Is my Air-Con safe to re-gas? worn pipe.

[mike_nofx]

Hey all.
This summer my AC hasn't been getting very cold so i took it in to get re-gassed.
The AC shop told me that they didn't re-gas it because of wear marks on the High side ac pipe.
They also mentioned that the system still has some gas, and is still under pressure (not full) and that they believe it may not actually have any leaks and the gas may have evaporated over time.

I was quoted $135 for a re-gas, but with a new genuine toyota hose the price will be $450 (fitted and gassed) Which i am really not happy with.

I'd like to know wether my ac system will be safe to just be re-gassed, in my opinion i would take the risk and just get it done without replacing the pipe/hose.

Just like some other opinions. Would you feel safe to re-gas it? How thick is this pipe, and how much 'meat' would be left?

By the way, the car is a 100 series Diesel cruiser. And the wear marks were caused by the plastic covering on a battery cable (as can be seen in pics moved to BELOW the pipe) and by the way, the plastic covering has almost NO wear marks on it!! I have cleaned the pipe up with a wire brush so you can see it better. It had some black plastic marks on it.

Thanks
Mike

[coxy321]

Just do it. Those pipes arent very thick walled, and are made of a fairly soft metal, but i dont think there's a huge chance of rupturing it there. Even if it does split, you'll just end up with compressor oil and crap everywhere (and all those toxic gases will be released to the atmosphere).

[chimpboy]

A used hose would cost a lot less if the only issue is the metal part.

But yeah I would go ahead and regas it; I'd bet anything that when it goes it will be the rubber hose and not the metal fitting.

[ajsr]

I had a mate that blew a hole in his ac pipe when he touched it with a spanner that was also live to the battery.
Anyway he put araldite on the pipe in two batches over two days. He then got another mate of ours to regas it even though he was told it would never hold.That was three years ago and its still holding fine.We were only hanging shit on him about it the other day
Id get it gassed and it your worried put some of that metal mend on it so if something rubs there again it not rubbing the pipe.
cheers andrew

[PJ.zook]

I dont see a problem with you regassing it. If you are unsure on its safety, just get another pipe 2nd hand.

[zagan]

Just do it. Those pipes arent very thick walled, and are made of a fairly soft metal, but i dont think there's a huge chance of rupturing it there. Even if it does split, you'll just end up with compressor oil and crap everywhere (and all those toxic gases will be released to the atmosphere).

Or leak slowly into the cabin via holes in the firwall.

That or maybe if your real lucky one day maybe brust while your face is right in front of that pipe or anyone else after all that cap is a refill point for the system some every person will see that wear on the pipe everytime it's refilled.

It's up to the guy what he wants to do but that doesn't mean someone will regas it as been refused once.

To me it looks like tire wear rather than a pipe.

[HIGH ROLLER]

It doesnt come down to whether you think it's ok or not, it is the responsiblity of the Authorised Air con man putting his neck on the line there is a $10000 fine if he gases it without checking for leaks or if he thinks it may leak. Their buisness is on the line and it is not worth taking a risk just because you dont want to spend the money, just replace the pipe and get it fixed properly anything else is against the law and could possibly harm the environment.
By the way I'am a qualified refrigeration/Air con mechanic if you could'nt guess

[Tojo]

obviously all the other people who have posted are fully qualified too. And just as obviously they actually know what they are talking about

[coxy321]

To me it looks like tire wear rather than a pipe.

What do you mean?

obviously all the other people who have posted are fully qualified too. And just as obviously they actually know what they are talking about

Yes, and every other single piece of information that people have posted on this forum is from qualified, trained, and certified technicians of the respective area.

Just like there's people that do dodgy road-worthies, there's people that do dodgy refrigeration work. At the end of the day, i'm 99% sure mike is going to do what ever he wants - regardless of whether its legal or not.

Peace out.

[Modified Toy]

If you do not fix is propley now it will bite you in the long run....

[SIMMO84]

If it was mine id gas it. If your worried most ac shops will knock up a rubber hose for about $30 if they charge any more than that there ripping you off.