I had a broken A/C hose last year and I have purchase an replacement. I will install the hose this weekend and charge it up with 134a. What type of thread sealent should I use. The air condition shop said they would not use any sealent if they install the hose back in. But, when i took the hose apart. I know forsure they use some short os sealent. Look like epoxy. I want to use the right stuff that would last.

thank

__________________
Silver Honda Accord, 2006
Silver G500, 2003
Silver SLK-320, 2002
Black ML-320, 2000
Bule Porsche 993 Targa , 1997
Silver Merkur XR4Ti, 1987

Sorry to say this, but you are WAY off base here in several ways. A/C hoses typically use O-rings or crush washers, but not any sealant on the threads. Unless of course there is something different about the newer cars, but that is not likely; my experience is with older cars (typically pre-90). Someone please correct me if I am wrong & need to be educated about this .

You also do not simply replace a line that was broken a year ago, charge it up, and go happily down the road. Check the search function here for more information regarding replacement of the receiver-dryer, vacuuming the system to remove moisture, etc..

So do they use any sealent on the o-righ?? If the orginal don't use sealent. Could I use a sealent for added protection. If so, what syould I use. But, it does look like they use some sort of sealent.

Anyone???

thanks.

__________________
Silver Honda Accord, 2006
Silver G500, 2003
Silver SLK-320, 2002
Black ML-320, 2000
Bule Porsche 993 Targa , 1997
Silver Merkur XR4Ti, 1987

Boy, people here at MercedesShop.com are going to think I’m a real a**hole for saying this, but you really should take it to a professional; otherwise it seems likely that you will regret not having done so. Sorry.

Well RTH I'll back you up. It's obvious that those who have not had much A/C experience should take their vehicles to a pro. Doing a job incorrectly and then having to have someone else undo the mess is not my idea of saving money.
No offense Blau.

__________________
Scott Diener
89 300E
93 300E
92 Volvo 740 Wagon aka "Mutt mover"

Thanks Chowpit. I wasn’t sure if maybe I was just having a 'bad attitude' sort of day…

Guys, I think you are making this way too complicated. The process is simple; replace all o-rings (there is no thread sealant) that you can easily get to. If you are doing a conversion you need to replace drier/receiver (cheap and easy to replace). Button it all up and take to shop to flush the system and vacuum for an hour or so. Refill with 134a and you should be in good shape. This is not rocket science. I just did this to my 380SL and it blows nice, cold air. You can get 0-ring packet at any auto parts store. You may want to check out this site: http://www.id-usa.com

Brothers of The Benz, All
Right in that no sealant is required on the "O" ring seals except for refrigirant oil.
No harm can come from anti-sieze compound applied to the male threads making sure none gets in the system.
It's unfortunant that we all weren't born rocket scientist.
We have to learn sometime.
Let's help those who ask for what knowledge someone has pasted on to us.
blau, if your system needs a hose and it is empty of freon; go ahead and replace it as has been suggested.
Take it to a refer shop for final service.
I might suggest you request that the compressor oil level be checked or in your case converting to 134A, the newer oil be added or changed.
blau, roll up your sleeves and dive in, you will be better for your effort.
Happy Trails Beep Beep from The Spiderman in Houston!!!

Thanks Dlswnfrd


You guys all I want to know is if someone knows an approperate sealent.

In the entire auto and A/C industry there has got be an sealent that is approperate for my application. I just want to make the seal bulletproof or leakproof.

Your concerns are noted by are not necessary. I have done this before and know what I am doing. I have done all the resource. Beyond what is avaliable on the net. I have converted 3 car in total and all but this one is fine (broken hose related to something else).

It work before and it is going to work now.

I think I am going to look at my local hardward store or my local industrial A/C or gas pipe stores.

blau

__________________
Silver Honda Accord, 2006
Silver G500, 2003
Silver SLK-320, 2002
Black ML-320, 2000
Bule Porsche 993 Targa , 1997
Silver Merkur XR4Ti, 1987

Blau, my point about this process not being rocket science is simply to try to quell the nay-sayers of this job being a DIY project. It is really simple. If you may have missed the purpose of the o-rings, please let me reiterate, The threaded ends of the hose have an 0-ring in there. The o-ring seals the connection. The only reason for the threaded connections is to simply hold the hoses together, the threaded connections themselves seal absolutely nothing. There is no sealant. The o-ring does the sealing. DO NOT overly tighten the connections, as again, they do not do the job of sealing. At the drier/receiver connection you will find it is simply a compression fit as in any plumbing connection. Just snug the connection because it is soft brass. Again, DO NOT overly tighten the joint. If you have any further questions please feel free to e-mail.

Try this stuff, Nylog: http://www.acsource.com/cgi-bin/SoftCart.exe/scstore/p-RT200R.html?L+scstore+qygr3469+994458624

You can also find it at AireCo (nationwide distributors). At a minimum you use the oil that is in the system.

Also, If they were using sealant (e.g RTV) forget it. Someone had a brainf@rt. Antisieze on threads is not a bad idea. Be very careful about contaminating the lines though.

Oil. Flush it all and go with http://www.acsource.com/cgi-bin/SoftCart.exe/scstore/polyalpha/polyalpha.html?L+scstore+qygr3469+994458624 It's manufactured by http://www.rocoil.com/rocoil2.html

Great board at http://www.aircondition.com/wwwboard/ for discussing automotive a/c.

Good luck. I'm getting ready to convert two R-12 systems to R-134.

__________________
S, J.R. Brown
2000 G500 LWB Obsedian Black
2005 Toyota Tacoma Access Cab Off Road Sport
1993 Volvo 240 Sedan Anthracite
1980 450SEL Champange (owned it for 15 years. Great car)
1986 280GE LWB Anthracite (Sold it and kinda wish I hadn't)

Brother of The Benz, blau
You've read up and down the page.
Now "Separate the Wheat from the, oh you know what." To quote the most read book of all time.
Happy Trails Beep Beep from The Spiderman in Houston!!!

Brother dlswnfrd, I do believe Brau's question was one of mechanics as opposed to philosophy or religion. Therefore, I find your last post rather ironic.

Uh-Oh, I smell fuel – let’s not turn this thread into a “flame war”. I may have (inadvertently) done damage by inferring less than required understanding & expertise for the original poster, but sometimes you can read between the lines and get a good sense of what’s going on. Therefore my recommendation to take it to a shop *before* unnecessary “sealant” ends up in the compressor, receiver, expansion valve, etc.. Once that happens, a simple flush, vacuum & recharge (per Southern_Son) is not going to be enough. Contamination inside an AC system is *not* a good idea. If someone is hell-bent on doing something improperly, even after being told the correct way, trouble is certainly brewing; therefore a recommendation to take it to a professional is not meant as a personal insult, it is meant as *help* to avoid much greater problems than what already exists.

As far as AC work not being “rocket science”, I couldn’t agree more; however some understanding of the basic principles & practices is a good idea. This is where Southern_Son & dlswnfrd were much more gracious than I, and did a good job explaining some of the basics regarding the hoses, fittings, & how to approach the problem from a semi-DIY perspective.

JRBrown provided some good links, and I thank you for that!

And last, Southern_Son, I am pretty sure that dlswnfrd is not a religious zealot. He has displayed a good sense of humor on this board & has been an invaluable contributor. I believe that his reference to separating the wheat from the chaff was meant quite simply as - ‘go to it, and see what the result of your efforts are’. Of course, I could be wrong; that is known to happen from time to time.

He started it! He started it! He started it!