Refrigerant Recovery Unit Accessories And How They Can Help In Air Conditioning Service

Air conditioning service and repair is becoming a tougher job each passing year. The new regulations that disallow certain refrigerants, and regulate the way the refrigerants have to be handled, are putting severe limitations on what an air conditioning maintenance person can or can not do. At the same time, the regulation is also imposing an additional financial burden on the air conditioning service companies, requiring them to buy additional equipment that until just ten years ago was never necessary. One of such pieces of equipment that is becoming "popular" these days is a refrigerant recovery unit. With it, the environment unfriendly refrigerant gases are never released into the atmosphere but are instead safely stored and reused, recycled or safely degraded. In this article you will find information on refrigerant recovery unit accessories and their uses to make your life as an air conditioning repair person easier and safer. The accessories are Goggles, Gloves, Hoses, Manifold gauges, and Refrigerant reclaim/recovery tanks. Let's take a quick look on how they will help.

Gloves and goggles

A set of thick gloves will help you prevent frost bites, or worse, in case of any refrigerant escapes and lands on your hands as you are handling the unit. Likewise, protect your eyes against the refrigerant leaks by using a set of protective goggles at all times.

Hoses

The hoses that connect the refrigerant recovery machine with the refrigerant tank and the air conditioning unit best be UL recognized. UL stands for Underwriters Laboratories, and is the authority on safety at work. The hoses should be colored appropriately for safety and should contain closing valves that are easy to operate. The recommended thickness of the hoses is 3/8 of an inch. The wider hoses will allow too much of the refrigerant to escape into the atmosphere, and the narrower will not allow the fastest flow of the refrigerant during charging or recovery. Similarly, you should be using the shortest possible hoses that are still fit for the job at hand, to reduce the refrigerant loss into the atmosphere, and to provide the least resistance to the refrigerant flow during charging and recovery.

Refrigerant recovery tank

A proper recovery tank is crucial for successful and safe refrigerant recovery. Especially for the newest, most environmentally friendly R410A refrigerant, you will need a DOT 400 classified recovery tank which will safely handle the pressures needed when handling and storing the R410A during the air conditioning service. For most other refrigerants the standard DOT 350 will safely handle their pressures. As per DOT regulations, always remember not to fill any recovery tank beyond 80% capacity.