a/c recharge

2000, 3.5. A/c not cooling. Basic, not dual zone. Seems to kick on, just never gets cold. I havent used it in 2 years. Do they just lose charge over time? I would consider a $40 kit with a gauge and see if it needs some juice. If its something I cant do on my own then screw it. It would just be nice to have for the 3 days a year I go to the desert. I read some other posts about leaks, charging etc and wasnt sure if the kits are even worth while.

You can use a kit, but generally that's the cheapest (both money wise and quality) solution. You can get them for usually $25, so it's not that much money. If it works, then great. But it's usually best to go to a mechanic, have the system evacuated and refilled with refrigrant and dye so than perform a leak check when it goes low again. That shouldn't run you more than $100.

yeah I used the kit "duracool 12-a"...comes with 2 bottles and a hose. You just have to connect the hose to the low pressure A/C line up at the firewall (low pressure is the bigger line, NEVER hook it up to the high pressure line ans the can will blow up in your hand...its not hard to find the fat line at the firewall)...start the car turn on the a/c tip the bottle upside down and open the valve...wait till empty.