Ac Recharged with wrong oil from walmart

I would think that replacing the compressor and the receiver/dryer while thoroughly flushing everything else might at least be worth a shot.

As you've discovered, it's really important (and not as easy as it should be) to find refrigerant that is only refrigerant, without oil or any other "helpful" stuff added.

 

there is a recent thread here reporting that a prius a/c system with the wrong oil has been working for 5 years

 

i don't have it off the top of my head, but i'll look around. iirc, it was a hybrid garage

 

I’ll try to look also....

 

Here it is:

AC Compressor Oil - Interesting Article | PriusChat

I’ve also read somewhere that PAG is more likely to become conducting when contaminated, but is not conducting in itself, the reason manufacturers switched. That I can not find, was a long time ago.

 

i can't link, but go to 'fix hybrid.com'

then go to his blog

then put in the search bar 'a/c oil'

then scroll down and select the first link, 'high voltage compressor a/c oil issues'

all the best!

 

you beat me, thanks man!

 

Search function on this forum works pretty well, (if that’s any help to you in the future)....

 

Whether the oil is conductive or not would seem to matter more if the compressor windings were bare, which they can't really be (or they'd be shorted out from the get-go, oil or no oil).

The compressor has to be wound with insulated wire, so a better question about an oil might be not "does it conduct?" but "will it deteriorate the insulating coating on the windings?"

 

At this point I would think your current compressor is still fine. ChapmanF must have a level of understanding that is more than mine, I must confess, but that was my understanding. Everything in vehicles are designed more robust, so preventing a short is what comes to my (honestly) naive mind, if the insulation were to fail...

Pulling vacuum will remove everything, no? Then just refill with the proper specs. (AC is important for defrost functionality in Japanese and American vehicles I’ve found, good in snow)....

 

Preventing a short is the name of the game. But insulated wires don't become shorted just because there's conductive stuff around them, unless the insulation also gets damaged somehow (say, by the oil dissolving it).

And if that's what happens, some amount of damage is going to remain even if all the offending oil is then removed. But maybe it's a slow process (5 years?), in which case one might get away with it.

 

The article linked above says they put in 5 ounces of the wrong oil, did not have any immediate problems, and then did a complete flush with a HECAT H-1000 flush machine, replaced the compressor, and recharged with the proper oil.

It reports the A/C working fine 49,000 miles later ... but that does not seem to mean 49,000 miles on the wrong oil. More like 49,000 miles on the right oil, after quickly flushing the wrong stuff out, and with a replaced compressor.

The HECAT flush machine seems pretty nifty. The solvent stays liquid under the pressure used for flushing, then is boiled and vacuumed out, leaving no residue.