Ok, so everyone leave your ideas about conspiracy theories at the login page for this one....

I have begun a relentless pursuit towards understanding anything electrical, mechanical, thermodynamic and fluid dynamic... basically all things physics.

It all started because of a book and a documentary regarding the Peak Oil Theory... This theory scares me. To give myself more confidence that I would be able to provide a standard of living that is close to what we have come to expect, I have set out to prove to myself that I can demonstrate the understanding I am gaining through my self study and research of the things that make our lives easier through manageable, proof-of-concept projects that force me to design & fabricate working models of the devices, appliances, and components that make those things work out of, basically, free stuff or from components, tools commonly found in old or used devices, appliances etc.

Long story short, my first project has been to put together a portable 120v air conditioner that is, at most, efficient enough to cool 1 or two rooms.

The big picture components are:
- Entire refrigeration system (Compressor, condenser, evaporator valve, evaporator coil) from a Brita water cooler left out by my neighbor for heavy trash
- Computer tower box/enclosure
- 3 Electric fans ranging from 45-65cfm
- 1 homemade Dyson bladeless-style ("Air Multiplier") fan
- Electronic components from water cooler and pc tower (2 thermistors, 3 potentiometers
- AC-DC adapter from something 120v AC - 12v DC
- Purchased components - 120V relay, terminals etc.

I've laid everything out, "rigged" it together and tested the design for the power and operating controls and everything worked great. Then I started (too hastily) removing the thin reinforcing rods soldered to the front and back of the vertically snaked condenser coil... And yes, when prying one of the rods from its solder joint, I pulled it off and sprung a leak. In hindsight I realized how STUPID it was to do that. My questions are:

Why didn't my finger freeze off when I stopped it with my thumb (I could feel the pressurized gas coming out of the pinhole but it did not feel the slightest bit cold)?

How long will 5 layers of wound duct tape, 2 zip ties on each side of the hole and a hose clamp around the hole hold out as long as I don't run the compressor?

How do I fix the hole and get the system safe enough to run again? Or, a more liability-friendly way to put it for those EPA-regulation-minded individuals out there, could you provide a detailed explanation of how you, or other certified HVAC professional (if you get my drift) would remedy the system and have it back to pre-oops status?

Tech Specs from Stamp on Compressor:

Manufacturer: Matsu****a Refrigeration
Model: SB24C50GAU6
115V AC - Locked rotor (what's special about that?)
1PH R134a (I'm assuming this is the refrigerant and volume/quantity accept there is a big "22" inked stamped on the dome of the compressor, R22?"
Thermally protected

I've have a technical specifications book with all the formulas so I'm mainly interested in understanding the process for fixing the leak. My hunch is I'm most likely going to hear that I have to capture, weld, vacuum and recharge--details please--but I figure it might be such a small system (i.e. low enough pressure on the high side) that a solder or polymer of some kind will be a long term solution.

Thanks,

Tim