94 fj80 cant find ac leak

[jveiguela]

Guys,

Im at the end of my rope with an AC leak in my 94 FJ80. Its looses about a charge every 2 weeks or so. Ive scanned it with a halogen leak detector after filling it and Ive also put in the dye for leak detection. Any clues as to where this could be? Many Thanks.

 

[FJ809496TLC]

Check your evaporator coil and txvalve.

 

[jvazquez53]

Tried all the DYI tricks, ended up taking it to a good AC shop, on the long run I saved $$$

 

[1972FJ55]

Are you using a UV light to look for the dye? Also, using yellow goggles often helps make the dye more visible. Iif you don't see anything on the engine side, it could be in the evaporator/expansion valve, as FJ809496TLC said. You can try removing the blower motor and checking for dye thru the hole. Given that it's leaking out that fast, the leak shouldn't be that hard to find. You can also spray a soapy water solution on all the connections and look for bubbles. Also use the solution on the service ports-sometimes they leak and the cap doesn't seal it.

Good luck,
Rex

 

[jveiguela]

yes I bout the dye and light at the autoparts last night. Gave it a couple of shots, ran the ac for 20 min and nothing. Ive also swiped the lines with a halogen leak detector I used to use when I worked on residential ac units and nothing. I took a few bolts off the bottom of the evaporator housing and stuck the in there a bit and nothing. Its driving me nuts. Im one of those guys that has to fix this otherwise it will haunt me for ever. any other ideas would be appreciated.

Thanks, Joe

 

[jvazquez53]

Mine would do the same; charge the system, and lasted for about 2 weeks It would not show the leaks with the auto parts dye/light. The AC shop found it was leaking through the compressor seals.

 

[jveiguela]

Im thinking its there or the evaporator. But you would think that either method would show. I believe the compressor is a denso 10pa series and youtube has some good videos on the seal replacement. I just cant have the truck parked while I do the rebuild as its one of our daily drivers. I may swing by the local used auto parts and pick one up and rebuild it for a quick swap. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CD5lLC5v6PE

 

[TX Cruiser]

Check the schraeder valves, better yet, replace the valve cores. I've only needed a sniffer once or twice, but they come in handy when you're in a spot like you are.

 

[mohamLC]

jveiguela

The best way to detect ac leaks is to pressurize your ac system with air I use a used home fridge compressor to pump it with 150psi and us water and soap to watch for bubbles. If your system had never been missed with then I would concentrate on the compressor itself most likely it will leak from the front seal behind the clutch and bully assembly.
Good luck