FJC 6036 R134a U-Charge Hose with Gauge

It works but I question the gauge’s accuracy. My little pickup truck is getting old and tired. It seems to loses Freon during the winter. I was given an estimate of $400 to fix the small leak that I have. Every year I have to add about 16-18 ounces of Freon to get the A/C to work. In the past, I bought a hose/gauge/Freon combination but those have gone up a lot in price; costing $35-50 each. I thought this u-charge service kit would be a good way to go. With this, you can buy the no-frills cans of R134a Freon at any of the chain auto parts stores for about $8/can; cheaper than Amazon unless you buy a large lot of cans.The directions were good for the most part; I have a couple of friends who are certified auto technicians and they gave me some tips for recharging a car’s A/C system using an inexpensive set up like this. One thing to keep in mind with this; the hoses are very short. The low side connection on my little pickup is next to the passenger side fender near the front of the engine compartment and the hoses were just long enough. If your low side connection is in a harder to reach spot don’t buy this. I started the engine turned the A/C on max cooling. Then I attached the can tightly to it’s fitting but I did not open the can with the valve. Then I attached the low side connector to the A/C’s low side fitting. The gauge read 15 psi which is good. It means that the leak is very small and a recharging is most likely be all I need to do.It had been 2 years since I did this last; last summer was mild. I was advised to slowly puncture the can with the valve by turning it clockwise until you can’t turn it anymore. You have now punctured the top of the Freon can. The pin that punctured the can is keeping Freon from escaping the can. Slowly turn the valve counter-clockwise so the Freon is escaping the can; the can should be held upside down for adding Freon. Continue to let Freon out of the can until the compressor starts to turn on. At this point, the compressor will cycle on and off. Close the valve and let the Freon that you’ve added work through the system for a minute or two. Then open the valve again adding more Freon for about 30 seconds. Close the valve and let the Freon that you’ve added work through the system. At this point, the compressor is cycling on and off but it should be staying on longer each time you add more Freon. Continue adding Freon 30 seconds at a time waiting a minute or two between each time until the compressor runs continuously. When the compressor runs continuously you’re A/C system is full.At this point, I read my gauge and it read a little over 50psi which is in the yellow/alert area of the gauge. It was 92 degrees outside where I was doing this and according to the chart that came with the kit the gauge should be reading 35-45psi at this temp. I took my pickup to a technician friend and he hooked up his low side gauge and according to his gauge the pressure is a little over 42psi and this is where the pressure should be. I feel it’s fair to say that the gauge that came with my kit is off by about 10psi.I used around 18 to 20 ounces to recharge my A/C which means I have around 3/4 to 2/3 of a can left over. I’ve tightened the valve down as tight as I can and I hope most of it will be there when I need to do this next. If most of it is still left in the can I’ll only need to buy 1 $8 can next year.The fittings on this kit are made out of some sort of aluminum alloy and should last for years. They are much better than the plastic fitting that are on some recharge kits. The air that is coming out of the A/C vents is ice cold.The only reason that I’m giving this 4 stars instead of 5 is that the gauge is not accurate.

Made recharging my system easy

This works great on traditional cans of refrigerant and additives that have a metal seal on top that needs to be punctured. Please note, from my experience this does not work on self sealing cans. A self sealing can is a newer kind of refrigerant and additive can that does not have a metal seal on top, there is an open hole on the top of the new cans. From what I'm reading you need to use a special adapter to use a product like this on those new cans, since this product is designed to pierce the metal top of the can.*After looking into it a little more, FJC also sells another U-Charge hose and gauge designed for self sealing cans, FJC #6037. As mentioned earlier another company also sells an adapter you might be able to use, but I don't want to advertise for another company in this comment. My local auto parts stores had them, they were blue in color and screwed onto the self sealing cans.**In case someone doesn't read the comments, someone suggested naming the adapter I mentioned. I think "Interdynamics (DVA-1) R-134a Recharge Hose Adapter ASIN: B004NL2XM0" is what you would need to use a self sealing can with this FJC recharge hose. I have not tested it myself, but it says it's an adapter for a piercing tap to a self sealing can.

Worked like a charm

A good gauge, hose and low side quick connect assembly.But...this is IMPORTANT.On my first bottle, I experienced 'very slow system recharge'. I didn't know why until I removed the hose + bottle still attached and played around the with the valve. With it off the car, once the valve was full CW, bottle pierced and sealed by the valve. Opening the valve 180-220 degrees, allowed the refrigerant to flow rapidly. Open the valve more...what I was doing wrong with this design, and the valve blocks refrigerant flow.So learn by lesson learned and why I wanted to share this tip because if you open the petcock valve too far, it will take 'forever' to recharge your R134a.Hope this helps and no doubt will. I design cars for a living and was stumped by this.

Hose with gauge for adding R-134a refrigerant to my truck AC system worked fine. The metal quick connect end fit my low pressure fitting , and the other end screwed onto the can of R-134a and actuated the self sealing valve on the can. ( I had tried to use another brand hose with a plastic quick connect, and it would not stay on the low pressure fitting.) I do think, however, that the hose on this product could be a bit longer , to make it easier to use.

Solid quality, easy to use. Fair price

This is easy to use but I wonder if the gauge is accurate. When it shows a full charge my compressor still cycles on and off. When I put a bit more fluid in it, then my A/C works right. It could be the A/C on my car has a problem, or it could be that this is not accurate. I can't tell without an expensive diagnostic from a repair shop. This was supposed to prevent that. As far as a hose to put the fluid from the can to the compressor, it works well.

I've used this with 2 different vehicles now to recharge my A/C. Seems to work well, as I have been able to use the gauge along with a temperature/pressure chart for R134A refrigerant to get my vehicles that were essentially blowing ambient air back to nice and cold. I recommend it.

Simpler & sturdier design & construction than the dispenser that came with the EZchill kit. Wished the tubes are longer so that it's easier to use in confined space of a car engine compartment. Worked OK - used once only. Not sure how much leakage we experienced.

It works as it is suppose to, but the lengths of hose could/should be longer.

Good product, hose should be longer

Hose is a bit small in length but served its purpose. I recharged my vehicle AC not a problem.