F-Gas Regulations

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We are talking here about the EU Fluorinated Gases (F-Gases) Regulations, which came into force in June 2006, and their application to air conditioning.

I suppose the first question is, what are the F-Gases that these regulations apply to?  Generally speaking it is any of the modern fluorinated gases that are used, such as R134a, R407c, R410a, Forane, Isceon, or Klea.  The regulations do not apply to R22.

The second question must be, what are your obligations under the regulations as the operator of equipment containing F-Gases?  These may briefly be summarised as follows:

Obligation	Applicability
Recovery of F-gases during plant servicing and maintenance and at end of plant life.	All stationary systems
Use adequately trained staff to carry out installation, servicing and maintenance and leakage checking	All stationary systems
New equipment shall be labelled	All stationary systems
Take steps to prevent F-gas leakage and repair detected leakage as soon as possible	All stationary systems
Regularly check for leakage	Stationary systems above 3kg
Keep certain records about refrigeration plant that uses F-gases	Stationary systems above 3kg
Fit automatic leak detection system	Stationary systems above 300kg

Whether you need to comply with all the obligations listed depends on the size and type of plant that you operate. The requirements to check for leakage and to keep records only apply to plant containing 3 kg or more of refrigerant (the leak checking obligation has a threshold of 6 kg for hermetically sealed equipment). However, the requirements to recover refrigerant and to use adequately trained staff applies to equipment of all sizes.

Leak Testing Frequencies

Frequency	Normal Systems	Hermetically Sealed Systems
None	<3 kg	<6 kg
Annual	3 kg to 30 kg	6 kg to 30 kg
Six-Monthly*	30 kg to 300 kg	30 kg to 300 kg
Quarterly*	>300 kg	>300 kg

* Half this frequency if fitted with automatic leak detection

It is possible to meet these obligations by employing an appropriate maintenance contractor.  However, if the maintenance contractor does not carry out any of these items properly, you are responsible – the responsibility cannot be passed on.

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Copyright © 2009 Graeme E Gaskell Services
Last modified: 6 October 2009