EPA Regulations and Refrigerant Safety Flashcards
6 cards from real HVAC practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 6 EPA Regulations and Refrigerant Safety flashcards as text
What Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) should technicians wear when handling refrigerants?
Answer: Safety glasses, insulated gloves, and proper ventilation to prevent vapor inhalation
Technicians should wear safety glasses and insulated gloves when handling refrigerants due to risks of frostbite from liquid refrigerant contact and eye injury from high-pressure releases.
What is the difference between refrigerant recovery, recycling, and reclaiming?
Answer: Recovery removes refrigerant from a system; recycling cleans it on-site; reclaiming purifies it to virgin purity at an approved facility
Recovery removes refrigerant from a system into a container; recycling cleans refrigerant (removes moisture and contaminants) on-site for reuse in the same system; reclaiming restores refrigerant to AHRI 700 virgin purity standards at a certified facility.
What is a refrigerant blend and why can 'topping off' a partially leaked blend be problematic?
Answer: A blend is two or more refrigerants mixed together; topping off changes the blend ratio and alters system performance
Refrigerant blends are zeotropic mixtures that can experience fractionation (components leak at different rates), so topping off a partially leaked blend adds the wrong ratio of components, changing system performance.
What does the term 'ozone depletion potential' (ODP) measure for refrigerants?
Answer: The relative ability of a refrigerant to destroy stratospheric ozone compared to R-11
ODP measures how much a refrigerant depletes stratospheric ozone relative to R-11 (CFC-11), which has an ODP of 1.0; HFCs have an ODP of 0, making them ozone-safe.
Under the EPA 608 program, which certification type covers small appliances (under 5 lbs of refrigerant)?
Answer: Type I
Type I certification covers technicians who service small appliances containing 5 lbs or less of refrigerant, such as household refrigerators and window AC units.
What action is required when a refrigerant cylinder shows signs of damage, rust, or the hydrostatic test date has expired?
Answer: The cylinder must be taken out of service and sent to a qualified facility for inspection or disposal
Damaged, corroded, or out-of-date cylinders must be removed from service because they may fail under pressure, posing a serious safety hazard to technicians and bystanders.