billh1963

My project 996 has a leaky condenser on the driver's side.

Looks like most of the refrigerant has leaked out at this point so I don't need to worry about having a shop capture the gas.

I see no reason why I can't replace these myself.

The plan is to replace both condensers and the dryer. The passenger side condenser looks to be original. So, no sense in replacing one and then losing the other one shortly thereafter.

Since most of my R134a has leaked out, I plan to pull a vacuum to get out all moisture and make sure everything is else is sealed properly.

First question...does pulling a vacuum remove everything in the system (oil, water, R134a, etc.) or just air and trapped water? According to the manual each condenser holds 20 cm3 (0.02 L) of oil. I assume I just need to replace the oil in the condensers? Or, will the vacuum extract the oil in the compressor as well?

Schnell Gelb

I always assume most but not all of the oil will be lost .Look around the original leak point for oily residue.
Make sure it holds a vacuum for many hours. In a humid climate it may be wise to flush with Nitrogen . Shops will often pressure test with nitrogen after a repair to confirm there are no leaks.
Make sure you use the best quality "O" rings . On potentially troublesome connections ,consider using Nylog instead of PAG or whatever your correct oil is.

griffiths

Evacuating the refrigerant, or pulling a vacuum prior to charging the system, does not remove all of the oil from the system.

Typically you would add oil back into the system after R&R of the components.

Replacing 2 condensers and the drier: add back into the system 2.5 oz PAG46 oil.

billh1963

Thank you for the response.

I see you have a sale on condensers. Do the condensers and drier come with O-rings?

griffiths

Yes. We usually supply o-rings with all AC products.