A device used to regulate gas pressure and flow is called manifold gauge chamber. The manifold gauge controls and interprets the air conditioning system’s operating pressures.
These pressures inform the technician as to whether the system is in good working order or if there is a problem. Guage is also used to keep out mud and moisture. Systems for HAVC or air conditioning use manifold valves.
A manifold block, two hand valves, three refrigerant hoses, and two pressure gauges make up the manifold gauge set. The low pressure/suction side of the air conditioning system is connected by the blue hose on the left. The gauge is frequently referred to as a compound gauge because it can read in two different pressure ranges. The area of high pressure is colored red.
Operation Procedure
- The two hand valves in the manifold gauge set are used to regulate the flow of refrigerant through the manifold.
- When the hand valves are fully turned clockwise, the flow control valves inside the manifold are shut.
- The gauges read the pressure applied to them when the gauge set is installed on a system and both hand valves are closed.
- Here, even though it’s true that both valves are closed, the refrigerant pressure can still be read on each gauge separately.
- The handle of a hand valve is turned counterclockwise to open the valve. This makes it possible to access the manifold set’s center hose port.
- Only when adding or removing refrigerant from the system or allowing the vacuum pump to remove moisture and contaminants from the system, are hand valves opened.
- The passage from the low side port to the central port is open, and the manual valve on the low side collector is also open. Keep in mind that the central port prevents access to the high side port.
- Only low side pressure will be recorded by the low side gauge, and only high side pressure will be recorded by the high side gauge.
- The low-side hand valve that is closed closes the low-side port.
- The low side indicator indicates low side pressure while the high side indicator indicates high side pressure when the hand valve is in this position.
- The center port can be reached normally because both of the hand valves are open.
- The pressure shown on both gauges will be the same with the hand valve in this position.
- The bottom side allows high pressure refrigerant to pass through.
- As the low-side gauge reads a higher than normal pressure and the high-side gauge a lower than normal pressure, neither gauge in this situation accurately reads the pressure.
- The manifold hand valves are in this position for the evacuation process.
The technician can see the state of the refrigerant flowing through the manifold through a sight glass and multiple ports, which the manifold may have. The manifold gauge may have a hand valve on the front or on the front, depending on the manufacturer.
Read Also