The Energy Performance of Buildings Directive
The Energy Performance of Buildings Directive
states that from January 2011 it is mandatory for
Air Conditioning Systems of 12kW and above to
have a regular inspection programme in place.
Airtech Air Conditioning is able to support
you with the development of the right ‘ACI’
Air Conditioning Inspection for the EPBD. The
inspection will not only give you legal compliance
with the Directive but also highlight any system
operational and maintenance improvements to
reduce your energy costs and carbon emissions.
The programme is fully accredited through our in
house engineers and supply partners.
R22 Phase Out on Air Conditioning Systems
From 31st December 2009 it will be illegal to use
virgin R22 refrigerant for service or maintenance of
air conditioning systems. From 31st December 2014
it will be illegal to use recycled R22R refrigerant for
service or maintenance of air conditioning systems.
Stockpiling of new or recycled R22 will also be
illegal and availability of the recycled refrigerant
will therefore become more difficult. Airtech
can provide you with a complete design and
replacement service to meet your specific needs.
The European Union’s F-gas Regulation
The European Union’s F-gas Regulation No
842/2006 became law on 4 July 2006. This
imposes obligations on ‘operators’ of this equipment
from 4 July 2007 that you should know about.
F-gases include HFCs, which are the commonest
refrigerants in use today. The Regulation aims to
minimise emissions of these gases, which affect
global warming if they escape into the air.
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User responsibilities
‘Operators’ are defined as the people or
organisations that have actual power over the
technical functioning of the equipment. The
legal responsibility for compliance with the
Regulation lies with the operator. For further
details of the definition of the operator see the
DEFRA Guidance for Users. Any equipment
small enough to plug in rather than have to
be permanently wired is likely to be excluded
from the requirements, other than an overall
requirement to prevent leakage and to repair
any leaks as soon as possible.
For stationary refrigeration, air conditioning
and heat pump units over 3kg charge (6 kg if
hermetic), operators must:
- Prevent leakage, and repair any leaks as soon
as possible
- Arrange proper refrigerant recovery by
certified personnel during servicing and
disposal
- Carry out leak checks to the schedule shown
below
- Ensure that only certified competent
personnel carry out leakage checks
- Maintain records of refrigerants and of
servicing
For non-stationary equipment (e.g. mobile
units on trucks) and any other products
containing F-gases, operators must ensure that
appropriately qualified personnel are used to
recover gases, as long as this is feasible and not
excessively expensive.
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Leak checking schedule
The leak checks must be carried out according
to the procedure laid down by the Commission in
October 2007 (Industry guidance is available from
the Institute of Refrigeration or you can download
the full text of the leak check regulation ). The
schedule for leak checks varies depending on the
amount of refrigerant in the system, as follows:
- At least annually for applications with 3kg
or more of F-gases (unless the equipment
is hermetically sealed and labelled as such, in
which case the threashhold is up to
6kg). For a definition of hermetically sealed
see the DEFRA Guidance for Users
- At least once every six months for applications
with 30kg or more of F-gases
- At least once every three months for
applications with 300kg or more of F-gases
- Leakage detection systems must be installed
on applications with 300 kg or more of
F-gases, and when these are in place,
checking requirements are halved
- If a leak is detected and repaired, a further
check must be carried out within one month to
ensure that the repair has been effective
Maintenance and servicing records
Operators of all stationary systems containing
3kg or more of F-gases must maintain records
including:
- Quantity and type of F-gases installed, added
or recovered
- Identification of the company or technician carrying out servicing and details of the
Operator
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- Dates and results of leakage checks,
specifically identifying separate pieces
of equipment containing 30kgs or more of
refrigerant
- It is the operator’s responsibility to ensure
that the relevant servicing personnel have
obtained the necessary certification, which
shows that they understand the regulations
and are competent. A sample equipment
register is available from ACRIB.
How to know how much F-gas is in the
system?
The system should be labelled with this
information, but if not, you can estimate this
using a Calculator provided by UK Government.
Need to find out more?
The Government Department BERR has set up a
website with Frequently Asked Questions, up to
date Guidance and a copy of the Regulation at
here.
Airtech is a proud Refcom Elite holder of the
Refcom F-Gas Certification.
Please contact our Service Department for
decommissioning, re-commissioning, installation,
service and maintenance of fixed and portable
Air Conditioning Systems that contain F-Gas.
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