• Welcome to The Truck Stop! We see you haven't REGISTERED yet.

    Your truck knowledge is missing!
    • Registration is FREE , all we need is your birthday and email. (We don't share ANY data with ANYONE)
    • We have tons of knowledge here for your diesel truck!
    • Post your own topics and reply to existing threads to help others out!
    • NO ADS! The site is fully functional and ad free!
    CLICK HERE TO REGISTER!

    Problems registering? Click here to contact us!

    Already registered, but need a PASSWORD RESET? CLICK HERE TO RESET YOUR PASSWORD!

I need air condition help

Wreckinball67 said:
Is your old condenser still serviceable. If so, put that back in and try.
Click to expand...

The original condenser smelled like acid, which is why the whole system got replaced. The only known good condenser I had was the one I put in the second time, which is also the one that will no longer allow air to pass through it.
 
Duvall said:
The "orifice" in the orifice tube is brass, or at least the standard ones I have looked at are.

I doubt you did anything to crush it.

I wouldn't go without an o-ring, that is essentially a leak that bypasses the orifice that you are trying to pass through. I would try a thinner o-ring if needed.
Click to expand...

Yeah I saw the ends of a brass tube in it, but it looked like a relatively large diameter so I wondered if it necked down in the middle of it where I couldn’t see. If it did, then I thought it might get kinked right there from me twisting and forcing it.

I agree on the o-ring, that was just my string of consciousness thinking in the shower.
 
Still sounds like plugged somewhere. Like maybe the missing oring somewhere?

Eliminate changes until the charge occurs properly is sop. Go back to the binary? The valve style attachment would allow Once working you could swap back to trinary? I really can’t imagine how that could command something wacky but maybe?
 
n8in8or said:
The batteries were dead in my IR gun so I couldn’t get a temp.
Click to expand...

I suggest you fix this battery and get a condenser temperature. Also the temp of the compressor case. The inlet and outlet temps of the evaporator are, critical, a quick and dirty test, and the acid test: but it needs a full charge to work. With a full charge they should be near the same cold temperature. This will help eliminate it as a restriction.

IMO 160 degrees on the condenser is Arizona 105+ degrees out. Over 160 degrees I would suspect not enough fan. I would have the engine fan on at 100% if possible.

The IR gun can look for hot and cold spots showing you a restriction.

Another possibility is the smaller O ring on the orface tube is leaking. Thus you are getting a lot of bubbles "gas" instead of liquid and the system fails in ways that simply don't make sense.

Is this the scroll compressor and if so I have not put gauges on one like this. The extreme gauge flutter I have dismissed, maybe wrongly, as a garbage gauge set. It may be a bigger clue like broken valves in the compressor. Are you charging the system with the cans upside down: this can liquid slug the compressor and break valves.

I have a AC recovery machine myself so I get not wanting to spend another ~$30 on the cans to finish charging it up. On the other hand that may be all it needs is a full charge. It may make it easier to diagnose and if the high side starts to go over 350 stop. 400 shut it off.
 
Will L. said:
Still sounds like plugged somewhere. Like maybe the missing oring somewhere?

Eliminate changes until the charge occurs properly is sop. Go back to the binary? The valve style attachment would allow Once working you could swap back to trinary? I really can’t imagine how that could command something wacky but maybe?
Click to expand...

That's an interesting thought about the missing o-ring from the orifice tube. I'm assuming it isn't IN the condenser because I think they just couldn't install orifice tube with it install so it was left off. Even if it came off due to the tight interference, it would have rolled UP and I should have seen it on the orifice tube, just not in the groove, when I pulled it out. This does make me question this condenser more and more though - even if it isn't plugged, if it isn't made right and you can't fit an orifice tube in it properly, maybe I'm killing myself for this thicker core and I just need to swap one of the thinner cores in and at least get a system working and establish a good baseline.

I don't have a trinary switch installed right now.

WarWagon said:
I suggest you fix this battery and get a condenser temperature. Also the temp of the compressor case. The inlet and outlet temps of the evaporator are, critical, a quick and dirty test, and the acid test: but it needs a full charge to work. With a full charge they should be near the same cold temperature. This will help eliminate it as a restriction.

IMO 160 degrees on the condenser is Arizona 105+ degrees out. Over 160 degrees I would suspect not enough fan. I would have the engine fan on at 100% if possible.

The IR gun can look for hot and cold spots showing you a restriction.

Another possibility is the smaller O ring on the orface tube is leaking. Thus you are getting a lot of bubbles "gas" instead of liquid and the system fails in ways that simply don't make sense.

Is this the scroll compressor and if so I have not put gauges on one like this. The extreme gauge flutter I have dismissed, maybe wrongly, as a garbage gauge set. It may be a bigger clue like broken valves in the compressor. Are you charging the system with the cans upside down: this can liquid slug the compressor and break valves.

I have a AC recovery machine myself so I get not wanting to spend another ~$30 on the cans to finish charging it up. On the other hand that may be all it needs is a full charge. It may make it easier to diagnose and if the high side starts to go over 350 stop. 400 shut it off.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I will get that IR gun working for sure. I was thinking about what you said about the evap in/out temps yesterday and realized that would likely be a way to evaluate the health of the evap before just needlessly swapping parts. Yesterday was the first time I had run the AC with the grill off, so it was sure a shock to HEAR the refrigerant screaming at the orifice tube. I don't know if that's normal, but it sure makes me suspect the orifice tube still.

I'll definitely check the condenser temp. I have the fan on 100% with manual override. I started charging the first time yesterday with the engine running 1200 rpm to get some extra, but that just sent the high side pressure even higher, so I went back to idle.

