AC won't work

[tonybonekhang]

92 Mazda Protege LX

I tried retrofitting R134a into my protege and I can't get it to work. Last week I tried to refill the Refrigerant after bleeding out the old stuff. It went in but it seemed to take only very little. There was no pressure in the lines prior to filling but it only took about 1/3 of the can to get it to the full mark on the gauge.

The first time I filled it I noticed there was a hissing coming from behind the bumper. I bought a new condenser and drier from Jho (which I just received today, thanks) and installed it. I refilled it again and still no coolness.

When I drained the radiator to install the condenser I didn't have any coolant so I just refilled it with water. Any chance this is causing anything? It is getting a tad bit close to overheating.

[5l1mm]

there is an ac evacuator
it sucks out the air in the lines before putting 134a in.
air doesnt get cold like freon does.

dont feel dumb, i didnt know either.
i had to bug my friends wife to get that info

[MazdaNoob]

it is just a big vaccume pump. when changing from r12 to r134a you also need to change all the seals and change the dryer as you have done already. 134a will escape as the molecules ( sp) are smaller and will pass the r12 seals

[tonybonekhang]

So is there anyway to do it myself or does that have to go to a shop for the evacuation?

[5l1mm]

ive heard the ac evaluator pump was a hand pump. so i imagine if you got a good brake bleeding pump, you could do it (i am not sure though, i haven't done it yet),
id say if you got a brake bleeding pump, try and retro fit it, your gonna need to drain the system anyway.
check the pressure before and after the pumping, and see if you have created a substantial vacuum in the lines.

i know there 134a with sealant in it for retrofits, its not the professional method, im sure, but it will most likely save you some money.

[tonybonekhang]

How much do you suppose a shop would charge to vacuum the lines? I still have a few cans of refrigerant left (1.5) so maybe they can just drain it and I'll try it again. BTW how much refrigerant is it expected to use?

[diflictedminds]

You can do it yourself. could even get a side business going! charge someone 10 bucks to do it once and there ya go pays for itself. http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=92475