Where should access valves be installed?
Recovery techniques · EPA 608 Type I. The correct answer, and the reasoning behind it.
Identifying refrigerants, access valves, passive recovery and solderless fittings.
The question
A refrigerator's compressor will not run, and the technician is recovering with a passive device. Where should access valves be installed?
- On the low side only
- On both the high side and the low sideCorrect answer
- On the high side only
- Through a hole drilled in the compressor shell
Why “On both the high side and the low side” is correct
EPA's test topics stress installing both high- and low-side access valves when the compressor is inoperative. Without a running compressor to move it, refrigerant must be drawn from both sides of the system.
Source: EPA: Test Topics
Why the other answers are wrong
- On the low side only — With the compressor stopped, refrigerant on the high side may stay trapped.
- On the high side only — Refrigerant on the low side may stay trapped if only the high side is tapped.
- Through a hole drilled in the compressor shell — Access is made on the tubing, typically the process stub and a high-side line, not through the shell.
Practice more of this
More EPA 608 Type I practice questions, or see every EPA 608 practice test.
Unofficial, not affiliated with the EPA or any EPA-approved certifying organization. Questions are original practice written from public EPA material, not real exam questions.