Auto Air Conditioning & Heater Repair: 98 Wrangler AC clutch wont engage, grounding straps, slow leak

Question
QUESTION: Hi.  I have a 1998 6cyl Wrangler.  About two months ago I had the AC recharged due to a slow leak.  Well, the local trade school did the recharge.  They told me they could find no leak but that it was possible it may be leaking under the dash and that finding a leak there was more than they could take on.  Here's the thing though, the AC was working fine one day and then a few days later nothing at all.  When the AC is on the clutch does not engage.  A few days before it stopped working I had replaced a split/bulging heater hose.  Removing the hose from the where it attaches to the heater core was a bit difficult.  I'm wondering if I disturbed some wiring?  While removing the hose I know I disturbed a small plastic thing (maybe vacuum check valve) that has a very small plastic hose that goes through the firewall into the passenger compartment.  Not sure if it's relevant but while I was under the hood I noticed that the flat woven grounding strap that goes from the body to the hood was hanging on by "threads".  Touching it caused it to release from the hood.  The woven wire turned to dust when I lightly rubbed it in my fingers.   There is a second grounding strap that goes from the body to, I think, the engine. The jeep was towed to the garage recently because it would not start.  The mechanic replaced the crank position sensor and the coil.  I asked him to replace both grounding straps.  He replaced the one from the body to the hood but told me the other one was "fine" and "not that important anyway."  The other ground strap is the same shade of green as the one that broke.  Could this other ground strap have anything to do with the AC not working?  I have checked the fuses and swapped out the relay under the hood and the one inside the car behind the glove box but both were fine.  Also, the compressor and clutch are only two years old.  Sorry the post is so long.

ANSWER: The strap has nothing to do with the ac.  You probably have no refrigerant and that is why it won't start.  Get me some pressures and I'll help.

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QUESTION: Roughly how expensive are the gauges to test the pressure?  I'm unemployed right now and anything more than say $30 or $40 would be too much.

ANSWER: They are more than that but maybe you can find a shop that can help.

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QUESTION: I bought an Arctic Breeze Ultra Synthetic recharge kit with a penlight type UV leak detector.  After jumping the plug on the low pressure switch I was able to get the clutch to turn on and check the pressure.  It was really low so I started to add the R-134.  As I did this the clutch engaged and I stopped frequently to check the pressure.  When I got the pressure up to 55 I stopped adding R-134.  The car continued to run for about ten minutes and then I turned it off.  The vehicle was not driven until about three days later.  I had cold air for a little while then hot air.  After my morning appointment was over I tried the AC again on Max at first but got no cold air.  Then I switched it over to AC/Outside and got a bit of cold air so I switched it over to Max and got very cold air for a short period of time and then nothing.  When I got home I opened the hood and turned the AC on Max to see if the clutch was engaging.  It wasn't.  I added the other half of the second can and the clutch engaged again.  The air inside was ice cold.   Went for a short drive and the cold air stopped.  The R-134 I used has a tracer dye in it and a sealer.  I could find no sign of a leak.  Not sure what to do next.

Answer
You really need gauges to determine the problem.  I would start by jumping the cycling switch and see if it cools for a longer time that way you can determine if the switch is good. The switch is there to protect the compressor.  If it runs too low then the switch will disconnect the compressor.