/diy/ - Do It Yourself

>>1531687
I’m on you with this one. My little garage AC unit shit the bed last summer and I would love to get the thing working again because they’re not cheap.

>>1531687
They don’t sell juice in america without a license
Duh

No such thing as compressor repair, dumbass. Good luck finding a replacement for things that aren't split systems. Assuming you could even find a compressor for your dehumidifier, do you really think you could get in that thing with an acytelene torch without melting every fucking bit of it?

Here's what it boils down to for anything that isn't a whole house AC split system:

>$150 for guages
>$200 recovery machine
>$50 recovery tank
>$150 vacuum pump
>$200 torch set with regulators and bottles

Plus the cost of whatever compressor you're replacing, and all the shit you melt or dick up in the process.

Or just accept that we live in a throwaway world and you're better off selling all the copper out of your dead items and putting that toward another one.

Now, if the compressor on the outside condensing portion of your AC dies, that might be worth replacing yourself. Any company is going to try to sell you an entire new system or quadruple charge you for the new compressor, plus labor. If you aren't a retard you can buy the shit from the above list and do it yourself. Might even be able to rent some of it

I do appliance repair and replace compressors in fridges. The main reason I don’t think it’s a super common diy repair is because you need a new compressor which will usually be a minimum of 150$, a piercing tool and recovery bag unless you just wanna vent the charge.. an oxy acetylene or turbotorch setup to debraze the old compressor and then install the new one. If your lucky the compressor kit came with a filter dryer and low side port for the compressor, but odds are it didn’t so that’s another 10-15$. A vacuum pump to pump it down (ideally you’d have a micron gauge so you’d know when you have an acceptable amount of the moisture out of the system and could then do a decay test to prove you don’t have leaks... but if you don’t wanna she’ll out 150$ for the cheapest micron gauge you can substitute with just running the vacuum pump for 2 hours....) the cheapest vacuum pump I’ve seen is horrible freights, around 100$ for the single stage... you also need a gauge set.. harbor freights is meant for automotive and the yellow hose has an acme thread that won’t fit on a normal refrigerant bottle... cheapest amazon gauge set with hoses is around 30$... you will need to weigh the charge in but luckily you can repurpose the bathroom scale for that... or buy one meant for it for around 100$.. if your trying to fix a newer appliance it’s probably charged with 134A and a 30 lb tank of that is around 120$ if I google it.. unless you can figure out some kind of adapter to connect one of the disposable automotive cans... you could see if you could find an hvac guy to come out and charge it, but their gonna wasn’t at least 150$ by the time their done driving their and filling it because they could instead be fixing something else.. generally at this point it’s cheaper to buy a new dehumidifier....

>>1531716
Also theirs a lot of ways to fuck up that will cause the compressor to fail either right away, or a couple months down the road..


>>1531713
Not that hard to do, just practice with your torch till you get good. Although I’ll admit I have a smith mini torch set that’s worth it’s weight in gold when I’m close to fridge liners... don’t like spending hours screwing around with heat paste..

>>1531713
>recovery bullshit
california, eh?

>>1531723
Nope, that’s actually required all over the USA. on small appliances your supposed to get 90% if the compressor is working or something like 75% if the compressor is dead which is why you can get away with a recovery bag and no recovery machine. That anon sounds like they’ve either done or read a bit about doing residential hvac work. Split system air conditioners are under slightly different rules since they generally have more than 5 pounds of refrigerant.. so you have to use a recovery machine and pump it into a tank. Oddly even though I don’t have to for fridges I have a little rg3 recovery machine and 2 recovery tanks.. one for 12 and one for 134 a.. got tired of dealing with the bags because they break and they’re more of a pain in the ass than just buying a 400$ recovery machine and the metal tanks...

>>1531723
Saves money if you are a pro. I have all the gear but a recovery system but I just do automotive AC work because it's trivially cheap (amortized over time) to replace a residential heat pump with a newer, more efficient model.

Since no one is watching IDGAF about venting to atmosphere.

This Anon is wise:
>got tired of dealing with the bags because they break and they’re more of a pain in the ass than just buying a 400$ recovery machine and the metal tanks...

>>1531687
i think its because the old refrigerant has to be recycled or something. Thats what the car jew explained to me when i had to refresh the cooling jizz in my cars ac one time

>>1531713
>$150 for guages
R-12 and other gauges are fairly cheap. $25

>$200 recovery machine
Or just dump it in the air

>$50 recovery tank
See above

>$150 vacuum pump
Re purpose an old compressor from a mini fridge. Works like a charm but takes a while. It can also be used to pump up a small air tank for tires or air brushing (with oil separator).

