Another poster kindly asked if my power booster was failing in my breaks. I went and reads the FAQ and these are my questions:

THE PROBLEM:

The breaks seem to have two stages. First they slow the vehicle down, but once it is almost to a stop or even after it has stopped (about a good two or three second count after putting on the breaks to begin with) the pedal begins to sink further and the car will begin to move unless I put more pressure on the breaks. After reading the FAQ I seem to recall hearing a sucking noise when applying the breaks.

THE QUESTIONS:

I read and re-read the FAQ about the check valve and power booster. As a result I have some questions. First the big one; Will my breaks fail in a spectacular fashion regarding this issue? It might be some time before I can address this issue and I am bereft of cash at the moment. I am not certain I understand the procedure to examine the check valve. Can I just yank this piece out of the master cylinder and blow it out with compressed air to see if it is working or to clear it? How is it set into the master cylinder? The check valve does look original to the car (1988) as does the vacum hose going to the engine block. Both do not look defective...I do not see any cracks or failures in them. I am trying real hard to conserve cash as I am really broke and will be so until at least October...next paychecks come in October. I am hoping this issue is not the power booster. Following the procedure for the power booster check I pumped the break pedal. Started the car, put the break pedal as far down as I could push and then turned the car off. The pedal came back up but it seemed to be under normal pressure and not like it was pushing my foot up. There is an air sound when the break pedal comes up that is coming from that pedal area...what does that indicate?

THE REMEDIES:

I am new to Volvos so please outline my remedies as explicitly as possible. Taking the car to a mechanic or the Volvo dealer is not possible (I might as well push it into the ocean as I do not have the money to spend for that). Please explain in great detail my options and places I can find parts to solve this issue. Also what tools might I need? Thanks!