Air Con Sniffers - any good Budget ones ?

[oldcodger]

Hi,

While workshop Sniffers are typically £200+ there are quiet a few budget air con sniffers around the £20 - £30 mark that get varying online reviews on the usuall selling sites.

Wondered if anyone has used a budget one and can recommend it .

Know there are UV dyes but they ( online)  say a Sniffer is better .

[Red_Corolla]

Never heard of such a thing, but I'd be wary of anything costing 10% of the price of a proper one. A UV torch is a UV torch and they go for less than a tenner. That's what I would try first. Refrigerant charges will normally contain the dye, it's not something that needs to be added separately like it does with oil or coolant, so there's every chance you have a stain somewhere.

[Corolla Mike.]

Never known dye to be added on vehicle build. Dye added to the Pag oil when regassing system, we have to mix dye with oil when adding to the A/C machine. 

[oldcodger]

2 hours ago, Red_Corolla said:

Never heard of such a thing, but I'd be wary of anything costing 10% of the price of a proper one. A UV torch is a UV torch and they go for less than a tenner. That's what I would try first. Refrigerant charges will normally contain the dye, it's not something that needs to be added separately like it does with oil or coolant, so there's every chance you have a stain somewhere.

Had the car recharged on the drive a couple of times over the years by a good mobile guy who always used and said the Sniffers were better than uv dyes, but he has now retired so looking to test it ourselves, as we have either a leak or a malfunction. 

Its also possible to prove its leaking by doing a vacuum test but that needs a full extract and recharge machine.

So for our once only type of test  wondered how good or bad the cheapie Sniffers are ?

[Corolla Mike.]

If it has been regassed several times, should be plenty of dye in system. It is possible to see green eye traces without uv if leak present. Would start with the condenser radiator as this is in a vulnerable  position and most common. If the compressor is operating could be worth spraying soapy water around pipe joints etc as this will form bubbles. Good luck. 👍 

[Red_Corolla]

I stand corrected on the OE charge not containing any dye - I always thought that was just added in as a matter of course.

I've had leaks from the compressor hoses and the condenser in previous ownerships. I remember having one car that passed the vacuum leak test, only to fail  within a few days once charged and under pressure, so I would say that test is probably not the be-all-and-end-all. Why do they use vacuum rather than positive pressure for the leak test? Presumably it's quicker since the system would already be under vacuum once evacuated?

[TonyHSD]

If you have a pro tyre garage nearby you can book an appointment for ac test and regas. I did last week as they have an offer for 25% off ., total costs £45. Been using these guys third time now and so fat so good. 
https://www.protyre.co.uk/aircon