1988 A/C Refilling after system evacuation

[Fizz88]

Recently on my 88 turbo coupe, the A/C accumulator was replaced. Had a shop evac all the old stuff in the system and they removed it a bit ago. Got the part after and I put it on today, used one of those things you get at auto part stores to refill it, believe the name is "A/C Pro". Unfortunately I did not research thoroughly and I missed steps.. apparently Ester oil should of been added before hand, the recharge bottle I got has PAG oil in it. Does the system need to be evacuated again? It was already evacuated when the shop removed the accumulator.

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[mcm51]

Are we dealing with r12 or 134a, would not make a difference, just wondering....Was your a/c working fine before the accumulator was changed ? I ask because if all your other parts in the system was good, I'd vac pump it, (that not only gets out moisture and other crap but will also give you an ideal on what kind of leaks the system has by how long it can hold that vac.), now ya kinda lost me on the end, If the system was working fine before the accu. change, suck the system out and then add your freon up to around 40# low side, I've rebuilt mine on my '95 a couple times, I stay clear of any added sealants(glue) in my freon, I don't have any problems with dye in my freon, that's the way I've always done my system.....IF your system is in decent working condition, try to stay clear of just adding oil by itself................

 

[Fizz88]

Are we dealing with r12 or 134a, would not make a difference, just wondering....Was your a/c working fine before the accumulator was changed ? I ask because if all your other parts in the system was good, I'd vac pump it, (that not only gets out moisture and other crap but will also give you an ideal on what kind of leaks the system has by how long it can hold that vac.), now ya kinda lost me on the end, If the system was working fine before the accu. change, suck the system out and then add your freon up to around 40# low side, I've rebuilt mine on my '95 a couple times, I stay clear of any added sealants(glue) in my freon, I don't have any problems with dye in my freon, that's the way I've always done my system.....IF your system is in decent working condition, try to stay clear of just adding oil by itself................

It wasn't working properly before hand, hence replacing the accumulator. Also dealing with r12 to r134 since r12 isn't sold anymore. The ac pro has sealants in there including a small amount of PAG oil. Also heard the orifice tube will need replacing, is this true? I didn't find any metal debris so I didn't think it would. Though I Could be wrong.

 

[Tom Alpers]

It wasn't working properly before hand, hence replacing the accumulator. Also dealing with r12 to r134 since r12 isn't sold anymore. The ac pro has sealants in there including a small amount of PAG oil. Also heard the orifice tube will need replacing, is this true? I didn't find any metal debris so I didn't think it would. Though I Could be wrong.

If it had R12 it had mineral oil in it. If you put 134a in it you will need to put some amount of PAG oil in. I don't think the mineral oil is compatible with r12 in the sense that they don't mix and consequently the oil doesn't get carried around the system to lube the compressor. Back when 134a was new and there were a lot of conversion kits on the market they included a small can of PAG oil to add to the system. Some said it was "good enough" with that small amount of PAG oil, other said it was a ticking time bomb because it wasn't enough oil to do what was needed. You have a new accumulator so there is room in it for at least a couple oz of additional oil. Its not clear from what you have posted as to whether your system had a vacuum pulled on it before you started charging it with the "AC Pro" stuff. If it didn't have a vacuum then there is likely to be air in it and you don't want that. As to orifice tube, supposedly the orifice tube for R12 is different than the one for 134a and that would be why it would be changed. I don't know if it really makes all that much difference, people said a lot of stuff "back then" about these conversions and a lot of people did nothing but put in 134a and it worked. It's possible some of the end of the era R12 systems had an oil that was compatible with 134a but I don't know. You can google most of this stuff if you want to be safe.

 

[Fizz88]

Are we dealing with r12 or 134a, would not make a difference, just wondering....Was your a/c working fine before the accumulator was changed ? I ask because if all your other parts in the system was good, I'd vac pump it, (that not only gets out moisture and other crap but will also give you an ideal on what kind of leaks the system has by how long it can hold that vac.), now ya kinda lost me on the end, If the system was working fine before the accu. change, suck the system out and then add your freon up to around 40# low side, I've rebuilt mine on my '95 a couple times, I stay clear of any added sealants(glue) in my freon, I don't have any problems with dye in my freon, that's the way I've always done my system.....IF your system is in decent working condition, try to stay clear of just adding oil by itself................

It wasn't working properly before hand, hence replacing the accumulator. Also dealing with r12 to r134 since r12 isn't sold anymore. The ac pro has sealants in there including a small amount PAG oil.

If it had R12 it had mineral oil in it. If you put 134a in it you will need to put some amount of PAG oil in. I don't think the mineral oil is compatible with r12 in the sense that they don't mix and consequently the oil doesn't get carried around the system to lube the compressor. Back when 134a was new and there were a lot of conversion kits on the market they included a small can of PAG oil to add to the system. Some said it was "good enough" with that small amount of PAG oil, other said it was a ticking time bomb because it wasn't enough oil to do what was needed. You have a new accumulator so there is room in it for at least a couple oz of additional oil. Its not clear from what you have posted as to whether your system had a vacuum pulled on it before you started charging it with the "AC Pro" stuff. If it didn't have a vacuum then there is likely to be air in it and you don't want that. As to orifice tube, supposedly the orifice tube for R12 is different than the one for 134a and that would be why it would be changed. I don't know if it really makes all that much difference, people said a lot of stuff "back then" about these conversions and a lot of people did nothing but put in 134a and it worked. It's possible some of the end of the era R12 systems had an oil that was compatible with 134a but I don't know. You can google most of this stuff if you want to be safe.

Unfortunately due to my lack of knowledge and stupidity, It was not vacuumed so it'll have to be removed. And, according to google ill need to buy another accumulator since now all that moisture is in the accumulator and the orifice tube. I'll schedule a appointment at a local shop very soon to get it flushed. Google also said to add ester oil instead of PAG, is there really that much of a difference?