Venture A/C problem

How hard is it to get to the evaporater on a 2000 Venture Van ?
Mech. say's he did the dye test and found no leaks where he could check ans said the problem is most likley at the evaporate and ball park figure was $600.00 including part's . Is this a good or bad price ?
Thank's

Um, you might want to find another mechanic? If he put dye in the system and there is a leak, the dye will come out somewhere. He can check to see if it is the evaporator by checking the evaporator drain for the UV dye. I don't think these evaporators are prone to leaks. However, the condensors are as well as the lines going to the rear A/C. I wouldn't pay for an evaporator unless he would garantee it fixes the problem.

Picked Van up today . He told when i picked it up that it would only hold a vac. for only about 2 hours and press. for about the same , didn't say anything today about putting in the dye like he said he was going to when i talked with him on the phone Sat. and i didn't think to ask , hmmm ? Is there any way i can check the conderser and drain tube ? Do all A/C units have the orifice tube ? Lastly , i was told by someone that there is a leak stop kit for about $30 , is this true and if so what are the odd's of it working ? Mech. said it was a 50-50 chance of it working and also said it could plug up the orifice tube and or plug up the whole system .
I need this A?C to work before we leave for Arkansas on the 13th of July cause it get's real warm there and i sweat way to much to go without A/C . PLEASE HELP
Thank's for the reply and any moe reply's or idea's
Don

I wouldn't use the stop leak kit unless you want to replace the compressor at a later date. They are bad news for a shop with an A/C machine, some shops won't evacuate your system if they know there was stop leak used. The most common areas for leaks are the condensor (in front of the radiator) and the hard lines going to the rear A/C (if you have that, you didn't say if you do). The first thing I would check is the front of the condensor on the passenger side lower corner. If it looks wet, it's leaking. If the condensor is original to the vehicle, that is your problem. There was a TSB that came out because the mount in that corner of the condensor was putting stress on it and cracking the condensor. Again, you could have dye installed and use a u/v light to pinpoint the leak and save yourself a lot of trouble. I suspect your mechanic meant to say condensor and not evaporator. That would be about a $400-600 job depending on the shop. That is the most likely cause of a leak in these vans.

Thank's again for the reply . It does not have the rear air , i knew i was leaving something out . He said you have to take the whole dash out to get to it . Is that where the evapoator is ? Do you know if all the A/C unit's use an orifice tube or is that only used in some systems ? I;ll do some checking today myself .
Thank's , Don

Yes, the evaporator is in the dash. Why would he "guess" at the problem when he hasn't done a proper diagnosis yet? The evaporator is VERY unlikely the problem. Take a look at the condensor first. Also, get some dye in the system and make sure you know where the leak is before changing anything.
Edit: Yes, all a/c systems have some sort of an oriface, be it a fixed oriface tube or a variable oriface. That wouldn't have anything to do with the leak though.

Does the system have to be fully charged with the dye & freon or can you just use a can of dye to check for the leak ? Also what should i put in if & when i find the leak and get it fixed just freon or freon with pac oil or ??
Thank's again , Don

I would get a can of r-134a with just leak detector, no oil or stop leak. If you can't find r134a with leak dye but without oil or stop leak then you will need to invest in the dye injector and a bottle of dye along with 2 cans of r134a. 2 cans should do it enough. Then, you run the a/c for a few minutes (10-15 should be enough). Then check for leaks using the U/V light. Concentrate around the fittings, the front of the condensor, the compressor, seals, etc.. You'll know when you see it. Also, use the yellow glasses with the u/v light, they will help.

You need to "fire" your mechanic---and my money is on the condenser as the leaky culprit...if your van is an '01 or '02 model

The Venture is a 2000 . I have a freon hose with a little gauge on it , when i tryed to put some freon in the system the gauge said it was low . When i squeezed the trigger for 3-5 second's gauge went right to the yellow ( warning ) squeezed trigger a little longer and gauge went into the red zone ( danger ) no cool air also noticed that the compressor was not running , checked all fuses and were good . One A/C man i talked with said he does alot of A/C work and has never put in an evap. , another one say's he has put in a few of them . :runaround: Don't know what to do .
Thank's , Don

im on my secound venture now, and just finished putting a condensor in this one...i cannot see it be the evap. check condensor in the bottom right corner for signs of oil of alot of dirt\debris

Thank's for the reply , By the right front lower conor , I'm taking it that is from standing in front of the Van . I looked at that area yesterday and didn't notice any sign's of a problem what i can see of it that is . So much other stuff in the way . I also noticed that the compressor was not running , checked all fuses and were good . Didn't seem to be taking any of the freon either .
Thank's , Don

There is a high and a low limit either switch or sensor so as to keep the system from running low or over pressure. You need to have the system sucked down and refilled properly.

Thank's for the reply : I am going to give up on it for now .

Sorry if Im repeating something that someone else had mentioned but if this "mechanic" said that the system is leaking after 2 hours that is a good size leak. If he added dye then it should be easliy visable with a black light. Also the drain for the evaporator is on the firewall passenger side. It looks like a black tube sticking out of the firewall. If the evaporator was leaking in the heater box with a system leak down in 2 hours you should be ablt to turn the ac and smell freon through ther vents. I agree to that if I wasent sure where the leak was I would not be saying to remove the heater box to inspect the evaporator. I would check everything over and over and over again before I went there. Look at the condensor in the front, inspect all the lines and the compressor right behind the clutch assembly. Try to find a pats store who sells a UV black light leak detector, take your van to a shop tell them to charge the system and add 2oz of oil and dye. I use this method every AC leak that I come across. The extra oil and dye will make a mess when it leaks out but you will most definitly find the leak.

Thank's for reply , Now my curiosity is back up . I think I'' give it another look over . I would think if the heater box evaporator was leaking it would leak inside the van .

Wrong- a "heater box" leak would drip out the condensate drain just as the a/c condensate does......it slopes downhill for a reason.....

Well that's not the first time i've been wrong , so thank's for clearing that up . I'm going to gine it another look today .
Thank's , Don

I was asked by my boss to look at a caravan that another tech in my shop could not fix an ac leak. He said he could not find the leak. So I pulled the system under a Vac. charged the system to spec I added 2 oz of oil and dye while under a vaccum. When I started the vehicle, turned on the AC and the freon was coming out of the vents. So if you had a hole in the evaporator it would leak into the heater box and the blower would blow the freon through the vents. You would smell the freon too.

Can you see the draintube from on top looking down or do you need to be under the van to see the tube ? I couldn't find it , I know it has to be there somewhere .
Thank's , Don