>$200 torch set with regulators and bottles
For copper pipe m8?
Ye olde mapp gas works just fine.

>>1532337
You could make a hacked together recovery machine out of an old compressor but not a real vacuum pump.

>>1532337
AC compressors also can only pull down to around 25 inches of mercury vacuum. Now in HVAC in the US we use microns to measure vacuum since inches of mercury is too large of a unit to use for the levels of vacuum we are dealing with during testing. Back to the compressor only being able to pull 25 inches of mercury, that's a little over 100,000 microns. Microns start at 720,000 at atmosphere and go to 0 at a perfect vacuum. The EPA requires us to pull a vacuum below 500 microns before charging.

Now as you indicated regarding recovery you may not care about government regulations but you will still be subjecting your new compressor and oil to excessive moisture and non condensibles so assuming you can even get a compressor for your throw away appliance you had better buy them by the case because you'll be changing it every few months doing it half assed

>>1531687
>Is there some magic that keeps people from having a HF pressure tool, replacing and resweating compressors, and loading up refrigerant?
The law. That's literally all that stops you from servicing your own HVAC equipment. Granted the certification isn't immensely hard to obtain.

Are there modern refrigerants that are more or less safe to discharge in the atmosphere and non-cancerous?
What's the fuss about? I thought CFCs were banned decades ago, is the next best thing still kind-of bad?

>>1532453
Hmm been a long time since I took the 608 but I don’t think they actually require you to hit a target micron rating.. googling only returned an epa list of recommended best practices... fwiw I do fridge repair so it wouldn’t surprise me if it’s a requirement for systems with 50 lbs or up of refrigerant... just curious. Also 500 microns is weak.. step up your game....

>>1531713
Gauges are more like ~60, pump around 100. The rest is similarly overpriced compared to what an amateur needs to do evac/recharge.

That said, agree with the rest. Ain't likely to be re-welding defective housings in home appliances, replacement is necessary.

>>1532475
500 microns is the minimum, I go as deep as I can especially with POE oil. Things like semi hermetic compressors can't get as deep as a permanently sealed compressor. I do commercial/industrial HVAC and regularly get systems to hold under 200 microns after a 15 minute rise test and have had them as low as 80.

>>1531687
not worth it. You cant repair hermetic compressors and the cost of a new compressor and labour to re/re is more than a new appliance.

you can replace a few parts like switches and fans if you do it yourself but another more isnt cost effective or wise.

>>1531687
>electric powered dehumidifier
How about opening the windows to decrease moisture?
>>1531692
>garage AC
How about building your garage smarter, so it doesnt get too hot/cold?

Americans will kill the planet single handedly if we let them...

>>1532603
Not sure what your climate is like... But it is 20 degrees outside and my basement is 65 degrees, but wants to be 75% RH. This isnt a good amount of moisture for anything in my basement (including guns, but what would you know about that). Also it causes condensation to form anywhere there is an air or thermal leak. That's bad for longevity of a structure and also leads to mold problems.

In the summer, it is even worse. The air outside is regularly 90% humidity. Running the air conditioner conservatively leaves the upper floors comfy enough, but humid air is heavier and tends to settle in basements. Rather than running the AC fan non stop to churn that air around and running the AC at a lower setpoint, both of which use more power than a dehumidifier does, it is trivial to put a small appliance in the basement.

Additionally, making a bunch of very dry, slightly warm air is great for the inevitable leaking of water across the basement floor.

I'm assuming you don't have a basement, nor do you live in an area with similar clime.

>>1532453
I replaced the compressor in my truck several years back. still running strong.
The key is keeping contamination out.
In this case I replaced the accumulator, couple of hoses, and compressor. Basically blew down the system with R134a, sealed it up, and charged it. What miniscule moisture or cruft that got in will be trapped in the accumulator.
Can't see a house system being much different.

>>1532760
Aside from doing things that way being illegal an automotive compressor is driven by a clutch off the serpentine belt, appliance/building air conditioning uses an electric motor inside the compressor in direct contact with refrigerant and oil. Moisture and things like carbon or phosphorus from brazing create acid in the oil that rapidly degrades those electrical windings. Once the windings short it causes the oil to go through a chemical change because of the heat and get even more acidic. If your compressor has "burned out" and you don't do a thorough system clean up with nitrogen and system flush before replacing the compressor and pulling a deep vacuum your new one is not going to last.

