Are Do-It-Yourself Air Conditioning Charging Kits Effective?

September 19, 2024

Do-It-Yourself A/C Refrigerant Charging Kits


Some of us like to do things ourselves and we get a lot of questions regarding the do-it-yourself refrigerant charging kits. Here are a few reasons not to do this yourself.


  1. Air conditioning systems are designed to operate with a very specific amount of refrigerant and oil in them. How do you know how much to” fill it up” is needed? You can add refrigerant out of a spray can with a hose until you “think” it’s enough, but that can lead to an incorrect charge in the system. This can damage your air conditioning system even if you use too much or too little of this refrigerant.
  2. These kits most often contain a Stop Leak chemical in them. Vehicle manufacturers did not design vehicles to have this chemical in them and they have very small pathways in some areas and delicate moving parts in others. The Stop Leak will restrict the pathways and goop up the moving parts, inevitably causing you costly repairs in the future.

       Stop Leak can also damage our equipment used to recover refrigerant from your vehicle when it comes in for maintenance. Please let us know if you               have used any prior to scheduling service.


Joe’s Slinger Service has licensed professionals who use state-of-the-art equipment to keep our environment safe. EPA tells us that refrigerant is harmful to the environment and we take that seriously.


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Gray and blue automotive air conditioning machine with gauges and screen, hand holding handle. | Joe's Slinger Service
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