letsbangout
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- Dec 3, 2010
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The crap you're describing is likely part of one or more compressor cylinders (I believe our compressors have 16) disintegrating and depositing regurgitated metal particulate into the system. It will look like a fine silver powder - think like Arm & Hammer baking soda mixed with water, but grey. The stop-leak could've easily turned it red. Based on what little I know and what I've read, you need to disconnect everything and blow it out completely, as I described previously. Assume that your condenser is shot and replace it, unless you know how to get it force-flushed on the cheap (with a HECAT or other closed-loop flushing device - it seems silly to me because the flush chemicals themselves, just to run the procedure on that big honkin' condenser, are probably close to the cost of a new compressor). Remember you can't blow through the muffler hoses so you'll probably end up buying a new set. Definitely install a suction screen to protect your compressor, as there's no telling how much damage you've already done to it (the consensus seems to be that a tablespoon of debris in the system can wreck a compresor). And think about a liquid line filter too (which is the GM recommended solution in cases like yours) - although the jury is still out, in my opinion. You may have crap in your compressor now too.. no clue as to how you get it out (maybe by dumping a ton of oil through it? - definitely do your homework on that one).
And again, I recommend taking everything I'm saying with a grain of salt. These are the conclusions I've reached as a mere amateur, having only a modicum of experience with a couple of my own AC systems. Definitely do plenty of reading on your own, in Alldata, forums, TSBs, etc. One other piece of generic advice - it's probably time to buy a refrigerant tank to recover the gas you have in the system now (purging into the atmosphere is illegal and will make baby allah weep). You should be able to find a shop that'll do the recovery into your own tank, so you can use it to charge the system back up when you're done making repairs (which requires no special equipment, by the way - the compressor suction will eventually draw all of it in). Definitely filter the refrigerant too. Off the top of my head, I can't recall if it's normal for AC evacuation machines to filter the gas as it goes into the tank (discharging the system), or after it comes out (charging the system), but definitely take note of that, as not to charge your system back up with particulate-contaminated gas.