You can get away with a lot of shit with an automotive system that you can't on other systems. On certain systems they do use an external motor but these days you really only see that on ammonia systems.

Back in the day when companies built shit to run forever the compressors were tough enough that they would just purge everything with refrigerant instead of pulling a vacuum.

>>1532337
>just dump it in the air

I see you're one of those people that doesnt understand how important the ozone layer is in preventing the death of every living organism on this planet is.

>>1532603
r u srs?

>>1532781
Every organism dies anyway. No logical argument has been advanced for the preservation of life being of actual benefit to members of species, who only evolved to reproduce thus causing more death.

>>1532474
CFCs are orders of magnitude better the the next best refrigerant, the problem is that they set off a chemical chain reaction when they reach the ozone layer meaning one molecule of a cfc can single handedly destroy thousands of ozone molecules before decomposing, hence why they're banned.

Also I think breathing in refrigerants of any kind can give you degenerative neuro diseases, so don't do that

>>1531687
No there is not faggot, do it. Some things are just not worth fixing, especially the cheap bullshit appliances you see nowadays.

>>1532781
>muh environment

Good for nothing if third world shit hole countries are doing more harm to the ozone layer in 1 second than your dumbass will ever do in your entire lifetime. Just doing shit in vain like the good cuck you are

>>1532758
>Not sure what your climate is like... But it is 20 degrees outside and my basement is 65 degrees, but wants to be 75% RH. This isnt a good amount of moisture for anything in my basement (including guns, but what would you know about that). Also it causes condensation to form anywhere there is an air or thermal leak. That's bad for longevity of a structure and also leads to mold problems.

Maybe if you didn't buy an amerimutt mcmansion cuck shed you wouldn't be having those problems in the first place would ya? How the fuck do you think people lived before the advent of refrigeration?

>>1532781
Yea.. I'm worried about bullshit science from folks that fail to grasp that refrigerant is so dense it sinks in air. sinks. as in if it ever gets up to the stratosphere then everyone in the world will win the lotto at the same time.

>>1532966
Are you fucking stupid?

>>1531687
>Why aren't we all into doing our own compressor repairs?

Why don't you fab your own CPUs?

I got pic related and itll keep blowing fuses while compressing air? any help as to what the cause is?

>>1532983
lol
Let us look at R-12 (dichlorodifluoromethane)
Molecular weight is 120.9g/mol
Average air molecular weight is 28.97g/mol

R-12, R134, etc are all classed as oxygen displacing gasses for confined space entry.
That means they are HEAVIER THAN AIR.

So, who's stupid, stupid?

>>1532994
Providing the compressor isn't freezing up, I'd suspect the run capacitor.
And by fuses you mean your house breaker?
If so, understand that the more they trip the more sensitive they get. If that's the case, replace it with one rated for the same amperage.

>>1532994
You bought a cheap chink brand

>>1533001
it compresses to full then when i use a tool with it and restarts compressing usually thats when the breaker would switch

>>1533006
If it’s the breaker on your actual house, then it’s drawing too much current for that circuit. Unplug other shit on that outlet/circuit when running it.

>>1533008
i tried that, i plugged it into the washing machine outlet and its the same deal, should i maybe replace breaker switch with a higher amperage? Or you think its more component related

>>1532966
>>1532999
What is wind you fucking mongoloid?

>>1533017
facts bothering you?

>>1532999
So you are fucking stupid. Ever heard of air currents? You know like water currents except with air instead? How about convection?

>but..but... muh density
The atmosphere isn't in a laboratory vial in a controlled undisturbed environment.
You fucking dumbass retarded brainlet

>>1531687
How do you intend to repair a compressor? It's a sealed metal box, once you open it you cant "put the lid back on". They're practically not serviceable plus, you can just buy a new one.

However, and from exprience, if your device stopped working due to refrigeration system issues, it's just cheaper to buy a new one, no matter how much you think it's cheaper to repair, it never is, it always costs you more in the long run.

Worked for a bev distributor that sells famous sugar water, when I started I knew nothing about the business or refrigeration equipment, had large inventory with 15 to 30 year old refrigerators. Costs just keep piling up.
>just refurb them anon
>ok
Do that for about six months, look at costs. Just cleaning and changing gaskets on a cooler, close to $100 of work (labor and parts).
Cost of working on the refrigeration system, parts alone over $300, labor at least another $200. And at the end of the day, you can't make a 15 year old refrigerator look close to new.

