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?
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.
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.
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.
