You turned the valves off and your air conditioner is still hardly working at all. Your thinking not again, every time you have it worked on it cost at least $500 to $1200 and its only been a year or 2!
I. am going to give you a Quick lesson that anyone can do. how to know if your air conditioner is working properly and if the system is at full charge and a simple cheap way ck to find a leak
pay attention i am going to move along fast but in order!
This is what you can do to save you money and and speed up my repairs on your truck because I work at a hourly shop not a commission shop I do it the best I can the first time even if its going take longer or shorter than book time I don't care how long the book says it takes . I know how long it takes me to do it right. Every truck has its own personality and has different requirements.
I will give a tip on how to pay less on repairs at shops on your air conditioner.
Don't ask for a quote!
If you trust taking it there then you should trust them to do their best to keep it cheap as possible. Tell them to keep it as cheap as possible all shops have diff procedures but will do their best if you ask. A quote takes time to prepare for you and it gets marked up to make sure all expenses are covered . We never bill less even if we have less time in it to cover our expenses of giving you the quote. The only way its ever less is if That was not the repairs needed!
First you need to determine a few things
Is the compressor running?
If not is it electrical or empty?
If so is it running all the time or cycling under full capacity?
I have took the time to find a few cheap products that i have used and know of others that have used. I have listed them on my blog. These products are cheap and will work just fine for no more than you will use them. They are simple but to the point. I will not confuse you with the more complicated machinery.
Next you need to start the truck turn the blowers on hi and see how the system is operating. If the compressor is running you will have to make sure the system is full. To do this you will need to look at the sight glass on the drier you can follow the lines to find the drier ( It looks like a 40 ounce can Usually on pass side or the fire wall) that is used and on most all trucks there is a sight glass on the drier you need to have only some bubbles going thru it. A perfect system the compressor will stay running all the time and the glass will clear up then when the engine fan kicks on the glass will go to bubbles until aft the fan kicks off any where from 30 sec to 180 seconds depending if its on a timer but that don't matter here.
If its low go to any auto store and get a cheap can of freon and the cheapest thing they have to install it. I have found some links to very good products you can purchase to save a cupple hundred bucks. I Recommend the one with the plastic handle that just pierces the can and has a short hose with a coupler to hook to the low side coupler. This is the small blue one. Don't worry if it dont have a gauge if your truck has a sight glass.You hook it up to the truck running and fill the system tel the bubbles just go away stop its full.
Once the system is full. a normal truck holds around 3 lbs some Pete's and other large sleeper trucks hold up to 5 lbs these will have a tag and say it. Don't over fill to think that will help. It will actually make it almost a heater!
If it took less than one lb of freon and has been a year since you have had it worked on I wouldn't even take it to a shop! Your done! Wow I just saved you a couple hundred dollars by the time they put the machine charge, shop expenses,ect, ect.
If it took more than one can get your Windex bottle out pour at least half out and go inside a restroom somewhere and put a couple tablespoons of hand soap in it, fill it up three quarters full, shake it, go back to your truck, shut it off, and soap the whole system down every hose, fitting, valve,the condenser in front of radiator. Start at the ac compressor on the engine and follow the hoses and soap it all until you find it bubbling somewhere and there is the leak ! I use this exact mixture or at least soap to find a leak it is more reliable than any thousand dollar leak detector I have ever used I Quit buying them they all seem to quit working in less than a year and they are not cheap and their unreliable! I will demo any of them but i still rely on lots of soapy water in a squirt bottle. Bubbles don't lie!
When you take it to the shop you can show them what you need have the service wright er check on parts before they start and that will save you a couple hundred dollars for a mechanic to do the same thing then he don't half to track you down or your company give a quote ect ect. Then if they don't have the part they will half to order it, and then you will get 2 repair bills, Two trips to the shop, and allot of extra time charged to the ticket ect ect.If its a hassle your going get charged for it.
If you can do that with less than 30 bucks worth of auto supplies that you can get almost anywhere It will take you 30 min and save you up to $500 bucks real easy. Especially if its not a dealership that charges flat rate!
Also make sure Your heater valves are shut off make sure they are not flowing hot water to the cab This will sometimes raise the dash temp 20 deg If they don't shut off!
Check your cab filter anyone at a truck stop shop will show you where it is, if it has one. I have charged many of truckers to change a cab filter a machine fee ect ect and at least a minimum half hour and it was just a dirty ten dollar filter and he payed me couple hundred dollars to the shop to do it
.
If your system has psi in it but the compressor on the engine wont engage turn the motor off turn the key back on check the fuses turn blower on low so its not making a lot of noise. Check over the wiring on the switches you soaped down earlier and you will hear the clutch on the compressor snap if you touch a bad spot or you may find a broken wire you can repair.
If still no problem found Take it to a good shop and let them figure it out.you will need Their knowledge and tools. You did good and that's all you can do to save a couple hundred. It could be a switch which would b cheap. It may need a complete system overhaul and going to cost over a grand, But you did good by just trying a cheap simple procedure. Next time do it for a fellow trucker and maybe get a tip, or charge him for diagnostics if you find the leak, You did save him a couple hundred bucks.
Brouse the products i have listed and see what ones you like best and they will ship them wherever you want i have only listed the cheapest and simplest products you can buy.
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