This will be my last post as it is no point to debate with someone who has made up his mind. Unfortunately I work for a living and do not own a business. I am a very objective engineer with an analytical mind, I think I am anyway, and I think it is wrong to condemn any sealant with 1 video and some hype. It is not significant enough to proof anything.

As the equipment vendor mentioned in their website: "Both professional technicians and vehicle owners are routinely using sealants in mobile A/C systems.", so it is not something that is invented yesterday. This is their words, not mine. Sealant is widely used and if it is bad then most, if not all, of the $4000 machines in the shops would have been ruined by now.

I just want to point out one should be objective and do their homework first. I would not promote or condemn it. I am neutral.

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Not MBZ nor A/C trained professional but a die-hard DIY and green engineer. Use the info at your own peril. Picked up 2 Infractions because of disagreements. NOW reversed.

W124 Keyless remote, PM for details. http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/mercedes-used-parts-sale-wanted/334620-fs-w124-chasis-keyless-remote-%2450-shipped.html

1 X 2006 CDI
1 x 87 300SDL
1 x 87 300D
1 x 87 300TDT wagon
1 x 83 300D
1 x 84 190D ( 5 sp ) - All R134 converted + keyless entry.

if your tire is low, and keeps getting low, would you put "fix a flat" in?

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John HAUL AWAY, OR CRUSHED CARS!!! HELP ME keep the cars out of the crusher! A/C Thread
"as I ride with my a/c on... I have fond memories of sweaty oily saturdays and spewing R12 into the air. THANKS for all you do!

My drivers:
1987 190D 2.5Turbo
1987 190D 2.5Turbo
1987 190D 2.5-5SPEED!!!

1987 300TD
1987 300TD
1994GMC 2500 6.5Turbo truck... I had to put the ladder somewhere!

Folks,
I think the whole reason for this thread was LarryBible's kind gesture to inform those of us who may have been ignorant of the potential consequences of using AC system sealants.

If another forum member becomes aware of a potential pitfall in the maintenance of our MB's and cares enough to pass it along, we should be happy about it.

Make your own judgement about what you want to put in your personal vehicle, but be sure to have the common courtesy to label accordingly.

Thanks for the good info, LarryBible

LOOK! The conclusion made regarding the effects of sealants is NOT based ONLY on that video. The video was merely posted because it offers a good visual reference of what is routinely happening as a result of using the Cryo sealants.

I posted the video to promote awareness of this problem. The video was not posted as THE EVIDENCE of the problem or to promote my own opinion. Don't get opinions confused with FACTS! That's like calling gravity an opinion. I have already seen with my own eyes EXTENSIVE evidence of this problem. If you would do just a LITTLE research beyond this one video as I suggested, then you would figure out that this is for real.

Doing your homework is what I have been urging YOU to do! You seem to think that this video is the only evidence of this problem ever produced.

I'm sure that you are a good engineer. I'm 60 years old, and have worked with MANY engineers in my lifetime. I can promise you that an engineering degree does not make an instant genius out of anyone, my degree certainly didn't do that for me. Most engineers are focused on specific areas and some of them think that they know everything while many of them can't find their A$$ with both hands. There is NO education that makes someone an expert on all subjects.

GEESH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Not sure I see the point of an A/C sealant anyway. If your A/C is leaking, it's 99 percent sure it's coming through something rubber, right? And if it's doing that, the rubber is cracking and the hole is not going to get smaller. Even if the sealant works just as advertised and harms nothing, it seems to me you're only buying a few months before the crack gets big enough that nothing will seal it and you're stuck replacing it all anyway.

Reminds me of the Jaguar guys, back in the good old British Leyland days, when they decided that every time they serviced a cooling system, they'd chuck in some radiator stop-leak. Stuff built up in the bottom of the radiators until they had cars that couldn't keep themselves cool.

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Finn John -- Albany, Ore.
www.offbeatoregon.com
76 Merc 300D, sky-blue, *86k, for driving
84 Jaguar XJ6, black, 245k, for restoring someday
71 Merc 408, 2.3 petrol 4, Avon caravan conversion (UK), RHD

This is an odd debate. You have a number of people that make a living in the automotive trade arguing that sealers can cause damage to a/c systems and recovery systems and one person on the other side arguing against because the one video posted is not an accurate statistical sample.

So if you line a bunch of guys up against the wall, then shoot one and he dies. Do you really need to take a sample of 20 and shoot them to see if they will all die?

The video is clear, it explains how the sealant works and why it can be a problem in recovery machines.

There seems to be a consensus that if sealant is used, it may well trash your equipment and using it repeatedly will certainly damage your equipment because your repeatedly pumping the system full a chemical that is not designed to be in the system and will void the equipments warranty. The warranty aspect for recovery machines should really be enough reason for me to not use it. Equipment is expensive to replace and it will cost you much more in lost business if the machine is broken then it would to turn away the guy who put the snake oil in his a/c system in order to save a few bucks and found out that it didn't work.

You also have to wonder how many cans of sealant went into the a/c system before he gave up and took the car to the repair shop.

If you want to use it, then it's your prerogative, the responsible thing would be to label it so that the tech does trash his machine when working on your a/c system.

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With best regards

Al

For those of you hard heads who think this is no big deal, you obviously don't have $3000.00 plus invested in freon recovery machines and manifold sets..

The reality is ...you DO have nearly that invested, because that is what it might cost you to replace your system if contaminated with sealant...and yes, it is a contaminant.

ALL manufactures refuse warranty on their recovery machine if there is sealant detected in it, even if the problem was not caused by the sealant.

I will not service any system that has sealant in it. If it does have sealant in it, I refuse to work on it with my machine and manifold set.

It is then up to the customer to get a fix somewhere else or I have to completely replace the system....your choice.

So far in 20 years I have not lost a machine or manifold set to sealant. I intend to keep it that way.