Suction line driers

[bernier74]

Whats the story with suction line driers, I ask guys in the trade all the time do you take them out after you have installed the new compressor?

Some say yes some say no, sometimes I go to a job and see suction driers from years past still connected to the system.

[bill1983]

suction line driers are fitted to remove some kind of contaminant from circulating within the system. why would you want to leave it in after it has done its job?
they are often left in because the boss doesnt want to spend money removing it, or testing to see if it has done it's job or to see if it needs replacing.

[martinw58]

thay need to be changed when the pressure drop across the drier is .5 bar on ac .25 on refrigeration and .15 on freezers

[bill1983]

don't they need to be removed or at least the system checked within a couple of days of fitting them?

[FEISTY]

By habit and " avoid the callback call " I return to every major changeout job at about 7 days of completion. It serves several purposes. First it shows the customer you care about the results of your work. Second you can get a different view of the job when the customer isn't watching over your shoulder and " How much longer is this going to take " conversation adds pressure. Third...you have a better chance to catch a potential problem during normal hours instead of that 2am weekend call. I always install a suction dryer on an outdoor ondenser 1hp and larger. Call it protection.

[US Iceman]

Once the system is cleaned up, I generally recommend changing the drier cores and just leave them in. They add more dessicant to the system to keep the refrigerant dry and water removed form the oil. Water is the enemy.

Don't believe me? Spend some time trying to un-freeze TXV's in a supermarket system and you'll know what fun is!:rolleyes:

[chemi-cool]

I agree with US Iceman and Feisty { thats will save my neck...;)} and a few more points:

1. Suction line dryers can cause a lot of problems if the get blocked, they start to react as a TXV and the compressor will act as an evaporator, so care must be taken after installing for a few weeks.

2. From my experience, they should be install facing up - the oil will drip freely to wards the compressor sump when unit is still.

3. If the system doe's not need them, don't install them.

[thebigcheese]

i was always told that they should be removed once they have done there job as a dirty core will end up causing more harm than good

[old gas bottle]

icemans saying change the core a final time and leave it in, i think ? its there if you need it again, if you dont like that idea you can leave the core out or just fit a material filter type insert. its only the small flare or braze in type that need to come out as they will rust and leak on most applications.:)

[US Iceman]

icemans saying change the core a final time and leave it in, i think ?


Yes, that's it exactly. My opinion is there is more to be gained than lost if you leave a clean set of cores installed.

The other thing you have to be aware of is pressure drop. Sometimes people will use a single core drier shell because it's cheaper and the connections fit. You have to look at the flow capacity of the driers.

I used generously oversize the driers.

[D.D.KORANNE]

After it`s initial clean up , the core can be removed . But must ensure finest dust / rust if any particles ,debris are filtered out .