LiquidBlue

GeneralDisorder

iTrader: (1)

That would be an R12 system - incidentally till a few years ago when R134 was finally approved for it, R12 was still used for inhalers. It was also the propellant of choice from the 1950's to the 1970's for such things as paint and hair-spray. You'll live.....

Having the system open for a few weeks isn't going to do any damage. Happens all the time when cars get wrecked and have to be rebuilt. We can't install the condenser till the body and paint is done which often takes weeks with the insurance companies and waiting on parts, etc. The vacuum process will evacuate any moisture that gets into the oil. The bigger question is what are you going to fill it with? R12 is too expensive to waste on a 20 year old R4 compressor (that's a time-bomb honestly), so...... pull it into a vacuum and charge with nitrogen till you upgrade? Switching to 134, while possible, isn't going to do ***** where you live I'm afraid. The already pathetic third gen AC won't be what it was with R12 and the tax on the cooling system will likely make it unusable in Texas summer.

GD

LiquidBlue

GeneralDisorder

iTrader: (1)

Manufacture of R12 was banned in all developed nations in 1996. It's still out there - recliamed and old stock - but VERY expensive. Last I checked it was about $1000 for a 30lb cylinder. You can often find it on Craigslist but again with that ancient R4 compressor it would be criminally stupid to put R12 in it without a new compressor, all new hoses, and all new seals.

GD

Vader

GD covered the basics fully, Evacuate it and oil charge it, and it will be fine. I've had reasonably good success with 414b as an R12 replacement, but even that is getting rare and pricey. At least it cools about as well as R12, which is far better than 134.

sofakingdom

iTrader: (1)

If there is any significant amount of refrigerant left in the system, the pressure in the system will reach the refrigerant's vapor pressure (a physical property of the material) at whatever the temp happens to be. Which for R-12, is anywhere from 90 to 120 psi or so. If the system is largely empty, you'll still see 100ish psi with a gauge, but you'll only get a brief hiss of escaping gas as the last few molecules escape.

I would not suggest messing around with any of the "alternative" refrigerants; or, "fixing leaks". Not because either of those things are "bad" or anything, but rather, because (a) the "alternatives" are expensive and hard to find and may or may not continue to be available in coming years, and (b) if you "fix the leaks" then the very next thing that will surely happen once you get it working is, it will spring yet another leeeek somewhere else, requiring yet another emptying, "fixing", and refilling.

Best way to approach it is, RENEW THE ENTIRE SYSTEM, all at once, and refill it with R-134. The fact that it's technically inferior to some other refrigerants, which is most definitely true, is outweighed by more practical concerns, like price, availability not just "today" but OVER THE LONG TERM and of course anywhere/everywhere you happen to end up in the future, and compatibility into the future with parts you can actually buy that are actually sitting on actual shelves in actual stores. You will need new rubber & polyethylene "barrier" hose to replace the existing rubber hoses, new accumulator/dryer, new or reman compressor, EVERY O-ring in the system, and an orifice tube selected for the properties of the new combination of existing system and new refrigerant. Which will NOT be the direct-replacement original orifice tube. Do an Advanced Search on the Cooling forum on this site, for my userID and the phrase "orifice tube", going back to the beginning of time. That will turn up MANY threads where I've posted the "recipe" for all this. I've covered it rather exhaustively and don't feel like typing it all back in all over again.

LiquidBlue

Thanks S. You've inspired me to get a gauge, will need one in future anyway. Trust me, I've read many of your A/C posts and quoted many, I'm awed by your knowledge base and always wondered where you gathered it? Was just hoping maybe this time is different because not only do I possess eternal optimism, but as GD said, criminally stupid, or possibly insane for a multitude of reasons, including to keep this car in storage for 20+ years, pay rent and insurance the entire time, yet never even conceived a child in the car all the time thinking that a 30 year old A/C system should work as well as my old bones. What was I thinking! But I digress, gauge......

LiquidBlue

I do recall reports of this 414b, interesting. Thanks.

gw082008

After the original A/C compressor failed I converted my system to R152a.
R152a is a good alternative for the old R12 A/C systems.
I would advise to do some research though.

sofakingdom

iTrader: (1)

Thanks for the kind words Liquid.

I learned by screwing up a bunch of stuff. I learned this hobby LONG before algore invented the interwebz, so all I had to go on, was the "storied lore" that was spewed in monkey-spank sessions in McDonalds parking lots on Friday nights.

As far as AC, in about 81 or 82 or thereabouts, I had a house in my back yard I rented to my late little bro. A guest house of sorts. He had lost his job in about March or April, and needed to find a way to make some $$$. He put a sheet of paper with little tear-off tabs with his phone # on them... his land line - believe it or not, at one time, all phones were wired to the wall and couldn't move very far if at all... advertising himself for mechanic services. He mentioned tune-ups, brakes, oil changes, abuncha stuff, and … AC. Seems like all he got was little old ladies with busticated ACs. (this, in the deep South, east of TX) He did acoupla those, then they went and told all their little old lady friends that there was this sweet adorable young man that could fix AC for ALOT less than the shops on the main drag a block away. He got more AC business than he knew what to do with, and we got introduced to more frumpy granddaughters than we thought possible as well. It got to the point that he would work on them all day, and when I got home after work, I'd help him out in the garage far into the night. I bet we did AT LEAST 30 or 40 ACs that summer. We got pretty damn good at it if I do say so myself. My GF at the time, now wife, worked for Ig-Lo (if you know who that is), so we could get all the Freon we wanted at car-load prices. I don't think we paid more than about $0.80 a can the whole time. We got a defect-return vacuum pump (had some sooooper eeeeeezy to fix problem, like, needed a new power cord or some such), a gauge set, and a few other goodies from her, which really helped out.

Plus, I'm a physicist and mathematician, with some chemistry training as well, so the general principles of AC are not hard for me to understand.

I don't believe I would ever admit in public that I had never conceived a child in a car. (well, assisted someone capable of such to conceive one, that is) That's just … embarrassing.

LiquidBlue

Thats a great story. Funny you bring up the web, was just thinking along same lines a few days back. I started dinking around with cars when I bought my 70 Barracuda in 81, but had been around them before that helping dad. if I had access to the wealth of knowledge that is available on this forum I may not have screwed up as much as I did back then. Got busy around 93-94 had haven't had time to get back into it until recently - wife thinks its a mid life crisis. BTW - Gore didn't invent the internet, I did