how do i build a Refrigerant Recovery Unit

hello peeps
well all i was waiting for was a compressor
i struck it lucky i asked a guy a work just out of the blue if he had a fridge he did not want and he said yes lol
he said the freezer works but the fridge did not so i went me for a look bonus the thing had 2 commpressors but the frige comp was rust'd up bad and had leaked from the hi side steel/copper joint so i went to work on it cut out the comp and got indoors just in time rain oh did it rain lol
http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k2...chiller068.jpg
home made oil sep :) old argon bottle and copper scouring pads x5 and a strainer leftover from postals build
http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k2...chiller063.jpg

it took ages to get the pads in :(
http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k2...chiller065.jpg

bit of paint
http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k2...chiller066.jpg

i found some MDF i had cut to put my amps on in the car but never used and made a base from it
http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k2...chiller069.jpg

pipe work
http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k2...chiller070.jpg
http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k2...chiller071.jpg
http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k2...chiller072.jpg

oil drain off i got a gas valve from B&Q for £5 had to dismantle it all to braze it all up
http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k2...chiller074.jpg

http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k2...chiller076.jpg
more paint and oil drain pipe to blow in to a cup of sorts
http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k2...chiller077.jpg

its not finished yet but i'll up date as i go :)
hope you like what i done so far
carl..

nice... :)

you sure do live in a pretty area!

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Originally Posted by teyber

nice... :)

you sure do live in a pretty area!

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cheers mate yeah its a nice place miles away from every thing lol shame it was raining lol

heres a bit more to the recovery unit b4 i go to bed its going to be good this one :)

i have put a suction line in and a 2nd suction line in (for somthing else later)but i drain'd the MO out and forgot to put the poe in so i had to suck it in with the 2nd sution line which was funny
http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k2...chiller078.jpg
while it was running i put tape over the open pipes to stop the air getting in to that new oil but its shocking at what this compressor pulls on its own

http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k2...chiller079.jpg
http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k2...chiller080.jpg

Dude i gotta tell ya i love all these pics. That home made oil sep looks the business. Lets see how well it works. Have you chose which condenser you are going to use on it? How much cap tube do you need to put on it to ensure you are getting liquid into the recovery tank?

I wonder if this thing will suck the 2Kg of R134a out of my chiller lol.

No cap tube! just dump the condensor streight to the recovery tank.

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Originally Posted by Postal Dude

Dude i gotta tell ya i love all these pics. That home made oil sep looks the business. Lets see how well it works. Have you chose which condenser you are going to use on it? How much cap tube do you need to put on it to ensure you are getting liquid into the recovery tank?

I wonder if this thing will suck the 2Kg of R134a out of my chiller lol.

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as xeon said no cap its going to 1/4" straght in to the tank as the gas is liquid after the condencer so no need to use cap :yepp:
so i asume it will be low pressure then? bout 50-60 psig? <guesstamate

? durring recovery it will be a round 100 to 250psi depending on the gas, then it will settle to what ever the saturation pressure is at ambient temp.

it will always be above the pressure in the tank also... if not its not recovering :p:

edit-

carlos i really like the all flat black paint job......

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Xeon th MG Pony

? durring recovery it will be a round 100 to 250psi depending on the gas, then it will settle to what ever the saturation pressure is at ambient temp.

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got ya i never use a recovery unit b4 so i had to ask:)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by teyber

it will always be above the pressure in the tank also... if not its not recovering :p:

edit-

carlos i really like the all flat black paint job......

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well i was going to do bule(lowside) and red (hiside) but the paint was £6 a tin so i stuck with the black i had in stock £1 a can lol
a bit more progress today but not much made another oil sep but need to get the bits for inside before i can mount it
i got some shut off valves from the local hardware shot and mooded them to fit
http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k2...chiller084.jpg

more paint and a big empty space hrrrrm can you guess whats going there :up:
http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k2...chiller085.jpg

ok so a bit of an update on the recovery unit
new purging device
http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k2...chiller000.jpg

and 2nd oil sep and condencer fitted need to get some more fittings before i can make any more progress
the unit as of tonight
http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k2...chiller001.jpg

Would now be a good time to get that fan up to you aswell? :D

Lookin great dude

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Originally Posted by Postal Dude

Would now be a good time to get that fan up to you aswell? :D

Lookin great dude

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yes :rolleyes: but that roto would be even nicer big fat SS out of it:D

also to report the unit works great i got a line tap off ebay cheap and well worth it http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.d...m=150252113438

i managed to get the gas out of the fridge and put it in a bottle the system is stuck with 6psig in the hi side i try'd every thing to get that last bit out bit its stuck
oh and it works :)