A/C compressor kicks on about every 5 seconds

[Sam410]

I Just finished installing and charging my Jeep air kit on my 1997 with the 4.0. Good news, AC blows super cold. bad news, compressor is cycling on about every 5 seconds. Im going to call jeep air tomorrow and see what they have to say, however I figure id ask here in the meantime. Any thoughts/ suggestions are appreciated.

 

[Deputy Dodge]

How much 134 did they say to put in and how much did you put in? What was your charge procedure? What are your gauge readings?

 

[Sam410]

How much 134 did they say to put in and how much did you put in? What was your charge procedure? What are your gauge readings?

Called for 2 12oz cans. High side was reading 220. Instructions said anything between 200-250 is good

 

[Robbieg]

Is it cycling as soon as you turn it on with a hot cabin or only after it runs and the cabin gets cold?

 

[freedom_in_4low]

Called for 2 12oz cans. High side was reading 220. Instructions said anything between 200-250 is good

Did the instructions have different high side pressures for different ambient conditions? It varies quite a bit between charging at 75F vs 95F.

 

[Sam410]

Is it cycling as soon as you turn it on with a hot cabin or only after it runs and the cabin gets cold?

both. it starts cycling upon start up and continues on again off again about every 5-10 seconds

 

[Sam410]

Did the instructions have different high side pressures for different ambient conditions? It varies quite a bit between charging at 75F vs 95F.

It says two times the ambient daytime temp plus 20%. its about 75-80 degrees in san diego county any given day

 

[Robbieg]

both. it starts cycling upon start up and continues on again off again about every 5-10 seconds

Ok if it’s doing it off the bat then something's definitely not right, some cycling after it chills down is normal that’s why I asked. With your gauges hooked up you should be able to see a correlation between the cycling and the gauge. When the compressor kicks off is the low side dropping down to 15-20ish or is the high side rising up above 250. That will tell you if it’s the low or high cutoff switch that’s kicking it.

 

[Sam410]

Ok if it’s doing it off the bat then something's definitely not right, some cycling after it chills down is normal that’s why I asked. With your gauges hooked up you should be able to see a correlation between the cycling and the gauge. When the compressor kicks off is the low side dropping down to 15-20ish or is the high side rising up above 250. That will tell you if it’s the low or high cutoff switch that’s kicking it.

I will get back to you tomorrow

 

[Deputy Dodge]

What was your charging procedure? It calls for 24 ounces, which is 2 cans, but if your cans weren't in a bucket of nearly boiling hot water you will ba a few ounces short. Did you vacuum the system first? How long?

 

[Sam410]

What was your charging procedure? It calls for 24 ounces, which is 2 cans, but if your cans weren't in a bucket of nearly boiling hot water you will ba a few ounces short. Did you vacuum the system first? How long?

Yes i vacuumed the system for 45 minutes. I did not however put the cans in hot water. The instructions didnt call for that.

 

[Deputy Dodge]

Refrigerant moves from hot to cold. If I need less than 2 cans or some amount more than 2 cans it's not a big deal because I have plenty left for the proper charge. The hot water is a trick to attempt to get every last drop of refrigerant out and be as close to 2 full cans as possible into the system. With a charge machine it pumps in the exact amount from a 30 pound cylinder and is much more efficient. Sometimes hot water works perfectly, other times I need to crack a third can to get a few more ounces. Glad to hear you vac'd. I'd throw a set of gauges on it and add a little at a time to the low side with the engine running at about 2000 rpm until the low side can maintain a low pressure for a bit without cycling and your center dash vent temp is acceptable.

 

[DUB]

Did you get this fixed? I have learned a ton of stuff since installing my jeepair kit. Finally tackled and fixed it for good last week.

 

[Sam410]

Did you get this fixed? I have learned a ton of stuff since installing my jeepair kit. Finally tackled and fixed it for good last week.

No i havent gotten around to giving it another look. any advice is greatly apreciated

 

[DUB]

No i havent gotten around to giving it another look. any advice is greatly apreciated

What is the low side pressure?

You are set on recirculate on what fan speed? On low speed, you should be cycling more like 20 seconds. On high fan speed it should stabilize and stay on.

I was discussing my problems with Jeep air and they told me to put more 134 in the system, I added more and it was worse. I started dumping refrigerant out of the system and things started working great.