Old Codger
12-09-2008, 02:37 PM
How long can I allow PAG oil to stay "in the open" before it absorbs too much water?
When I put a vacuum on the closed system will it pull entrained water out of the oil itself?
Are there any "tricks of the trade" that I can use to minimize the oil's exposure to air and even the system's exposure to air?
Is exposure to air (I'm in Houston and there is about 80% humidity on the average) that big of a deal if I am going to vacuum out the system for several hours?
I am waiting for Hurricane Ike to hit and pondering buttoning up my 1995, 4 cyl, Toyota Camry’s AC system. My compressor died and, so far, I have removed the evaporator, drier, compressor and condenser and have thoroughly flushed out the evaporator and condenser. (I found no evidence of particle contamination. I knew that there were two types of oil in the system so I wanted to clean that out. I was surprised at how little oil drained out of the old compressor – less than 2 oz.)
After reading several posts I was concerned just how quickly PAG oil absorbs water vapor. The new replacement compressor that I bought is supposed to be filled with 8oz of PAG oil. The tech that sold it to me suggested that I drain it all out to verify that I have that amount of oil advertised and then refill it. (Actually he suggested to put 6 oz back into the compressor and 1 oz to the evaporator and 1oz to the condenser since I have completely flushed everything and will install a new receiver/drier. The Camry manual says that the system takes a hair less than 8 oz.) All this sounds reasonable to me but I expect that the oil will be out of the compressor for a couple of hours and in the vented system for a while longer before I can get everything hooked up and can apply a vacuum to it.
Thanks,
OC
When I put a vacuum on the closed system will it pull entrained water out of the oil itself?
Are there any "tricks of the trade" that I can use to minimize the oil's exposure to air and even the system's exposure to air?
Is exposure to air (I'm in Houston and there is about 80% humidity on the average) that big of a deal if I am going to vacuum out the system for several hours?
I am waiting for Hurricane Ike to hit and pondering buttoning up my 1995, 4 cyl, Toyota Camry’s AC system. My compressor died and, so far, I have removed the evaporator, drier, compressor and condenser and have thoroughly flushed out the evaporator and condenser. (I found no evidence of particle contamination. I knew that there were two types of oil in the system so I wanted to clean that out. I was surprised at how little oil drained out of the old compressor – less than 2 oz.)
After reading several posts I was concerned just how quickly PAG oil absorbs water vapor. The new replacement compressor that I bought is supposed to be filled with 8oz of PAG oil. The tech that sold it to me suggested that I drain it all out to verify that I have that amount of oil advertised and then refill it. (Actually he suggested to put 6 oz back into the compressor and 1 oz to the evaporator and 1oz to the condenser since I have completely flushed everything and will install a new receiver/drier. The Camry manual says that the system takes a hair less than 8 oz.) All this sounds reasonable to me but I expect that the oil will be out of the compressor for a couple of hours and in the vented system for a while longer before I can get everything hooked up and can apply a vacuum to it.
Thanks,
OC