One of the reasons air conditioning repairs may be costly is that it requires specialized tools and equipment and an air conditioning tool can be expensive, especially if its use is limited to that specific work. While many of the items sold as an air conditioning tool may be used for other work, there are a few that have no additional function.
As costly as air conditioner repairs may be, the cost of misdiagnosing a needed repair can be excessive. If a technician mistakenly replaces a wrong part and the unit still malfunctions, the owner of the vehicle is not going to pay for repairs. With the correct diagnostic air conditioning tool the technician can accurately determine what is wrong with the system and make the right choice of replacement parts almost all of the time. A quality diagnostic air conditioning tool can cost around $2000, but is a small price to pay for doing things right the first time.
Since air conditioning depends on pressure created by the compressor, gauges are needed to determine if the unit is functioning properly and can help determine where in the system pressure is being lost. This air conditioning tool can help diagnose problems with the compressor, the evaporator, and condenser or points in between and is helpful in finding leaks in the system s tubing.
Gauges Help Diagnose Pressure Problems
The compressor, considered the heart of the system is a pump and has two ports. One input which pulls from the evaporator and send the gas and cold air to the condenser where the cold air is distributed to the home or vehicle. Gauges that can measure the input suction as well as output pressure can be helpful in finding the cause of the unit not working. The better air conditioning tool will have both type of gauges built into one unit.
Various air conditioning tools are designed to help locate leaks of the gas inside the system, with some requiring ultraviolet light to detect the leak while others use a coloring in the gas to pinpoint the problem. While either one will work, many mechanics insist the UV detectors help them with faster results in finding leaks in the system.
One of the most common air conditioning tools that can be used elsewhere in the home or garage is a simple thermometer. Since the gas entering the condenser should be around 32-degrees, a thermometer at the blower inside the car will generally register between 35 and 39 degrees. With the unit running, any temperature higher than 40 degrees may indicate a problem with the system.