I just topped the aircon up with one of those bottles from Halfords. I already have the connector with the gauge though so it cost me £34.
My aircon is now fine. But I was able to check mine first with the connector I have and I could see that there was gas, just not enough.
Thanks
But how much. You can't tell. That's one reason why these refills are a waste of time.
If the refrigerant has leaked out over time, something else will have replaced it, and this needs to be removed before refilling with refrig. That's another reason why these refills are a waste of time.
TBH, the money spent on these is better spent on getting specialists to do it - unless you have the correct equipment, which isn't the refill adapters that Halfords sell.
I can tell as the connector I have, which I never said I got from Halfords, has a pressure gauge. This told me that the system had gas in it and it was just below the required amount to make the system run.
If it had told me anything else then I would have either done nothing and lived without aircon or taken it to a specialist which I don't have time for.
Guess what, I put some gas in, not the whole bottle by any means, and now I have ice cold air conditioning.
Here was me thinking this was a friendly site....
Hopefully snowy is still lurking...
If you have decent pressure gauges connected to both HP and LP sides, you can do a DIY, *BUT* not just by topping it up, as you cannot tell how much is in there - so you have to start again, from scratch.
Vac it all out, this needs a decent pump. The longer you can vac it for, the more you can boil off. An hour or more is better, though most automated machines are 15-20 mins. To comply with UK regulations, the contents must be captured and disposed of properly.
Close the valves, disconnect vac pump, and leave it for as long as possible to see if any increase in pressure, indicating a leak. Most leaks cannot be detected in a few mins, so again leave as long as possible. Hours is ideal, though most automated machines is 10-15m, which is why Shitfit will regas, say no leaks, but its stopped working within a week.
Then put in the correct amount of PAG46 and R134a, which from memory is 150ml and 950g respectively, but check first. The R134a **HAS** to be put in by weight. Not pressure. Hence, scales. Hence you can't just "top up" a partially full system.
As you can see, specialist equipment is needed, even if not specifically for A/C. And topping up is not an option.
The ramifications for getting it wrong range from working sub standardly to severe burns or exploding compressors.