ac recharging problem

kerleyg · Post by **kerleyg** » 19 Feb 2010, 15:22

Hi guys,
I recently charged the A/C and it worked for a day and then it went back to not blowing cold air again, and so am wondering how I can troubleshoot it for leaks....or would I need a real mechanic, to raid my pocket book....I need some help on this one, thanks. Greg.

mtemart · Post by **mtemart** » 19 Feb 2010, 18:06

Most non-dealer a/c repair shops will trouble shoot for free, except for the cost of coolant. Just call around and ask.

salts850 · Post by **salts850** » 19 Feb 2010, 23:18

You can buy refrigerant with leak/dye detector in it. It works nice and I didn't need a black light to see it. They recommend it, but not needed. My lines were leaking right at the "o" rings going into the condenser. Replaced them and charged the system back up, works great. FYI, before charging a/c system, you are supposed to pull a vacuum on the system. I didn't have the machine so I just charged it. The reason is so when you remove the lines for the repair, or open the system, you get the moisture out of the lines.

Post by **Ozark Lee** » 20 Feb 2010, 00:14

I hate to be the bearer of bads news but most of the time the problem is with the evaporator core. I have done this job on a couple of my 850s and it is a full weekend project. The parts don't cost that much but it is a bearcat since the dash needs to come out.

If you determine it is the evaporator we have an excellent writeup in the database:

http://www.woodjoiner.com/volvo/

The accumulator/receiver/drier (all the same thing) is also subject to rusting out depending on your climate and how much corrosive crap they put down on your streets. The accumulator is much easier to change than the evaporator but if you need to change the evaporator then you should change the accumulator along with it.

Do the dye test to find out for sure but it is hard to see the leak in the evaporator unless you remove the blower motor.

...Lee