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Old 07-18-2017, 10:37 PM   #1
Boba Ben
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Drives: 2009 Sedan
Join Date: Jul 2017
Location: Gurnee, IL.
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Red Angel Stop Leak - Need Advice

I'm already feeling pretty stupid for using this stuff, so please don't rag on me too much.

Anyway, I've been having a/c problems all Spring/Summer and have taken it to my regular mechanic shop several times. They've put the dye in with the recharge and haven't been able to locate the leak, and it keeps emptying out in about a week. They said they think it's probably behind the dash in the evaporator coil. The guy told me that if that's what it is, it' going to cost a ton of money and take a ton of time and they didn't seem too interested in doing the job. I contacted the Toyota dealership and they quoted me over $1600 to do the job, which didn't sound too great, either.

The car is an '09 with 125k on it, so I figured it's probably not worth that, so I started looking online for other options. I found this Red Angel Stop Leak stuff that seems to have worked quite well for many people and they claim that it does not harm any recovery equipment and doesn't clog the system. Here's what they say:

Quote:
The new oil-based stop leaks have a tough road ahead overcoming the negative connotations brought about by existing A/C stop leaks. However, this new era of sealant works in an entirely different fashion. Oil-based stop leaks are activated by pressure and flow velocity at the leak point. The oil acts as a lubricant and is compatible with the PAG or ester oil already present in the A/C system. The stop leak is inert when injected into the system through the low side port. The refrigerant charge activates the molecules in the sealant as it reacts to flow velocity at the leak point only. The result is a flexible yet strong repair.

As long as the A/C system is not losing more than a pound of refrigerant per day, this repair is permanent. Once the leak is sealed, the remaining oil will continue to lubricate the system. Therefore, there is never any crystallization in the orifice tubes, no damaged compressors and, most importantly, if the system is ever recovered, the remaining stop leak is reclaimed with the oil, keeping the recovery machine safe and technicians happy.
Well, I tried the stuff and put a 12 oz can of R-134a in the system afterwords, but the charge was done in about three days and the leak was not stopped. I'm just wondering if anyone's had experience with this and if their claim about it not harming recovery equipment is correct. I'm thinking of bringing it in for the big repair to the evap coil, but I don't want to cause any harm to the shop's equipment and want to know if this stuff is known to damage or clog the a/c system(they say it doesn't, but that doesn't mean it's true). Any advice would be appreciated.
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Old 07-20-2017, 04:04 PM   #2
B.B._07
 
Drives: 07 5dr
Join Date: Nov 2015
Location: YYC
Posts: 197
It looks like you have a large refrigerant leak and your regular mechanic is not really geared up to do AC work and/or he's not really interested in doing it (as you said). A decent shop will have a refrigerant leak detector or "sniffer" that can detect a R134A leak even if it coming from the evaporator core in the dash. You can get a name brand one for around $100 on amazon or a cheap no name brand for as little as $20.

https://www.amazon.com/Robinair-TIFX...+leak+detector

https://www.amazon.com/Elitech-WJL-6...+leak+detector

If you want to tackle the leak yourself I'd suggest getting a cheap uv light from one of the auto parts stories or amazon/ebay and in dark garage or at night running it along all the AC lines under the hood. The AC lines are on the passenger side of the engine running from the firewall forward to the AC compressor under the alternator and the condenser behind the radiator. If there is a leak the neon green dye will be hard to miss with the uv light. Otherwise take to a shop that has a decent setup for working on AC systems. Also I wouldn't worry about the stop leak damaging their recovery machine as most or all of your refrigerant has leaked out and the remaining stop leak will be in the oil which is not sucked out when they put the system under a vacuum.
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Old 07-20-2017, 09:36 PM   #3
SirDigby
 
Drives: 2007 yaris 3 door
Join Date: Sep 2015
Location: Denver, Colorado
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also, if you're going to use a black light,get some CSI yellow tinted glasses as it will help in locating UV dye. i work for RobinAir. in the description of "oil based stopleak" it stays in the pag oil and has "velocity activation." at the end of deep recovery, the RRR machine will perform a "oil drain" cycle. it would pressurize the container that holds the oil/stopleak and opens a solenoid where it flows through a tube into a bottle. i could see it clogging the solenoid and tube. but they always get clogged. it's probably in my top 10 most frequent repairs...
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