AC Fully Charged, but temp won't get below 65 deg....???

LEVY said:

AC condenser doesn't gets internally "full of crap".

Condenser can only get externally damaged by a physical shock causing reduced internal refrigerant flow or leak or by "external" debris blocking air flow.

There are some "filters" in the system that will catch any impurity or humidity in the system. Even a catastrophic compressor failure wouldn't damage the condenser, some people recommend replacing a condenser after a compressor failure just to be on the safe side, but is not really necessary if you have the equipment to do a thorough cleaning and know how to use it.

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Yeah, I don't know what my malfunction is, but I try to be helpful, often to my own detriment...

Somewhere in my journey's and reading's I came across an reference to folks saying that today's condensers are manufactured differently these days and that when they begin to clog internally, they loose their efficiency to shed superheat. And that the internal passageways or perhaps the flow path does not lend to being flushed like the older vehicle condensers used to enjoy performance enhancement from condenser flushing. Also, in the big scheme of things, that the cost of the aftermarket parts is so inexpensive, that to go another hundred when repairing a system, you might as well do that too...
So, even with the a/c flush machine I believe that flushing (internally) a condenser rather than replacing one is not the better course of action.

But YES, keeping the outside of the condenser clean is also a great advantage and you can get an aerosol cleaning solution at home depot. Spray it on, wait 10 minutes, gently rinse with low pressure garden hose, biodegradable.

WERNER1 said:

.... as I pulled the cabin filter out I was blasted with HOT AIR out of the bottom filter access area/housing !!!!??!?! ... What the!?! .... Only thing I can think is that the blend door wasn't set up correctly?... but would that be hot air pumping through there... like is it drawing from the outside/engine area (I had just got home from St Louis and it was running in the driveway) ... or is the "Heat" on in the back ground or something...?

Uhhhhg!

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yes, the hot radiator coolant is always flowing to the airbox. They use a restrictor as opposed to the earlier cars had an actual heater valve. The restrictor is in the heater hose running from on the engine, behind where the upper radiator hose connects. It will appear as a black PLASTIC hose coupling, and be careful as they get brittle with age and we have seen several of them broken and lost coolant because.

Just reminded me that I want to replace mine as it is likely 17 years old and brittle. I will get a Mopar part as opposed to any aftermarket junk (although someone was turning aluminum replacement parts on a lathe)

Anyway, my thought for you Werner (in an earlier post) was to gently try to temporarily clamp the heater hose to see if it made any appreciable difference. my thought was that is it did make a positive result then you could chase the blend door as 'leaking'

You could always bypass the heated coolant for the summer months but come October you will want the heat restored for fall in St Louis.

I some times watch that guy's videos, for entertainment only. He makes money out of videos.

Let's suppose you replace compressor but you don't even flush the system.

Debris will not reach the compressor again, there are a couple of filters in the system (Receiver Drier /Accumulator, Expansion Valve Orifice Tube) that will catch any debris.

AC evaporator is placed in front of the radiator, a cheap evaporator may get easily damaged by road debris, I will prefer to leave the OE in place.

That little thingy Scotty uses is not to flush the system, he's funny.


Scotty talks before thinking.

Reason manufacturers can get away with smaller condenser piping is, the design is completely different.

On the first drawing you can see older condenser, it was just one line, a big loop. Should that line get clogged or crushed, the whole system would fail:



Newer condensers are made of many lines (like a radiator), if one of those lines fail, the other lines are capable of doing their work.



That is the main reason manufacturers changed design, not to save money. Of course, they saved money in the process.

Yeah, that guy is kinda like a quirky Dennis Hopper. Sometimes I wonder if he is krunk in the videos. I watched a few more last night, they can be entertaining for sure but... I must admit that although his delivery is a bit odd, his philosophy is similar to my own. I heard him say several thing that I myself have said over the years.

Levy, your diagrams and information is great. I certainly am not disputing what you are saying and I agree.
A few points.
While the drier assy would be a filter of sorts, if you are catching debris in other areas such as expansion devices or orifice tubes, you would have a whole new world of troubles. In fact the older vehicles it was a good idea, although few seldom performed this maintenance, it was a good idea to replace the acc/driers due to time, because the desiccant could become saturated and/or the bag that held it inside would/could deteriorate and send its own form of junk through the system.

What I was trying to say was the point, that over time, especially after a compressor greanades, that SOME of those tiny orifice tubes will become clogged and that will result in lost efficiency. If 10% are clogged, then the condenser is only able to transfer 90% of the heat it has scavenged from inside the cabin to outside the vehicle.
Yes, the system will continue to cool, just not as efficiently and that is what Werner1 is experiencing. It gets cool, but not cold enough.
Perhaps he is going through the change and is experiencing hot flashes. I often get them when consuming guajillo chiles with lunch....

Finally got a chance to get up this morning and put the gauges on the van while it was still cold. Here's the results of my testing this morning...

Static Pressure @ 83°/55% rh = L/88.5 - H/88

I started the vehicle and let it warm up a little bit with the air conditioning on Max Lowe with the recirc door closed here are those results

L/44 - H/215 - lowest in Cabin temperature coming out of the center vent was 62°

Decided to take it down the road for about 5 minutes at 50 miles an hour Louis achievable in Cabin temperature was 56° @ 84° outside temp.

When I got home I left the van run at idle for a few minutes and then put the gauges back on it to test

L/69 - H/245 @ 86°/51% rh - Kevin discharge Air at this point was 69 degrees