The importance of A/C system oil balancing
June 21, 2022
Sometimes we encounter information where directions instruct us to drain the compressor being removed from a system and measure the amount of oil that drains out. Then the next step is to subtract this number from the number of ounces that are supposed to be in the shipped replacement compressor.Read Article >
OEM oil capacity information
June 7, 2022
If you are installing an OEM replacement compressor in this example then it "should" contain 4.5 ounces of oil but if the compressor is not drained and the oil measured, the amount will not be known for sure. Also, if an aftermarket compressor is being installed, there is no standard that exists in the industry regarding the amount of oil that might be shipped in a replacement compressor. It might have no oil in it, a partial charge, or a full charge or even more than a full charge. To make matters worse, the OEM does not provide the total system capacity for this vehicle.Read Article >
Compressor lubrication tips
May 26, 2022
We will focus on lubrication information that is often encountered and how it can be interpreted incorrectly and result in the incorrect amount of oil being installed in a system.Read Article >
Compressor oil and the drain plug
May 17, 2022
When draining oil from compressors which have drain plugs, proper draining procedures call for the removal of the drain plugs and the unit drained from both the drain plug hole and the suction and discharge ports.Read Article >
Compressors 101
May 2, 2022
You are invited to attend a compressors 101 class I will be conducting next week at the MACS training facility in Lansdale, PA. The title of the class is Behavioral Characteristics of Various Compressor Types. It is happening live on Wednesday May 11 from 5:30 to 9:00pmRead Article >
Air contamination in an A/C system can ruin your day
February 2, 2022
I had a memorable encounter with air contamination in the mid 1990s. I was conducting a lot of retrofit clinics at the time and had recently acquired a demo refrigerant identifier which I took to those clinics. At one clinic, there was a technician who was extremely interested in the refrigerant identifier.Read Article >
Variable output scroll compressors
January 5, 2022
This compressor has been around for quite some time and the vehicles it is used on are getting some age on them. However, they still show up in shops with regularity and there still seem to be a lot of technicians that are not aware of the problem, diagnostic procedure and cure.Read Article >
When you don’t know about clutch wires
December 27, 2021
The conversation involved a clutchless compressor unit. A CSR who had sold one to a shop contacted me and said his customer (who was both the shop owner and technician working on the car) had just called him. There was a concern that the compressor didn't have a clutch wire.Read Article >
An overview of electronic variable displacement compressors
December 21, 2021
we have focused on electronically controlled variable displacement compressor operation and behavior. It is important to have a good understanding of how these compressors operate and behave. This is because the percentage of vehicles coming into shops using these units is growing and will continue to grow.Read Article >
Testing an electronically controlled variable displacement compressor
December 14, 2021
The A/C system was run with the vehicle's computer controlling the compressor. When the heat loads were changed, there were noticeable changes in the duty cycle signal being supplied to the compressor.Read Article >
The pulse width modulated duty cycle signal
December 7, 2021
Several years ago, when vehicles using these compressors were just starting to show up at shops for service with some regularity, we were searching to find some detailed information about their behavior to use in clinics. There was not a lot of it available, so we borrowed several vehicles and did some videos. The following are some clinic slides produced from one of those videos.Read Article >
Diagnosing electronically controlled compressors
November 30, 2021
When preparing to conduct diagnostics on a system using an electronically controlled variable displacement compressor, the diagnostic process needs to focus on four areas.Read Article >
