Create a Refrigerant Tracking Procedure and Sub Procedure

Regular inspections will determine if a piece of refrigeration or air-conditioning equipment is leaking refrigerant, and how severe the leak is. We’re going to create a single procedure and sub procedure that will contain instructions for the technician to follow when checking for leaks.

The sub procedure is a Data Reading Type sub procedure, which allows your technician to record the current charge amount for the piece of equipment. This reading will be used later to calculate a loss amount for the equipment, and determines if repair is needed.

In the Document the Inspection topic, we’ll explain how to attach the Refrigerant Tracking procedure to a work order for each piece of equipment.

1. Modules> Procedures > Procedure Create.

2. In the Descriptionfield, type in Stationary Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning - Differential Refrigerant Percentage Loss - Section 608 of the Clean Air Act.

3. Complete the remaining required fields: Segment, Status, Type, and Skill.

   Remember that the way TMS is implemented at your organization will determine what you select for Segment, Status, and Skill. You will, however, need to select the Segment that contains the Refrigerant Tracking Type Code, unless you added it to the Systemsegment.

4. In the Typefield, select Refrigerant Tracking.

5. In the Procedure Instructions field, enter these specific procedure instructions (copy and paste). Click the View Full Screen button to view the Procedure Instructions as a full screen.

   Owners or operators of refrigeration and air-conditioning equipment with refrigerant charges greater than 50 pounds are required to repair leaks within 30 days when those leaks result in the loss of more than a certain percentage of the equipment's refrigerant charge over a year. For the commercial (for example,grocery stores and warehouses) and industrial process refrigeration sectors, leaks must be repaired within 30 days when the equipment leaks at a rate that would release 35 percent or more of the charge over a year. For all other sectors, including comfort cooling (such as building chillers), leaks must be repaired when the appliance leaks at a rate that would release 15 percent or more of the charge over a year.

   The trigger for repair requirements is the current leak rate projected over a consecutive 12-month period rather than the total quantity of refrigerant lost. For instance, owners or operators of a commercial refrigeration system containing 100 pounds of charge must repair leaks if they find that the system has lost 10 pounds of charge over the past month; although 10 pounds represents only 10 percent of the system charge in this case, a leak rate of 10 pounds per month would result in the release of over 100 percent of the charge over the year. To track leak rates, owners or operators of air-conditioning and refrigeration equipment with more than 50 pounds of charge must keep records of the quantity of refrigerant added to their equipment during servicing and maintenance procedures.

   Owners or operators are required to repair leaks within 30 days of discovery. This requirement is waived if, within 30 days of discovery, owners develop a one-year retrofit or retirement plan for the leaking equipment. Owners of industrial process refrigeration equipment may qualify for additional time under certain circumstances. For example, if an industrial process shutdown is required to repair a leak, owners have 120 days to repair the leak. Owners of industrial process refrigeration equipment should reference the Compliance Assistance Guidance Document for Industrial Process Refrigeration Leak Repair for additional information concerning time extensions and pertinent record-keeping and reporting requirements.

   The leak repair regulations do not apply to refrigeration and air-conditioning equipment with refrigerant charge sizes less than 50 pounds (such as residential split air-conditioning systems). However, smaller equipment is not exempt from the refrigerant venting prohibition. EPA regulations prohibit the intentional release of all refrigerants during the maintenance, service, repair, or disposal of air-conditioning and refrigeration equipment.

6. Click Save.

   The unique Procedure Number appears in the upper-left corner of the screen.

7. Click the Sub Procedures tab.

8. Click the Add Check Item/Sub Procedure button.

   The Add Sub Procedure to Procedurepop-up window opens.

9. Next to the Sub Procedure ID click the New Check Item/Sub Procedure button.

10. In the Type field, select Data Reading.

11. In the Text field, enter Lbs Differential Added.

12. In the Data Reading Label field, enter Enter amount added.

13. Click OK.