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joker · 07-03-2018, 02:05 PM

The last three days, well on and off, have been used to repair my a/c system. There has definetly been a bit of a learning curve.

I stumbled across some bad info on a youtube video that said I could replace the orifice tube easily.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vq3iwF6GFts

However, upon disconnecting the system I learned that it is crimped in to the liquid line and cannot be replaced separately. I am not sure if this guy staged the video just to be an ass, or maybe his car was not "repaired" correctly in the past, but it is not located where his was in the video. His engine is clearly a 4.6 2v but something is definitely different. I found a liquid line in stock but the store was closed on Sunday so that put off progress until Monday. After an hour drive Monday morning to an Advance that had the line in stock I got the system back together.

Attempted to pull a vacuum on the system and it would not hold. I put a light charge on the system and used soapy water to find my leak. Turns out it was at the connection for the discharge tube to the condenser. The replacement o-ring kit that I ordered from advance had smaller gauge o-rings so I just pulled the old one and reused it, the tightened it down until no more leak. To verify I pulled a vacuum and made sure it held for an hour.

I am vacuuming the system now and learned another interesting fact about vacuum pumps and altitude. At sea level you should be able to pull just over 29 HG, however max vacuum where I am located is between 24 and 24.9 HG due to elevation. Any of the a/c repair guides I have found use 29 HG for the reference of how much vacuum should be pulled.

Over all the job has been a pain but a good learning experience. I'm am going to pull a vacuum for a few hours rather than the one hour referenced by Ford just to make sure I boiled out any flushing solvent or moisture that may have made it in to the system.

I will also mention that I paid for online access to Haynes manual before beginning this work. Over all it has been disappointing and I would recommend to anyone to get a ford service manual and not waste money on the Haynes.

07-03-2018, 02:05 PM	#13
joker Friends Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Southern Colorado Posts: 2,452	The last three days, well on and off, have been used to repair my a/c system. There has definetly been a bit of a learning curve. I stumbled across some bad info on a youtube video that said I could replace the orifice tube easily. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vq3iwF6GFts However, upon disconnecting the system I learned that it is crimped in to the liquid line and cannot be replaced separately. I am not sure if this guy staged the video just to be an ass, or maybe his car was not "repaired" correctly in the past, but it is not located where his was in the video. His engine is clearly a 4.6 2v but something is definitely different. I found a liquid line in stock but the store was closed on Sunday so that put off progress until Monday. After an hour drive Monday morning to an Advance that had the line in stock I got the system back together. Attempted to pull a vacuum on the system and it would not hold. I put a light charge on the system and used soapy water to find my leak. Turns out it was at the connection for the discharge tube to the condenser. The replacement o-ring kit that I ordered from advance had smaller gauge o-rings so I just pulled the old one and reused it, the tightened it down until no more leak. To verify I pulled a vacuum and made sure it held for an hour. I am vacuuming the system now and learned another interesting fact about vacuum pumps and altitude. At sea level you should be able to pull just over 29 HG, however max vacuum where I am located is between 24 and 24.9 HG due to elevation. Any of the a/c repair guides I have found use 29 HG for the reference of how much vacuum should be pulled. Over all the job has been a pain but a good learning experience. I'm am going to pull a vacuum for a few hours rather than the one hour referenced by Ford just to make sure I boiled out any flushing solvent or moisture that may have made it in to the system. I will also mention that I paid for online access to Haynes manual before beginning this work. Over all it has been disappointing and I would recommend to anyone to get a ford service manual and not waste money on the Haynes. Last edited by joker; 07-03-2018 at 02:19 PM.