Service Tools; Service Procedures - Heat Controller HFC Refrigerant R410a Application & Service Manual

R410a Application and Service Guide
Figure 1. PPM of Water Absorbed Over Time
POE: Continues to absorb moisture
PPM of
Water W Water
Mineral Oils: Max water absorption, excess separates
24 hrs
• A vacuum pump will not adequately remove mois-
ture from the POE lubricants. Use a fi lter drier and
replace whenever the system is opened.
• POEʼs can be irritating to the skin
• POEʼs can damage some roofi ng membrane materi-
als
• POEʼs are better solvents than mineral oils
• Leave POE Refrigerant circuits open no more than
15 minutes
Approved POE Oils for Copeland R410a and R407c
compressors are:
• Copeland Ultra 22CC
• Copeland 3MA (scroll compressors only)
• Mobil EAL Arctic 22CC
• ICI (Virginia KMP) Emkarate RL32CF
• Thermal Zone 22CC

Service Tools

It is recommended that a separate R410a tool set be em-
ployed to avoid the problem of mixing refrigerants on the
job site.
Gauge Manifold Sets
A specifi c gauge set for use with R410a is required.
These will allow pressure measurements to 800 psig on
the high side and 250 psig on the low side. Hoses should
have a service rating of 800 psig.
Vacuum Pump
A 500 micron evacuation IS NOT ADEQUATE to sepa-
rate moisture from POE oil in R410a systems. It is for
this reason that an R410a approved liquid line fi lter drier
should be installed everytime the system is opened.
Leak Detectors
An approved leak detector for HFC refrigerants can be
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used in R410a systems. Older R22 leak detectors and Ha-
lide torch leak detectors can not be used in R410a service.
NEVER use a mixture of air and R410a to leak check.
The mixture may become fl ammable at pressures above
amtospheric. Nitrogen and trace R410a or nitrogen alone
can be safely used for leak testing in R410a systems. Six
approved leak detector types for alternative refrigerants
are:
• Non-selective detectors
• Halogen specifi c
• Compound specifi c
• Infrared based
• Flourescent dyes
• Ultrasonic
Active Recovery Equipment (Self-Contained)
Due to the increased pressure of R410a, recovery equip-
ment has been redesigned to handle these higher pres-
sures. Recovery equipment rated for R410a must be used.
Recovery cylinders must have a service pressure rating of
400 psig (DOT 4BA 400 and DOT 4BW 400 are accept-
able). DO NOT USE STANDARD DOT RECOVERY
OR STORAGE CYLINDERS WITH A 300 PSIG RAT-
ING WITH R410A!
Other Service Tools
Other service tools such as the micron gauge and vacuum
pump are adequate for both R22 and R410a service.

Service Procedures

Leak Detection
If an R410a system develops a leak, the technician does
not have to recover the the remaining refrigerant from the
system before topping-off the system. Because R410a is
close to being an azeotropic blend, it behaves like a pure
compound or single component refrigerant. The techni-
cian can use the existing refrigerant in the system after
leaks have occurred. There is no signifi cant change in
the refrigerant composition during multiple leaks and re-
charges. However, the service technician must remember
that when adding R410a to the system, it must come out
of the charging cylinder as a liquid to avoid fractionation
and for optimum system performance. If the refrigeration
system has lost its complete charge, the system should
be leak checked, repaired, liquid line fi lter drier replaced
and evacuated below 500 microns. A digital scale or a
calibrated charging cylinder designed for the greater pres-
sures of R410a should then be used to recharge R410a
back into the system.
The Refrigerant Recycling Regulations Section 608 of
the Clean Air Act states that the technician must fi nd and
repair substantial leaks of systems with 50 lbs. or more of
refrigerant. Substantial leaks are defi ned as: