R134a in place of Isceon 49?

[glenn1340]

Hi guys,
I`m just wondering if I can use 134a in place of Isceon 49 (r413 as most of you probably already know) on a Hubbard chiller.
The reason I ask is one of my customers has a transit van with a faulty unit. No gas in the system, pressure tested it and found the leak. I checked SRW for Isceon 49 and it`s £190 plus vat. Now, I`ll probably go for ages without needing it again whereas I`ve plenty of 134 and I don`t want to bill the customer for 12kg when he only needs 1.2kg. I`ve checked previous posts and it seems it`s very close to Isceon 49 but I`m bit confused whether if it can work with the original oil or not. The filter dryer will be changed as that was where the leak was. I`m not too bothered about performance as it`s an old unit on an old van, it`s just that I don`t like to give uneccessary hefty bills to my cuctomers.

Cheers guys,
Glenn

[chemi-cool]

I dont see any problems with it. R-413 was replacing R-12 anyway so all you got to worry about is the oil.

[chilliwilly]

As you know Isceon 49 is a straight drop in replacement and is compatible with any oil. You may find that you'd be better off buying it for that extortionate price and keeping hold of it for stock. The amount of systems that I work on that still have r12 in them is suprising. And one day they will be either scrapped or refurbed and regassed with isceon 49.

If you retrofit the system with 134a, the time it takes you to flush it through and add the right amount of oil to the system. May be offset to the price of breaking almost even with the isceon 49. If it has an XV instead of a cap feeder, you may have to adjust the superheat setting. Whereas the isceon 49 is more compatible with the older units. Give your customer the two options, a cheap repair with slightly higher fuel consumption, or a more expensive repair with a lower consumption.

[glenn1340]

On reflection I think I`ll bite the bullet and lay out the money for Isceon 49 I can`t be bothered with the hassle of TEV adjusting and oil issues.
Thanks guys for your input.