Air Conditioner is also the most important component of your vehicle that makes your ride more comfortable and pleasant by circulating inside air and keeps cooling it to make better temperature than outside the vehicle but it also wants care because it is very sensitive and develops various kinds of problems including very high and low pressure in the Air Conditioner and it is not easy to determine in one time because it doesn’t affect the performance of your vehicle and here is the answer of your question that how to check AC pressure in car because it helps you to diagnose the problem easily.
And it is not good to leave it as it is if you observe any problem because that leads you to difficulty. Suppose you observed the problem and you ignored it then there is the like Air Conditioner went off and outside the vehicle, it is very hot and sunny weather and maybe you traveled to another city or state that is not regular with you and that suffers you a lot.
Table of Contents
What Is The Ideal Air Conditioner Pressure?
This is the most common problem in all vehicle’s Air Conditioner, that maybe go very low that makes low cooling and that makes you suffer in very humid places like traffic jams or maybe there is too sunny weather for you and also goes high than regular that leads you in a dangerous situation like an explosion because your vehicle has very high-quality refrigerant that can operate up to 200PSI.
Actual pressure of your Air Conditioner to operate well, the low side is near about 30PSI at 90-degree Fahrenheit or less and high side is twice the ambient temperature, plus 50PSI.
How To Check AC Pressure In Car?
The very basic methods are mentioned below that enough to answer how to check AC pressure in car, you have to locate the AC compressor first. And before doing anything, you have to repair your Engine or any machinery-
- Always wear tight clothes.
- wear Glasses.
- Use gloves.
Pressure measuring Method-
Instruments-
- Air Conditioner Manifold-Gaude set
- Gloves
- Refrigerant
- Safety glasses
- choke wheels
If you are finding solutions for -How to check AC pressure. You are the right article, These are very common and necessary when detecting issues in Air conditioners or checking AC Pressure. They are easily available at any auto parts shop and also easy to afford helps you to avoid fault in Air Conditioners and also describes in the article how to check the AC pressure.
Step 1-
Park the vehicle at a level place, That helps you to measure the correct level of refrigerant. High and low are both dangerous but high is still better than low.
Step 2-
And it is necessary to Place the wheel choke around the driver-side wheel.
Step 3-
Open the Car hood to locate the Air Conditioner compressor.
The Compressor is located near the front side of the Engine and attached with the engine by the big belt, also the Air Conditioner clutch is easy to locate in the engine hood of the Car. If still not able to locate the compressor turn off the Air Conditioner and you can notice the belt is rotating but the Air Conditioner is stationery.
Step 4-
Turn on the Air Conditioner at medium always never at high.
Step 5-
Check the refrigerant level may be refrigerant level is low. Don’t overcharge or undercharged both but overcharged is still better than undercharged.
it must be preferred to fill at the authorized shop because charging the refrigerant is also a task to do, in the shop, they empty the previous measures it’s weight and then add the refrigerant in it.
Step 6-
Check Compressor Clutch, may it is not working properly and the main reason behind it is-
- voltage is not circulating properly or you can say there is a wiring fault in it.
- The pressure switch is not working properly or may be jammed.
- Clutch issues maybe are not engaging or jammed.
Step 7-
turn off your engine and attach the Air Conditioner Manifold Gauge Kit and nozzles are placed differently with the different cars so kindly, check your manual to locate them.
connect with a nozzle with a respective point as for low at the low-pressure point and for high at the high-pressure point and properly note the high and low pressure.
- Do not check ever in on the condition of the engine.
- Pressure is zero you have a measured leak.
- High then go to the mechanic and let them release the pressure.
- The pressure drop is minimum and you need to use a refrigerant die kit to locate leaks because minor leaks are difficult to locate.
This helps you to detect the minute leaks in pressure hoses attached with the compressor maybe that are the causes to leak pressure and you are failing to achieve the desired temperature in your vehicle.
Step 8-
if you suffering from issues then now you have to visit a maintenance shop to diagnose the problem maybe there is more tool required or more test needs to perform at your Air Conditioner.
above mention steps are in synchronized order you have to just perform one by one and detect the issue, but maybe there are a number of faults are there and need a technician then you have a special legal authority to visit a service center and check through the certified technician.
How Much Would AC Service/Replacement Cost?
Also, precaution is a very cheap and effective method because maybe if avoid the problem and after that, there is a situation like a repair and replacement of the components that is very costly for you and if you know about the Air Conditioner of your vehicle that also save the money even of labor charges.
- And normal service like charging of Air Conditioner (refrigerant filling or other maintenance) cost around 350USD. or somewhere around it.
- Another hand repairing (major) AC costs around 2000USD. or more depending on the model of the car.
How Would You Get To Know About Charging Level Of Your AC?
So, if you want to save your time and money, in both cases you have to know about the charging level of your AC and how would it harm you.
1. Overcharged AC
If you overcharged (means fill the extra refrigerant), then the state change from liquid to gas does not happen. Now, your compressor provides the liquid refrigerant instead of gas into the compressor liners and the compressor has to work hard now to circulate the refrigerant. The result is broken and loud noise in the compressor.
2. Undercharged AC
This is the opposite case of the overcharged AC when you fill the compressor below the factory set level. Then there is also a compressor that has to work more to make the correct amount of refrigerant circulate into the liners. The result is burned compressor and it is more dangerous than the overcharged AC.
Video Guide
This video helps you in how will you do the process of diagnosing or repair.
Conclusion
These are the main cause that generally harms the Air Conditioner, and that only controlled by the proper maintenance and scheduled services because “Regular Maintenance is the only Key”. These situations are very common these days and day by day the consumption is increasing exponentially and there is the possibility of manufacturing defects, so it is mandatory to always be punctual with service logs of vehicles.
This helps you to keep far from an accident because it is too low cost than repairing any part or replacement of that part and that makes you a good consumer and a good Driver. Air Conditioner in your vehicle makes your traveling more comfortable and easy. I hope after reading the article you will get the proper solution for how to check AC pressure in car.
But still, in some cases, accidents happen and in that case, it is necessary to consult a good service technician on whom you believe because satisfaction is also necessary for you and never leave the faults if caught one of them try to fix as early as possible. Because Air Conditioner fixing problems needs some experience touch to fix it properly.