DIY A/C Recharge Kits - Experiences and Opinions

OK, so...
I inherited a car that sat in a garage for, give or take, 5 years. Car runs great but a/c doesn't blow cold air. It worked when it was parked. Must have lost pressure due to leak.
I plan on getting serviced by family friends who own a auto A/c shop.
Driving car across country to get it home. Got over 1000 miles to go and it's hot as balls.
I'm thinking about breaking down and buying one of those recharge kits.
My question is, do they work?
Does the "stop leak" stuff work?
Will they damage the a/c system in a way that might add to the repair bill when I get it into the shop repairs.
Any info appreciated. Thanks.

Other urls found in this thread:

m.youtube.com/watch?v=symmDTmtJ18
twitter.com/SFWRedditVideos

>Oldsmobile silhouette
>put the low pressure AC port next to the 200F intake mainfold

FUCK YOU GM

no they dont work

Is that the 2.8 or 3.1?
Mine is set up the same way.

Any stop leaks can harm your compressor. I have no clue how old or what kind of shit heap you are hauling. But with the info you gave it all boils down to this. If you really don't give a fuck they do work. You can also pay a few extra for just r34 or r12 depending on how old the car is and use something without stop leak. Nothing will work if you have a serious "leak" .

It's the 3400sfi piece of shit

It's an 89 Chevy Celebrity with, now, only 46k on the clock. Religiously maintained. Ac is the only non working item. It's and r134a

They sell both straight and leak stop formulas. The leak stop formulas are usually more.

wait is that the front of the motor?

because i have a 01 malibu with a 3.1 and mine is in the back by the firewall also near the exhaust manifold where i have burned my whole arm many times.

m.youtube.com/watch?v=symmDTmtJ18

This guy says they work.
So there is that...

this is why we dont buy american cars.
lose them and buy superior japanese cars.

Don't use the stop leak shit, it can clog up the compressor or the expansion valve

Stop leak is a bad idea. If it's a slow enough leak then yeah throwing some refrigerant will work. Just fixed the a/c on my '97 altima, shits cash never had a/c before

Will it put freon in the system? Yes if the compressor is working and has no clogs.
If your compressor won't kick on, save the money you have another issue.

Will it hold pressure? Probably not. If what was in there leaked out then so will this eventually. Stop leaks don't work. It may hold for a week, or a year. Just depends.

Is it better than nothing? Yes. While not the greatest thing ever it will work as long as it is just a freon issue. Not a component issue. You will have colder air, holding you over until you can get it fixed properly.

Source: sold these over the counter for years and went to an AC pro seminar.

I've seen people come in every summer to "fill ER up" for the hot months. Year after year.

>Japanese.

>Not German.

If there is a low pressure switch and there's no refrigerant in the system, then the compressor will never kick on even though all the wiring and the compressor itself is fine. Might be worth it for OP to find a cheap manifold gauge set and see if there's any pressure in there

Update: I put a new can of r134 and it didn't do shit. Compressor works as I can hear it kick on. fuck you Oldsmobile

I doubt there's a low pressure switch on an 89 chevy

Shits cash? Go vape some more fgt

That expression has been used on Veeky Forums for years, before vaping was popular.
Summer newfag.

HVAC apprentice here.

Chances are the shaft seal on the compressor dried up and let the refrigerant charge out, very common on automotive a/c failures. I would check that first, along with checking the rest of the system for leaks before recharging. An easy way to check for leaks is get some soap and something to apply it to the piping with, where you see bubbling is a hint there may be a leak there.

I was happy the day I got rid of my 98 Olds Silhouette. I only bought it for 1500, thinking it would only last a year at most, that bitch lasted 3 years before I traded it in. The transverse 3400 was the most pain in the ass to work on, the only good thing was how easy it was to change the serpentine belt. Fuck GM.

>religiously maintained.
>my ac is broke help

You should always let a professional do AC work.