean the gas tank of any vehicle sitting for over a decade. I had pulled the injectors and cleaned them, probably need to do that again now. Also probably a good idea to run these carb filters as a pre filter, they cost $8 or something and take 5 minutes to replace, if you are running an original tank.

Mon Aug 25, 2025 10:50 am

When I got my POS 83 1/2 on the road after it had be siting for at least three years and maybe far longer, I had no problems with the fuel while using it locally or even for short trips, but a long trip say 500+ miles would stir up the sediment in the tank and I would begin clogging filters in just a few hundred miles. Whatever it was that was clogging the filters not visible when I would back flush them, but the back flushing was effective and once I ran out of new filters on the one trip I started backflushing and reusing the old ones and got about the same number of miles out of a backflushed one as I did out of a new one.

Mon Aug 25, 2025 11:29 am

I don't know how many out there remember this but when ethanol became widely used(late 80s or early 90s), a lot of people were getting clogged fuel filters, lines, and carbs due to the rust-eating capabilities of ethanol. Besides that, it eats rubber parts. There are a very few gas stations that still sell pure gasoline. There is one about 15 miles from me here in north central Illinois.

Mon Aug 25, 2025 11:44 am

A new tank is cheap....... do it.....

Mon Aug 25, 2025 12:37 pm

Yeah, hard to find.
The Android app went down a coupla yrs ago, so, ya gonna use the website.

https://www.pure-gas.org/

Added benefit that I see across a few older vehicles, is it raises the mpg a wee bit, MAYBE 2 miles more per gal on older cars?
On newer cars, it's hardly noticable.

mrinnovation1 wrote: I don't know how many out there remember this but when ethanol became widely used(late 80s or early 90s), a lot of people were getting clogged fuel filters, lines, and carbs due to the rust-eating capabilities of ethanol. Besides that, it eats rubber parts. There are a very few gas stations that still sell pure gasoline. There is one about 15 miles from me here in north central Illinois.

Mon Aug 25, 2025 2:02 pm

mrinnovation1 wrote: ...There is one about 15 miles from me here in north central Illinois.

It seems like the stations with ethanol-free gas are most frequently found in rural farming communities (including at farm bureau co-ops). The irony of that is not lost on me.

Mon Aug 25, 2025 2:23 pm

Ahwahnee wrote: mrinnovation1 wrote: ...There is one about 15 miles from me here in north central Illinois.

It seems like the stations with ethanol-free gas are most frequently found in rural farming communities (including at farm bureau co-ops). The irony of that is not lost on me.

No problem! There's still high fructose corn syrup.

Mon Aug 25, 2025 11:47 pm

Ahwahnee wrote: mrinnovation1 wrote: ...There is one about 15 miles from me here in north central Illinois.

It seems like the stations with ethanol-free gas are most frequently found in rural farming communities (including at farm bureau co-ops). The irony of that is not lost on me.

When I first ran into ethanol laced fuel, I was somewhere in the corn belt. I asked the woman at the counter of the minimart why it was so much cheaper than the regular gas and she said that they were required to sell it but the farmers would not buy it. I think that fuel was only 4% ethanol and gave me no problem when I ran it, but today I avoid 10% ethanol gas like a plaque.

Mon Aug 25, 2025 11:50 pm

do.dah wrote: Yeah, hard to find.
The Android app went down a coupla yrs ago, so, ya gonna use the website.

https://www.pure-gas.org/

Added benefit that I see across a few older vehicles, is it raises the mpg a wee bit, MAYBE 2 miles more per gal on older cars?
On newer cars, it's hardly noticable.

My highway mileage on all my old carbureted rigs dropped around 33% when 10% ethanol fuel became common.

Tue Aug 26, 2025 4:36 am

dobryan wrote: A new tank is cheap....... do it.....
^^^^^ This. Though these tanks are getting harder to find and less cheap. Note venders differentiate between early and late tanks. Apparently there is an outlet size difference between them.

For 1986+ tanks, search:
"Volkswagen 251201075AH"
"Spectra Premium VW3C"
"Dorman 576282"

Since you will be in there, renewing the vent seals and lines would be good as well. Search "vanagon fuel tank reseal kit"

This is what the inside of my old tank looked like when I replaced it.
Granted, the bus sat unused for many years before I got it.
But it would take lots of filter changes to clear that mess.
Now it's fixed and and is one less fail point to worry about it.

Tue Aug 26, 2025 10:36 am

The filter screen that someone posted here a few years back crossed to a Baldwin BF7693, I am sure there is a NAPA/WIX equivalent.

If I was changing the tank on an early Vanagon, I would buy the later tank to get the larger outlet and then find a filler pipe to match.