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View Full Version : recharging R134 gas for chiller question


fonzer
01/31/2007, 04:52 AM
i was wondering if you need to turn on your chiller while recharging the gas. this is my first time working with this..any tips would be appreciated. thanks

dohc97
01/31/2007, 08:22 AM
Did the gas in your chiller run out? might want to look for the leak unless you dont mind having to recharge.

Demon
01/31/2007, 09:52 AM
There should be no reason to *just* recharge.. If you have to rechearg then you have a leak somewhere. Also if your going to recharg make sure you have the proper gauges and know what your doing..
But to answer your question Yes it will have to be running to properly recharge the unit..

fonzer
01/31/2007, 02:02 PM
thanks for the responses

i think im the third owner of this chiller, as it was manufactured in 1996 by aquanetics. the fan works, and the compressor heats up. there isnt really any oil spilled around, nor the soap test doesnt show any leak. i got the r134a kit from walmart and comes with the gauge. well see how it turns out...

dohc97
01/31/2007, 02:39 PM
by any chance are you anywhere near chicago? i have the proper gauges as well as a the proper equipment to recharge it properly. If the chiller is working the way its supposed to you shouldnt have to recharge it.

fonzer
01/31/2007, 03:24 PM
dohc97 thanks for the offer, but unfortunately im from hawaii. would the chiller still cool water even though it was made over 10 years ago?

ordy1
01/31/2007, 04:39 PM
The chiller would cool water if it was made in 1960.

As long as it's hermitically sealed it should work. It sounds like you have a leak. Checking with soap bubbles is the way most folks do it. But what to do when you find the leak.

You have to evacuate the entire system, use acetalyne and brazing rods to plug up the hole. Then you have to pull a vaccum and finally charge the system to proper operating pressures. It's not as easy as just hooking up a cannister and letting it fly. Well it is if you don't want to fix the leak and just want to add Freon everytime the chiller stops cooling. Which is probably what the previous owner was doing.

Principle of operation of a chiller is the exact same thing as your refrigerator. Any qualified tech can fix it for about what it would cost to fix your frige.

Cheers
Ordy

BruiseAndy
01/31/2007, 04:59 PM
From what you are saying you could have damaged valves or busted piston or rod in compressor. If you find you still have refrigerant in system and the compressor is drawing low amps this is most likely the case. Does one line going into compressor get cold or stay luke warm while other line and compressor body get too hot to touch?

fonzer
01/31/2007, 05:11 PM
ordy-thanks for the input, ill keep that in mind.

andy- ill try run it a little longer than 10 minutes. that was when i was feeling the compressor.

when i was trying to run it with a bucket of water (w/o opening up the unit), it was about 20-30 minutes and it didnt cool.

ordy1
01/31/2007, 05:16 PM
What Bruiseandy said.

After rereading your post I was reminded of a small icemaker we keep in the shop. Compressor was hotter than july and it wasen't making ice.

The Condenser fans blade had fallen off and it wasen't condensing. Hopefully it's something really simple like a faulty condenser fan. These things probably have High temp. cutouts, most small hermitic compressors do. If you haven't found any leaks check to see if the fan runs.

Hope this helped.

Ordy

BruiseAndy
01/31/2007, 05:39 PM
Dont run it longer than a couple minutes. Running it longer if it is out of gas will only cause damage. Should be able to tell in the first two minutes of running by feeling the insulated line going into compressor. If thats not getting cold then it can be a multitude of things. Good point as well there ordy...is the fan spinning.

Dont test by putting fingers in fan like I did when I was brand new apprentice (more to story than that)

Sorry if you're squeamish but this is a somewhat brutal safety reminder when working around mechanical/electrical equipment.



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