What is the minimum evacuation required before opening?

Recovery requirements · EPA 608 Type II. The correct answer, and the reasoning behind it.

Evacuation levels by charge size and equipment date, major repairs, and system-dependent limits.

The question

A technician will replace a filter-drier on a 60-pound R-22 system. The job is not a major repair and the system will not be evacuated to the atmosphere afterward. What is the minimum evacuation required before opening?

• ATo 10 inches of Hg vacuum
• BTo 4 inches of Hg vacuum
• CTo no higher than 0 psigCorrect answer
• DTo no higher than 5 psig

Why “To no higher than 0 psig” is correct

When a repair is not major and is not followed by evacuation of the appliance to the atmosphere, a medium-, high- or very high-pressure appliance only has to be evacuated to no higher than 0 psig before it is opened.

Source: 40 CFR 82.156(a)(1)

Why the other answers are wrong

• To 10 inches of Hg vacuum — 10 inches is a Table 1 level, which this non-major repair is not required to meet.
• To 4 inches of Hg vacuum — 4 inches is also a Table 1 level, not the non-major repair requirement.
• To no higher than 5 psig — 5 psig is the limit for oil changes, not for opening the system to replace a drier.

Practice more of this

More EPA 608 Type II practice questions, or see every EPA 608 practice test.