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Looking for a Samba member in the PNW to help with A/C test.
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TornadoVan
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Joined: March 11, 2024
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Location: Bellingham, WA.
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PostPosted: Yesterday 1:20 am    Post subject: Looking for a Samba member in the PNW to help with A/C test. Reply with quote

I called every shop in town that I would trust to work on my van, and some out of town, trying to find someone to do a vacuum test on my A/C system. Nobody will touch it as they don't want to deal with the r12 they'd end up extracting from the system in the process. Even the guy that does nothing BUT A/C work said he stopped working on older VW systems.

My rig has a seized compressor and I want to determine if the system is leaking before I go ANY further. If it is leaking, I'm done--I'm not risking damaging the interior duct work to replace seals. If it is NOT leaking, I plan on rebuilding the compressor, reinstalling it and then simply recharging the system.

So, basically looking for someone with the equipment to evacuate the system, vacuum test the system, and later down the road, recharge the system with one of the two r12-replacements available.

Of course, totally willing to compensate for time and effort.

I was also wondering if there are any SPECIAL tools required on the compressors used on a 1990. Kinda putting the horse before the cart with that question, but if rebuilding the compressor is a royal pain, I might just stop pursuing this right there.

Thanks in advance, for help and/or advice. Located an hour and a half North of Seattle.
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space
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Joined: November 19, 2017
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PostPosted: Yesterday 5:21 am    Post subject: Re: Looking for a Samba member in the PNW to help with A/C test. Reply with quote

Get a set of gauges that should help u determine a leak

$30 thru amazon
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bajabones
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PostPosted: Yesterday 5:25 am    Post subject: Re: Looking for a Samba member in the PNW to help with A/C test. Reply with quote

You don’t need a vacuum test
You need the shop to check the pressure with the motor off
There is a low side tap by the compressor
If the pressure is 0 you have a leak
If it’s above 0 you could have a slow leak
If its over 50 you need to compare the pressure and temperature to a PT chart
If it matches there’s probably not a leak
I am a commercial HVAC Tech
I am not a auto A/C specialist
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dobryan
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PostPosted: Yesterday 5:52 am    Post subject: Re: Looking for a Samba member in the PNW to help with A/C test. Reply with quote

^^^^^ Do this.

All you need is a gauge set, which you will need anyway if you proceed forward.
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vanagondan
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Joined: September 09, 2020
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PostPosted: Yesterday 6:00 am    Post subject: Re: Looking for a Samba member in the PNW to help with A/C test. Reply with quote

Just push one of the schraders in and see if pressurized refrigerant spurts out. If it doesn’t then you’ve got a leak.
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MarkWard
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PostPosted: Yesterday 7:05 am    Post subject: Re: Looking for a Samba member in the PNW to help with A/C test. Reply with quote

No recommendations on a shop, but if the compressor physically seized, even if you could find the parts to rebuild it, you will need to completely flush the system. The most effective way is to disassemble the system and flush with acetone and compressed air. There are flush kits, but it doesn’t take much debris to plug the evaporator core.

I used to tell customers if you want AC, you’ll need to plan on eventually replacing everything. If that is off putting, best to not start. AC always has the same symptom. I can think of one or two owners that complained the AC was too cold.

I’ve been watching you tube videos for a mini split I’m installing. A gauge manifold and vacuum pump are reasonably priced. If you can rebuild an AC compressor, you can certainly evacuate and recharge.

My experience, it’s very rare for a compressor to seize and have a full charge.
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Shonandb
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PostPosted: Yesterday 9:41 am    Post subject: Re: Looking for a Samba member in the PNW to help with A/C test. Reply with quote

I called around the Lower Mainland BC last year trying to find a company that does custom A/C work and all the shops said they use this company in Maple Ridge BC, about a 30-40 minute drive from the Blaine or Sumas WA border crossings.

I don't know if they handle R12 systems but give them a call and see if they would agree to work on your Van. They built custom hoses for me and do all the leak testing and system charging.

https://autotechac.com/

T: (604) 460-1422

Darrell
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Red Ryder
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PostPosted: Yesterday 10:11 am    Post subject: Re: Looking for a Samba member in the PNW to help with A/C test. Reply with quote

A new compressor is still available. Not worth it to try to rebuild the old one in my opinion. If you should decide to rebuild, use the search feature at the upper left. You will find posts from others who have plod this path…
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TornadoVan
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Location: Bellingham, WA.
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PostPosted: Yesterday 12:40 pm    Post subject: Re: Looking for a Samba member in the PNW to help with A/C test. Reply with quote

"You will find posts from others who have plod this path"

You sure make this path sound exciting!

As far as posts suggesting that I don't need a leak test but pressure tests instead, the problem is nobody wants to do anything to the system. Quite simply put, don't want it in the shop.

