OK.. I think the pressure switch is the only one you have to jump on the Rec/Dryer..
Did you have the guages hooked up when you started the car ? What did they say ?
You have to look at the way those gauges work.... they have two closed positions each..
Did you get any squealing ... any unusual vibrations ... feel of the outside of the compressor....

I did not hook the gauges up today, but when I did last week they read 0. They were both fully open. SHould I have them hooked up while jumping the compressor?

There were no unusual noises when the compressor was spinning.

I have the factory service CDs. Just sometimes it is better to ask here, sometimes I can't find where everything and what everything is!

I'm pretty good around the car, have done all my maintainence, just never have worked on A/C before. I have a vacuum pump that runs off the air compressor and have a set of manifold gauges.

The vacuum that runs off an air compressor is not suitable for this job.

You need to check for leaks before you put refrigerant into the system.
The best way is to borrow or rent a Nitrogen bottle and get four ounces of R22...
You will need some way to detect that R22 as it leaks out..then you will need to fix those leaks...
Can you check with the PO and see if you can get more information ?
Have you checked the fuses for the fan inside the car ?
Are all your knobs turned towards COLD , Max AC, etc ?

I can contact the PO but when I bought the car almost exactly a year ago he told me in the time he owned it the A/C never worked and he never looked into it. I think he owned it for 2 years which would put the A/C not working back to 2004. The R134a sticker is dated 2000 or 2001, I 'll have to recheck.

I know the compressor pump can't pull the full vacuum but I thought I read on here that it was adequate and that others had used.

I do have the knobs on air and max. Last year I had some issues with the ACC so I purchased another and it has worked well. I don't recall specifically if I tried the A/C with the ACC last year but I definitely tried it this year while it was 40-50F outside just to check it!

Fuses inside the car? Not the fuse panel? Like the strip fuse on the blower? The blower works for heat, so I would assume it works for A/C??

I'm assuming a Nitrogen bottle rental would occur at an A/C shop? or autoparts store?

Here is some good general information ....

http://www.epa.gov/ozone/title6/609/recharge.html

You also said your system has not been used for at least 2 years and it would not be unreasonable that rubber O rings would be dried out and leaks would occur from those. This is an inexpensive fix and I would recommend replacing these BEFORE charging the system with anything. These are not expensive, but you would have to remove any hoses connected to parts of the system to get to them. They are not hard to replace, but it could be a little time consuming and the effort is well worth it. There is a very good chance that if the system has not worked for awhile, it's because it won't hold refrigerant without leaking from somewhere.

I thought perhaps he could describe the symptoms at the time it stopped working..

You should be able to rent a nitrogen bottle ... typically at a regular Welding Gas place.. I bought my bottle last year.. not too expensive ...

"I know the compressor pump can't pull the full vacuum but I thought I read on here that it was adequate and that others had used."

You might need to do more reading about the theory of the AC system... and the effects of moisture in the system... If you cut corners on the AC system you are way too likely to have to do it all over again too soon... properly done it has the possibility to last 8-10 years with only the addition of an ounce or two every couple of years to keep it going..otherwise you risk have a black death a year from now and having a much bigger problem to deal with... A great vacuum pull is essential to any possibility of a good fix...
It is your car so you can do whatever you want to.

A good vacuum pull here is a must! Do NOT skip this procedure at any costs!Moisture in the system will turn R134A corrosive and breathing this stuff will cause brain damage or even death at 4 parts per million and it has no odor at this concentration. Corrosion can eat away at the aluminum in your system, including the evaporator and this gas venting into the car would be lethal!

I'm not trying to scare you out of servicing your system here, but this is not an area where you should be taking any shortcuts. You want to really consider replacing the receiver/drier if your going to use R134A if that is what your AC compressor is designed for.

The rule is always that if the system is opened up the Rec/Dryer must be replaced..
once moisture gets caught in there it can not be gotten out by later vacuuming...

Yes, but the system will not hold a charge now. I would replace the receiver/drier automatically along with all seals. Seals that are shot, a very likely possibility, mean the system is already opened up. Minnesota is a climate with vast temperatures and high humidity. I would replace this in my car. I replaced anything in doubt when I repaired mine.

I don't think we have established that it will not hold a charge at this point.
The receiver dryer should not be installed until everything is set up to do the vacuum IMMEDIATELY after it is installed.

Knightrider966,
Aren't you worried that agreeing with my AC philosophy will ruin both yours and my image ?

I don't disagree with your philosophy entirely. Any service done to an AC system must be done right. Leaks, poor service, and any questionable parts must be serviced and/or repaired properly before adding any refrigerant.

I just couldn't disagree more on refrigerant types and the risks with both. I find no logic in the EPA position that HC's are dangerous because they can catch fire and HFC's are safer because they won't, even though HFC's will cause permanent brain damage if inhaled in quantities as low as 4 parts per million. This stuff has no smell at this concentration, so there is no warning from exposure and by the time you realise something is wrong, it's too late!

HC's have a heavy odorant added to them. By the time you smell a problem, the gas concentration has to be 25 to 30 times higher to ignite. This odorant is my safety factor and one I can live with. But I would never recommend anyone just pour in some refrigerant and viola! everything works perfect regardless of what type.

The chemical composition of Autofrost looks promising enough to consider when I'm fully licensed because it requires a permit and it won't burn or deplete the ozone layer, the original reason I tried Envirosafe. Whether we like it or not R12 is going to be gone at some point and we must move on from there. It was my favourite for this too.

Knightrider,

Why would you suggest he replace the orings and not even mention flushing the system.. not logical. If you open it up at all the joints there is no reason not to flush before putting it back together.

Why in the world do you not already have your license ? It is an open book test... I think you will be able to pass it....and if not you can take it again....

I am thinking that if you were required to study or find the answers to the test I might not have to spoon feed you some of the facts about the ( illegal in many states and unnecessarily dangerous ) HC refrigerants . But you can't resist promoting them....while failing to mention the actual drawbacks...it is the failing to present a balanced picture that requires me to post in reply to them... but I have plenty of electrons left in my computer... and I am sure that people will learn more about refrigerants with you promoting them than otherwise...