Aircon Re-gas

IAmATeaf · 30 May 2012 at 09:17

Might be a really stupid question but with these machines can you actually just top up rather than vacuum and refill? I'm thinking of going back to get my system looked at to see if there is a leak and then maybe convince him to pressure test it and top it up.

IAmATeaf · 30 May 2012 at 16:39

Spoken to the AC guy, he was as nice as pie on the phone but I bet he hates my guts

Has asked me to bring the car in so that he can have a long hard look, have to wait till next Friday though.

Said on the phone that his initial thoughts are that there must be another leak, God I hate this car now.

Third Opinion · 30 May 2012 at 18:04

In my experience is bottom line is you have no air-con you have a leak. If it is getting a bit cold you might get away with a re-gas, however were did the rest of it go?

You need to fix the leak before re-gassing. Something that cost me £800 on an MG ZT 5 years ago because of a failed compressor.

I have had cars that are 10 years old and never had a re-gas. When you think about it the gas has to go somewhere.

I hope yours is simple and cheap though.

Mad Pierre · 30 May 2012 at 19:19

Uriel said:
From bitter experience, Kwik Fit are only good for a problem-free regas. Hit any trouble and there is a good chance they will make the problem worse. Go to an aircon specialist that is actually capable of testing and repairing aircon. They won't cost much more for the regas but could save you a fortune in damage limitation if there's a genuine problem.

Some main dealers charge less than £50 for an aircon service / regas. I can recommend an excellent garage in Sheffield (who sorted me out after the Kwik Fit damage had been done).

Which Garage was that, If you don't mind me asking

RJC · 30 May 2012 at 20:50

IAmATeaf said:
Spoken to the AC guy, he was as nice as pie on the phone but I bet he hates my guts

Has asked me to bring the car in so that he can have a long hard look, have to wait till next Friday though.

Said on the phone that his initial thoughts are that there must be another leak, God I hate this car now.

You would need to do it the manual way with a set scales and check the system pressures and leaving air temperature in the cabin to ensure you don't over charge the system.

He would need to do a full leak check with a electronic leak detector (I use a D-TECH leak detector) or check over with the UV Lamp.

Ideally you should remove the gas charge and do a full pressure test with OFN, repair any leaks, re-pressure test and then vac & charge the system.