I'm working on a 1994 Ford Ranger. Complaint was it worked well till it didn't. Low side pressure was very high so I evacuated the system to inspect the expansion tube and found this. Not really sure how to remedy this. This pic is from about 10" up the evaporator inlet tube. Please advice, is there a tool for this?
-
-
Pull the evaporator, replace. Whatever drove the tube down the pipe is likely in the evaporator as well. No point sweating getting the old tube out, only to have the evaporator plugged. If the cost puts the customer off, so be it, but likely there are problems through out the system.
I'd pull and cut open the evap and inspect before I'd put the new one in, It the inside is all plugged up, then you know you'll likely have trouble unless you replace every bit of the system. Not likely worth it. -
I struggled to get the orifice tube out of my car one time. I pressurized the opposite end of the evaporator with 160PSI of compressed air and it flew across the shop (thankfully!). May be worth trying...Comment
-
What does it look like? If all full of junk or goo of some sort that means real trouble.
Just a one isn't the answer those go bad from burning up in compressors for whatever reason.
Stinks but was "nick-named" the BLACK DEATH means pretty much whole system is junk. Can't clean it all out or would just do it again. Hang on to your wallet,Tom
MetroWest, BostonComment
-
They do make a few tools to get orifice tubes out, but that isn't the question, the question is why it has moved from where it is supposed to be? If the evaporator tube will not hold the orifice tube in place, then replacing the evaporator is the fix. If gunk or debris blocked the tube and forced it down the pipe, than the evap is likely also contaminated.
Something cause it to be jammed down there, and until you find out why, your chasing your tail.
There may be something someone isn't telling you and it didn't "work fine until it stopped". Like they massively over filled the system because the cooling was poor, then when that didn't work, they brought it in.
Almost 100% the solution will NOT be getting the old tube out and putting a new tube in, there is more to the story.
The design of the tube and its "holder" (evaporator inlet tube) are made to hold the tube in place under all normal conditions the system will see. For it to have moved, something wasn't anywhere near normal. Someone could have used a tube from another brand system, the evap could be faulty and not hold the tube, the tube could be plugged and the system way over charged, forming a liquid ram that applied way to much pressure.
The long and short is: Something forced that orifice tube passed its designed holding place. what you are seeing is the result of the problem, not the problem itself.Comment
-
Spot on Cornbinder - not surprising. "The result of the problem, not the real problem"
Overcharging is too common and deadly. Low charge when systems can't cool well also don't move oil well - the #1 reason to wipe out compressors IMO,Tom
MetroWest, BostonComment
-
Looking at the low resolution picture, one can't be sure, but this is what I think most likely:
End of the orifice tube is dark, like it is coated with something (Black death?)
As the flow of refrigerant through the orifice tube became less and less due the the build up, the compressor started cycling more and more. It could draw down the low side, because little was getting through from the high side.
Some well meaning but uninformed person told them because it is cycling it is low and has a small leak.
Owner goes to Wal Mart and buys a hose with sealer "kit" and keeps filling the low side trying to get the compressor to stop cycling (which it never will). Since there is no high side "storage" of excess refrigerant, (no receiver on the high side of a orifice tube system) the high side pressure rises rapidly. Now it is a race to see what happens next, does the relief blow (if there is one) Does a high side hose blow? or does the retaining of the orifice tube give out?
You have 400 psi+ of liquid refrigerant on the high side with almost no vapor, It is the definition of a hydro-static "pop" test.
They "won the lottery" and were not blinded by something bursting and blinding them with hot liquid refrigerant, but now it doesn't work and the bring it in and say it worked until it stopped.
There are other ways it could have happened, but the above is the most plausible.
Any way you look at it, to bring the system back, you need to verify each component is not damaged or plugged internally, and is in good functioning order.
Most repairs, we "assume" that the condenser and evaporator are good internally until readings suggest otherwise.
That displaced orifice to is screaming excess pressure/ blockage..
If that vehicle came to a shop I was in, I would sit down and price out replacing everything, every line, and component, and give them an "upper limit" on what it may cost. Then pull the evaporator and cut it open to look at the inside. What I see there inform my decision on what else I replaced. You are going to "own" that system, and failures or repeat problems and they are going to blame you and expect it to be fixed at your expense.
With "black Death" the only solution is to replace everything all at once, if you replace one or a coupla of things, the goo just moves from what you didn't replace to the new stuff ruining them also. If I saw black stuff when I cut the old evaporator open, I would stop and tell them it is going to take the full nut to fix.Last edited by Cornbinder89; 07-31-2023, 10:39 AM.Comment
-
I can see that working if the tube is stuck in where it is supposed to be, but in this case it has been forced down the pipe and is not sealing (evidenced by the "very high low side pressure").
They make a tool that hooks onto the "ears" of the tube and pulls them out. There are screw devices that screw into a broken tube to try and remove, but all these tools are for tube in the correct position and place, that are stuck, not for those that have moved further down the system.Comment
-
New evaporator was delivered today. Haven't had a chance to install it yet but I'll post what I find. What amazed me about the the picture is that there are two orifice tubes stuck in there, not just one. Just when you think you've about seen it all.
Comment
-
Yeah, I couldn't tell if the 2nd was part of the bore-o-scope or was a tube. i''d still cut the old one open to be sure there is not contamination problem. just so it doesn't come back and bite you.
Sounds more and more like a defective evap not holding the tube, that would be good f that was all it was.
Thanks for the update.iComment
Comment