My a/c has not been working right. The clutch on the compressor goes on and off. I hooked up my gauges to the system and this is what happened.

When the clutch is engauged, the low side drops while the high side increases. The low side shows a steady drop from 25psi to 20psi while on the high side shows a steady increase from 160psi to 170psi.

When the clutch is off, the high side drops while the low side increases. The high side shows a steady drop from 160psi to 140psi while the low side shows a steady increase from 30psi to 45psi.

 

System is low on refrigerant. It's going off on low pressure. Low pressure switch opens at 33psi.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by mikeyg &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">My a/c has not been working right. The clutch on the compressor goes on and off. I hooked up my gauges to the system and this is what happened.

When the clutch is engauged, the low side drops while the high side increases. The low side shows a steady drop from 25psi to 20psi while on the high side shows a steady increase from 160psi to 170psi.

When the clutch is off, the high side drops while the low side increases. The high side shows a steady drop from 160psi to 140psi while the low side shows a steady increase from 30psi to 45psi.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Everything is normal. When it's on low side drops and high side increases. when it's off your pressures are equalizing. locate leak and recharge system. The refrigerant lines are porous, it's not uncommon for refrigerant to escape through there.

 

Should I get one of those UV leak detectors and put dye in the system? Is it usually easy to find the leaks?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by mikeyg &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Should I get one of those UV leak detectors and put dye in the system? Is it usually easy to find the leaks?</TD></TR></TABLE>

Look for signs of oil on piping. Go to a refrigeration store and ask for a bottle of "Big Blu". Spray the Big Blu where you suspect a leak. If you see it bubble up you've found your leak. Check for loose fittings and chafing (tubing rubbing against something resulting in a hole in pipe). UV leak detectors and dye are a last resort.

 

I checked the fittings I could see and I didnt see any fresh oil on any of them. I looked in the sight glass of the dryer and while the clutch is on, it looks milky. When I turn off the a/c it goes back to liquid.

 

What about the electronic detectors? I could probably get a cheap one off ebay.