Cost of a brew new machine with a seven year warranty, $750
Start sending coolers to the junk yard and buying brand new ones, no one in the industry does this. Could never figure out why. One day it hits me, its just techs covering their ass, looking busy to justify their job.
Big name competitor comes sniffing around because they see new machines in big accounts and their stuff is old.
>what the fuck you doing? do you have an hvac license?
>dont need one, I don't work on them
>oh yeah? well we got a shop with seven guys that all they do is work on that shit
>oh yeah? well i take the money you pay the seven guys and buy new machines.
>pikachu face

>>1532474
Butane, it's in most modern fridges (which is why they sometimes explode).

>>1532474
I'm gonna dare say, natural gas.

A few big name manufacturers were going to try to roll it out, don't know if they done it yet.

>>1532999
Huh I guess that’s why we find all the heavy water at the bottom of the ocean

>>1533074
Oh great... gonna have to switch all the regulators and orifices on the existing gear running r 290...

>>1533145
They only use R600a in small appliances, because of the flammability. Anything over a certain weight and it isn't even allowed.

>>1533160
Plenty of r 290 in commercial restaurant equipment. Also with them fazing 134A out in 2020 600 is going to be The new default refrigerant for home appliances.. And everyone and their brother wants you to use lokring to fix it

>>1532603

>>1533644

>>1532965
>mcmansion cuckshed
Top kek, fucking plebs dont even know how to use the memes properly

>>1532603 How about opening the windows to decrease moisture?

>>1533938
How can you seriously make that suggestion when you don't even know where he lives or what climate he has?

>>1532991
People are working on this, dipshit.

>>1532920
>meaning one molecule of a cfc can single handedly destroy thousands of ozone molecules before decomposing, hence why they're banned.
Or they were banned because the patent ran out on CFCs and...
>money
Don't you think it's a bit too convenient that around the same time the patent ran out, suddenly no one was allowed to use them? Same thing with glyphosate, probably. Seems to be a trend.

>>1533014
Hmm, well the newer model 30gal says it can run on 120 or 240, and then in the specs it says “Volts: 240” and “Amps: 15”. But if it’s 2HP, that’s like 1500w, so ~13A on regular plugs, and then I’m sure there’s a spike putting it over 15A.

Anyway check your breaker box and see what that circuit is rated. The manual from the newer 30gal says “It may be possible to run on a 20A breaker”, so that sounds like best case scenario if nothing else is plugged in. Don’t just go installing bigger breakers with the same old wiring. That thing should probably be running on 240v.

>>1534395
its the older one that has 1.8 horsepower, i think i might try running it through one of the 20 amp plugs, if not should i just go test the capacitor?

>>1532603
I like you. You think outside the box.
>wasteful Americans: just leave refrigerator open to double as air conditioner

>>1532886
Then kill yourself

>>1533945
He wasn’t. I’m resisting the urge to call you names.

>>1534410
Whatever you want. I’m not the right person to be answering this anyway. You can throw a clamp meter on there too, but either way that motor is going to be right on the edge of what most 120 outlets can handle.

>>1534672
>I’m not the right person to be answering this anyway.

but you are. it's a given that an internet discussion gets better answers if some idiot first posts some horseshit posing as knowledge.

so, for the immediate and perhaps distant future, you can provide that first service.

>>1534693
Nice.

I’m mostly saying I’m not sure on the capacitor. Even if anon gets it all running like new, that thing is right on the edge of what a regular 20A circuit can handle.

This is probably the wrong thread for that question though. We’re more concerned with whether we should huff R 22 or R 134a

>>1534716
>We're more concerned with whether we should huff R 22 or R 134a
That is quite interesting. Which one has less negative long term side effects on your body if huffed?

>>1535973
It’s hard to tell after only 6 years of doing it, and I didn’t huff daily in the beginning, that was only the past 2 years. Give me another 20 years and I will report back

>>1531716
In a pinch while I was between companies once I used a $20 vacuum pump that ran off a compressor (lol) from HF. I ended up having to modify it heavily and I think it took another $3 in parts, and it was loud as fuck, and it took a long ass time, but it worked.

I might still have the worlds shittiest working $23 vacuum pump lying around somewhere if we didn't have to burn it on a pyre for all the neighbors to see.

>>1533784
>t. mutt

The level of retardation in this thread is astounding

>>1531687
It's not quite as simple as you think it is, which is why people don't do it themselves more often..