I don't think that o-ring on the orifice tube is leaking....even with that o-ring, I still had to fight to get it to slide in the tube. If anything, I would say I need to go smaller still. Again, this kind of makes me want to try a different condenser so everything goes together like it should.

This is the scroll compressor. I figured the fluttering high side was from the gauges. Now I can't remember, but I don't remember the high side fluttering with the R4 compressors, so that may just be a scroll thing, not sure. The first time I charged the system 2 weeks ago, I did do SOME can upside down filling. I've done this before in moderation and been successful, but reading later how delicate the R4 is I assumed that was the cause of death of the first system installation. But then with the continued problems I'm not sure. Since then though, I have not been doing the can upside down, just to eliminate it as a factor. To get the refrigerant to go in a little faster if it isn't moving I use the heat of my hands and like when it was just 70 out the second time I did put a heat gun on the can to give it a little more oomph.....still, in moderation and watching the sight glass on the gauges.

At this point I'm not worried about the cost of the cans, I just want this to work. When doing the R4 compressors I started having problems when the high side started hitting around 325 - that's when the clutch and/or belt would start slipping and I could watch the compressor stop turning - no bueno. I am in that pressure range again with the scroll compressor, so that's why I stopped putting refrigerant in. Between the past experiences and now hearing that orifice tube screaming, I'm still apprehensive to put more refrigerant in. As you can see in the videos, I'm already in the 350-400 range.....are you sure I should try putting more refrigerant in? I think even before I tried putting more in, I will try a different orifice tube that I haven't forced into place....either with a different o-ring still or with a whole new condenser.


Thanks for the help so far you guys, I really appreciate it! This thing has my tearing my hair out.
 
When I mistakenly put my orifice tube in incorrectly (backwards), the orifice tube was jammed so far down the tube I almost couldn't get it out. Luckily I was able to but, what I'm trying to say is that the pressure involved will definitely send an obstruction deep into your system.
 
I need to get the Satellite receiver in the garage to working. At least out there, I am the boss of the thermostat. I can keep the temp at a comfortable 90 degrees without the wifey messing with the thermostats.
Move one of my cots into there and I’m good. 🤪😹😹😹
 
Wreckinball67 said:
When I mistakenly put my orifice tube in incorrectly (backwards), the orifice tube was jammed so far down the tube I almost couldn't get it out. Luckily I was able to but, what I'm trying to say is that the pressure involved will definitely send an obstruction deep into your system.
Click to expand...

I have no doubt of that. During my lunch I'm going to look at the other new condensers I have and assuming I find something that looks like it's made correctly, I'll be swapping that in and then get the system under vacuum so it's ready to charge after work.
 
MrMarty51 said:
I need to get the Satellite receiver in the garage to working. At least out there, I am the boss of the thermostat. I can keep the temp at a comfortable 90 degrees without the wifey messing with the thermostats.
Move one of my cots into there and I’m good. 🤪😹😹😹
Click to expand...

Well, I don't love heat either, but at least I can manage..... I don't turn into a qsycho hose beast as soon as I start sweating. 🤣🤣
 
Local mechanic charged Me $165.00 to vacuum test the K3500 AC system. Then he give it a shot of dye and charged it back up.
With that, He said if there is a leak, all he would charge would be parts and labor to fix.
To Mee, money well spent. Seems every time I mess with an AC system, they functions worser than they did afore I screwed wit it.
I do remember though, from AC classes, the closer in temperature that the in and out tube, of the condenser becomes, the better the system is working. IIRC, 5 degrees difference was ideal. 🤷‍♂️
 
Wreckinball67 said:
I found my on Amazon. It was AC Delco exact replacement. It was a good price and arrived quickly.
Click to expand...

When I was messing with the Variable Orifice Valve on the Tahoe a couple years ago, I tried using the AC Delco condenser. I couldn't remove the orifice valve that came pre-installed. I tried 2 different Delco condensers and I couldn't remove it from either. I ended up trying the Spectra 4721 condenser and that one worked well. Unfortunately that is the condenser that ended up blocked during my second attempt on this truck. The condenser that's installed right now was also supposed to be a Spectra 4721, but it was a different brand when it arrived and is definitely constructed slightly different. It sucks it's so hard to get good AC parts for these trucks.
 
The GPD 4544 condenser that came with the kit had an orifice tube pre-installed in it. The orifice tube came out easily and had an o-ring on it. It also reinstalled easily, so this is the condenser I decided to use for the next try. You can see how it has a thinner core than the condenser I took off of there, but I don’t care at this point - I just need it to work…..I can optimize it later. I also added 1oz of PAG oil per the info in the service manual. It’s under vacuum now. 🤞

24760052-FBC4-4006-8A60-3395C787150C.jpeg
 
So engine fan is at 100%, high side pressure is extreme, not a full charge, and orface tube is very loud. High side gauge may be suspect, but, confirmed by compressor belt slip.

You are using a different condenser now?

Is/was it actually blowing cool or cold air inside?

A restriction will show up as a hot/cooler area at the restriction. For sanity you can turn down the HVAC fan to low and this will reduce the heat load on the system.

The big screen in a orface tube goes in the condenser first. Liquid is flowing out of the condenser to the evaporator and needs the big derbis filter screen. I assume you are putting the orface tube on the condenser line going to the evaporator.

It's possible to shove a orface tube in the inlet (bottom) of the evaporator. I looked for this when I found the VOV plugged solid.

Is this by chance a new tesnioner? The aftermarket decided to use the driver side mounted AC "weak" spring spec for older rigs that the passinger side R4 compressor load unwinds and slips the belt. I ran into this in 2011 and had to get a AC Delco part from the dealer. It's labeled and resting on a shelf now. 🤪

Lack of good parts is 1/2 the reason I gave up on Patch.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top