i can smell refrigerant from a/c.. bad?

[403delica]

yah propane likes to go BOOM... but it also acts as an amazing refrigerant along with ammonia i believe... refer trucks use this lots. The comabtibility was based on molecular size i believe... i might have this backwards so bear with me.... but the HFC134a molicule was smaller then an r12 so you could not back track but red tek sits in the middle. As for seals and redtek i would be inclined to say that when you charge the system with redtek you are not adding oil... if you charge a system with HFC134a you will put in 1-2 oz of AC oil/dye mix. Red ten comes in cans and may not have the ability to draw in oil during the charge process but im an old washed up mechanic now so dont quote me on this stuff! jk

[403delica]

Typically when you recharge a system don't you get a recharge kit which includes the seals? After all if there weren't any leaks you wouldn't need to recharge it correct!?

No in all honesty the only time you need to recharge a system is due to a leak... R12 systems some times "breathed" through the rubber houses and after 10 yard might have poor performance. Seals in an AC system are relativly basic just a rubber ring or a impregnated rubber gasket and they are maintaind by the flow of added AC oil/dye.

[after oil]

42 C of course... in the range of 108 to 112 F is what we were...
i thought the best way to check for leaks was to pay $200 to an a/c specialist who does jobs for Coombs Country Auto. he pressurized with nitrogen, and found a leak in the compressor. i had the compressor changed and the system charged and it lasted a few days only