>>1531716
You're certified and your advice to people is just to blow the charge? Neck yourself asshole.

>>1531733
Please do it in front of me so I can video it. The EPA pays out a percentage of the fines they collect to people who report venting.

>>1532337
Repurpose a compressor? Oh, sure, they're all the same just make it fit. God you're dumb.

>>1532781
Fuck your atmosphere. Refrigerant recovery is a government led scam. The only reason I do it is because I don't want to be the one they make an example of when they issue a fine.

>>1533062
Newer fridges are switching to propane, the amount in the system is small enough that it wouldn't level your house if it exploded.

>>1535981
I hope you're doing is straight out of units so you get a lungfull of that sweet cancer causing oil too.

To PROPERLY replace a compressor in a small appliance you're supposed to:
>recover the existing refrigerant
>unsweat and remove the old compressor, making sure to solder the ends shut so the oil doesn't leak out
>install and sweat the new one
>pressure test for leaks
>pull a vacuum with the proper vacuum pump and gauge
>weigh in a charge of fresh refrigerant

If you fuck around with it and don't pull a good vacuum or don't use fresh refrigerant you're asking for it to fail again real soon.

>>1536544
Don't forget to add/replace a new filter drier on the suction line faggot

>>1536544
>>>1532337
>Repurpose a compressor? Oh, sure, they're all the same just make it fit. God you're dumb.

At least I can comprehend English you daft cunt.

>>1537013
Filter/dryer goes on the liquid line cleetus.

You only double up on them if you're repairing a burnout.

>>1537030
Hence the "add" word and the ambiguous nature of the slash you retard

>>1536544
Name one appliance that has service ports. What are you gonna do, leave the piercing valve on there or properly sweat in a port on the low side?

>>1537084
Sub zero refrigerators come with ports...

>>1534410

dude its because when it compresses to full and you use a tool and it starts again, it already has like 60lbs in the tank and single phase motors are tough to start to begin with, even without a load. so the motor stalls out and it draws a high amperage.

you can:

install some sort of governor/decompressor for start up

lower the restart psi incrementally until it no longer trips on restarts

leave it always run with a relief set at 120 vented to atmosphere

get a 3 phase motor and vfd

increase breaker amperage

test your start capacitor:

discharge start/run caps safely
use multimeter on resistance setting
should measure high value and increase to infinity

>>1537084
You're not supposed to leave piercing valves on retard. Once the gas is recovered, you remove the valve and sweat on a permanent access stub. If you do enough of these you don't even use piercing valves, you get those locking pliers that pierce and use those.

Been looking into R450 as a replacement for 134a, which is considered dangerous and will be banned in the 20's. Oddly, I've been told by several educators that 450 is safe to vent. When asked how it could be that way while comprised of over 40% of 134a, they explained it was "magic".

Ride the bubble.

>>1537728
Gwp rating for it is 60% of 134a... 540 ish vs 1430... of course r 600 has a gwp of 3....

>>1536544
>RAAAAAAAGE
Who touched you as a child?

>>1531687
>Why aren't we all into doing our own compressor repairs?
For the same reason people don't do their own automatic transmission rebuilds on their own cars: why spend thousands of dollars on specialized tools and specific replacement parts to do a job you're going to do once and never again for years and years? You at least in this case have to have equipment for removing and storing the refrigerant, soldering and welding equipment, specialized replacement parts for sealed compressors, and so on. May as well take it to someone who does refrigeration and ask them to replace it with a new compressor but by then you could buy several of the complete new units and not give a fuck anymore. What you're proposing on a one-off basis is not in any way practical that's why you don't do it.


Also all these:
>>1531712
>>1531713
>>1532454
>>1532781
>>1532951
>>1533041

Being /diy/ doesn't mean being stupid and wasteful

>>1532781
The ozone layer has been repaired.

>>1531716
You can get vacuum pumps for $50
Or diy a piston vacuum pump

>>1531687
You put the doohickey(300 bucks) in the thingamajig (100 bucks) and jog it off with the spannerbrick(200 dollarinos), then you put the goobernazzle(another 150 bucks that i have laying around) into the recepticle fixing it with the special torch(tm)(75 bucks used from my neighbor stan) without melting the room temp melting point thing behind it that will make the whole thing worthless if you do melt it.

This is how you sound, this is why people don't diy fix their fucking compressor powered appliances that cost 100 bucks to replace.

Fucking /thread