1998 Suburban AC rebuild - Couple Questions - Automotive Air Conditioning Information Forum

1wheeler1 on Tue July 07, 2015 10:34 PM

So I'm under the gun to get my Suburban AC repaired before family vacation week from now. Basically had the belly leaker, found a little bit of metal in OT and TXV but clean otherwise. Based on research (much of it here) I've ordered a new Valeo 10000582 compressor and AC Delco , compressor hose assembly, drier, OT, TXV and condenser. Plan on flushing remaining lines and evaporators separately and have a set of gauges, vacuum pump, and Nylog from working on my other vehicles. I'm hoping I can get some input on a couple questions to do the job right

1. Sounds like it's worth the investment for DEC PAG 150. Is TSI Supercool still the preferred brand? Will it work with the Seltec/Valeo compressor?
(I tried to find a spec sheet on the compressor and it seems impossible).

2. Along the same lines when changing compressor types will the required amount of oil change based on the difference in compressor capacity from the HT6 to Seltec/Valeo?

3. As far as flush that can be purchased locally I know the Dura II is highly recommended but is expensive. I saw this Johnsen's 6545-6 has really good reviews on Amazon and is quite a bit cheaper. Any thoughts on it or any other alternatives.

4. Does anyone know if the new AC Delco parts come with O-rings? I have some universal kits but was hoping to find a vehicle specific kit. Any recommendations?

Thanks to everyone who contributes to these forums.

Mike

-------------------------
Ã¢ÂÂIÃ¢ÂÂm so thankful I had a childhood before technology took overÃ¢ÂÂ

GM Tech on Wed July 08, 2015 7:21 AM

I never flush for a failure mode of "leak"-was old pump trashed or just leaking?- small bit of metal in OT is normal-- packed is not. You most likely did not need to replace condenser and lines- and I never introduce anything into a system I can't get out-if you leave some liquid flushing solvent in there, you can trash the new pump--so if I do flush, I use refrigerant with my reclaimer.

Be careful- new condenser will probably have OT in its outlet-- remove it- your burban with rear air has its OT just beyond the split in liquid line for the front- the condenser is designed/used for both applications- front air only trucks have their OT in condenser outlet-- so don't have two in your system which is a common mistake- I have found several with two OTs in system, and one with no OT in system.

-------------------------
The number one A/C diagnostic tool there is- is to know how much refrigerant is in the system- this can only be done by recovering and weighing the refrigerant!!
Just a thought.... 65% of A/C failures in my 3200 car diagnostic database (GM vehicles) are due to loss of refrigerant due to a leak......

HECAT on Wed July 08, 2015 10:45 AM

The Dura II is refrigerant based (contains: HFC-4310me, HFC-365, transdichloroethylene, alcohol) and the Johnsens flush is Heptane and Alcohol. Be careful, the Heptane is highly flammable stuff, and Alcohol likes to corrode aluminum.

Our testing results with many flush products, indicates (low BP) products evaporate too quickly to be effective at liquid flushing; when introduced with air delivery methods. Lower BP products (including host and other refrigerants) need to be used in a closed loop method to maintain the product as liquid for flushing.

Higher BP products (with the right chemistry and proven track record) are more suited for successful A/C flushing with the air delivery methods. However, they do require more effort and diligence to properly remove. Using the wrong chemicals, not understanding what you are doing, rushing the work, and leaving remaining solvents behind is obviously not going to yield good results.

Of course, I would recommend this

-------------------------

HECAT: www.hecatinc.com You support the Forum when you consider www.ackits.com for your a/c parts.

FLUSHING TECHNICAL PAPER vs2.pdfÃÂ

1wheeler1 on Wed July 08, 2015 3:11 PM

-------------------------
Ã¢ÂÂIÃ¢ÂÂm so thankful I had a childhood before technology took overÃ¢ÂÂ

1wheeler1 on Wed July 08, 2015 3:29 PM

Thanks GMTech, I've learned a lot from your posts.

I was really on the fence about flushing. The compressor was rattling a bit and the OT had loose metal around about the first 1/4" not packed and fell off once dried.
I did however find a little bit in the TXV inlet which pushed me towards doing the flush since the metal made it that far.
If I do flush I'm going to make sure I run ALOT of air through afterword's and vacuum the heck out of it. I don't have access to nitrogen but have a good oil/water separator for painting and got a package of the disposable inline air filters that you put at the end of the hose before the paint gun to prevent fisheye.

I was already aware of the extra OT problem after reading through many troubleshooting posts but thanks for the reminder. It looks like AC Delco actually had two part numbers for the condenser. In reading the reviews some people with front air only got the wrong part# and the OT won't fit into it.

-------------------------
Ã¢ÂÂIÃ¢ÂÂm so thankful I had a childhood before technology took overÃ¢ÂÂ

1wheeler1 on Wed July 08, 2015 3:37 PM

Thanks HECAT

Sounds like Dura II would be the way to go.

I looked into getting the SafeFlush and would have if I wasn't under such a tight time crunch and the expedited shipping wasn't really an option.

Appreciate all of your input and thanks for putting together and making available the document on flushing. Learned a lot from it.

-------------------------
Ã¢ÂÂIÃ¢ÂÂm so thankful I had a childhood before technology took overÃ¢ÂÂ

1wheeler1 on Thu July 09, 2015 5:47 PM

Received the compressor today and label calls for 180cc/6oz of PAG 46 versus PAG 150 so glad I didn't order any oil.

Since I'm replacing a lot and flushing how much of the total oil capacity would you add to the accumulator and would you add anything to the condenser or evaporators front/rear?

I'll drain the existing oil (if any) in the new compressor from what looks to be a drain plug.

Is it recommended to refill through the drain plug before install or should I do it through the low side port.

I did read about turning by hand or tool to circulate oil before starting.

Thanks for any tips

-------------------------
Ã¢ÂÂIÃ¢ÂÂm so thankful I had a childhood before technology took overÃ¢ÂÂ

Automotive Air Conditioning Information Forum (Archives)