So Fix it

Air Conditioning does not come stock on every vehicle but some would argue that depending on where you live, its an absolute necessity. Air Conditioners work by pulling the heat of air using a coolant called Freon and then blowing it into the cab of the car. Unfortunately, the Freon is a consumable product like the oil or windshield wiper fluid and will eventually run out, leaving your air conditioner blowing out tepid air at best. When the car is out of Freon, it can be refilled or "recharged," bringing back the cool air.

Instructions

1

Locate the air conditioning compressor, next to the battery.

2

Back-off the valve handle that comes in the kit and screw it into the refrigerant kit until the rubber O-ring is inside the threaded portion.

3

Remove the dust cap from the "low-side" charging connection.

4

Attach the quick fitting on the kit hose to the charging connection.

5

Start the engine and let it run for about 10 minutes with the air conditioner on taking car that the hoses arent near the engine fan and other moving parts.

6

Make sure the compressor is on.

7

Turn on the valve handle until you hear the refrigerant release.

8

Add refrigerant until the accumulator surface and the evaporator inlet pipe are about the same temperature to touch.

9

Place thermometer on the air conditioning vent in the cab. The temperature should read 40 degrees if system is fully charged.

10

Close the valve on the canister and store any excess.

11

Put dust cover back on the "low-side" charging connection.

A good hydraulic jack can be pressed into a variety of uses besides lifting heavy objects. One of the most common secondary uses for a jack is in a jack-operated press. When pressing various materials, especially ones with low tolerances for pressure, it can be helpful to accurately measure the amount of pressure the jack is under. This can be achieved by installing an oil-filled pressure gauge on the jack itself.

Instructions

Disassembling the Jack

1

Drain the oil out of the jack through the oil plug or side drain.

2

Remove the handle pump by removing the bolts holding it to the base of the jack.

3

Remove the pump housing by unscrewing the housing from the jack base using a crescent wrench.

4

Clamp the jack in a vise and remove the top nut from the vise using a pipe wrench.

5

Pull the top off the jack. Measure the diameter of the inner piston and calculate the area of the base. You will need this measurement to interpret the reading from your pressure gauge.

Tapping the Jack

6

Drill a three-sixteenths-inch hole in the base of the jack opposite the pump assembly. The hole should pass beneath the inner cylinder of the jack without penetrating it, and should reach to the center of the jack base.

7

Widen the hole in the side of the base to five-sixteenths of an inch, and to a depth of about an inch. Insert a one-eighth-inch pipe thread tap.

8

Drill a one-quarter-inch hole in the bottom of the jacks inner cylinder. The hole should be at the center of the cylinder and should intersect the hole you drilled from the side.

Reassembling the Jack

9

Put the top back on the jack, using Teflon tape to seal the seam at the top of the jack. Screw the top nut down tightly using a pipe wrench.

10

Screw the pump assembly back onto the jack using a crescent wrench. Reattach the handle assembly using the original bolts.

11

Refill the jack with hydraulic fluid, working the handle to displace any air bubbles before closing the vent.

12

Screw a one-eighth-inch to one-quarter-inch hydraulic tap adaptor into the tap you installed. Attach a quarter-inch elbow connector. Thread a 5000 psi oil-filled pressure gauge onto the elbow connector.