Vanessa has gone 25 years without functioning A/C, so at this point, considering cost, work involved and the lack of serious need, I think I am going to just pass on getting the A/C working again. It was more about a desire to have everything working than a need to have it working. After all, I live in the PNW and have only needed to have it functioning once , when I was traveling around the WA Scablands. Driving around at 65mph when it is 105F can be tolerable with the windows wide open and a wet shirt, but driving in city traffic at those temps can be a pain. Oh well. I'll deal with it.

Thanks for the advice folks!
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skills@eurocarsplus
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PostPosted: Yesterday 12:45 pm    Post subject: Re: Looking for a Samba member in the PNW to help with A/C test. Reply with quote

25 years without working?

you will have leaks left and right. "normal" automotive seepage is about 1/8-1/4 pound a year

either get in your head you're going all the way or just leave it.
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SCM
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PostPosted: Yesterday 12:50 pm    Post subject: Re: Looking for a Samba member in the PNW to help with A/C test. Reply with quote

TornadoVan wrote:
so at this point, considering cost, work involved and the lack of serious need, I think I am going to just pass on getting the A/C working again.


That's the route I'm on too.

I had no AC for about the first 8 years after buying my van. Paid a shop to convert to R134 and recharge and it worked just well enough to take the edge off of a hot drive through SLC later spring. The next year it was dead again but I didn't bother going back for them to track the leaks using the UV light and dye that they added to the system.

I tried recharging it myself last year with one of those cans you can by at the FLAPS but it didn't do squat.

I'd rather focus time and $ on other stuff at this point - particularly considering how seldom I have back seat passengers.
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hardway
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PostPosted: Yesterday 1:17 pm    Post subject: Re: Looking for a Samba member in the PNW to help with A/C test. Reply with quote

Pretty much every AC system has some leakage. Some 25 year old Toyotas have lost so little that they still operate on the original charge. But a Vanagon with 30 + feet of non barrier hose leaked quite a bit when they were new. If your van still has R12 in it it would be almost empty under ideal circumstances.

Most shops can no longer deal with R12. Only shops that deal with expensive classic cars are tooled up for it. Most shops won't touch a Vanagon. R12 is illegal in British Columbia.

If you really want the AC to work you should read the AC restoration threads here on The Samba. There is no short-cut. I am restoring the AC right now on two T3s. The only component being re-used is the evaporator.

AC technology has changed a lot. Many compressors are now variable displacement. Both of the vans that I am restoring the AC on have 1.8t motors with variable displacement compressors. The new condensors are much more efficient. The new barrier hose leaks a lot less. If you change to R134a you really want to get all of old mineral oil out. In fact the interior of the AC system needs to be absolutely clean, no black tar, flakes of rubber or rust.

If your compressor is seized that is a bad start. I autopsy the compressor to see if it spit shrapnel. But unless the system leaks so bad that it will not hold a vacuum for several hour the only real test is to fill the system and see what happens.

I have done AC for decades. It is either easy or very hard. If a system has been open or discharged for a long time, it is always hard.
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Shonandb
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PostPosted: Yesterday 1:25 pm    Post subject: Re: Looking for a Samba member in the PNW to help with A/C test. Reply with quote

A good way to think about it is that the stock A/C unit in good working order will take the edge off of the inside of the Van temperature during hot weather. If you have window tinting and good door seals as well as insulation, it will be more noticeable and more comfortable, but not like a modern car. The air coming out of the ducts will be cold but the Van ambient temp will only be reasonable.

For my Bus, I have two heater cores and A/C evaporator units (one under the rear seat and one between the front seats) and it heats the entire Bus really well in the Winter and I expect that the A/C will work well too with the dual zone evaporators in the Summer but I won't know how well until the weather gets hot again in July as I didn't have it hooked up and charged last summer.
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Sodo
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PostPosted: Yesterday 3:51 pm    Post subject: Re: Looking for a Samba member in the PNW to help with A/C test. Reply with quote

Air conditioning vastly improves your summer travel experience. If there''s even a ghost of a chance that it will work I would fix it.

Speaking of WA scablands I was there a week ago and we used the A/C. Not because we HAD to but because we wanted to see if it was still working after last summer.
And it was!

Last summer I put one can of "leak plugger" stuff in.
I've been using RedTek.
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djkeev
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PostPosted: Yesterday 4:51 pm    Post subject: Re: Looking for a Samba member in the PNW to help with A/C test. Reply with quote

You can get serviceable A/C tools from Harbor Freight for what you are probably willing to pay someone to fix it.

You can check for leaks with simple air pressure.
I have had units leak under vacuum but not under pressure, but they don't normally.
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1988M5
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PostPosted: Yesterday 5:14 pm    Post subject: Re: Looking for a Samba member in the PNW to help with A/C test. Reply with quote

Just for fun I’ll say this;
Customer: my bicycle tire is flat….
Shop; ok I’ll check it out….
Customer: hurry up!
Shop; yes it’s flat on air pressure, how would you like me to deal with this?


I’ve heard big rig (18 wheelers) shops deal with R12 all day. Most. Of the fleet is super old and uses R12 all day.
Give them a try. Spell check sucks and suck it
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