As global warming continues to rise up the political agenda, so too has the issue of F-Gas, one of the most long-standing issues within the refrigeration and air conditioning market. Here Simon Keel, product executive at Daikin Airconditioning UK, comments on the F-Gas regulations, how its enforcement will affect the industry and why installers will need to gear up for the 2007 implementation
HYDRO fluorocarbons (HFCs) are one of a number of fluorinated greenhouse gases whose emissions along with carbon dioxide are monitored by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Under F-Gas regulations their continued use is permitted with no plans in place to ban or replace them. However this will be with strict control to reduce emissions. If unchecked, the levels of fluorinates gas would probably rise from 65.2million tonnes of CO2 equivalent in 1995 to 98 million tonnes in 2010.

The regulations will be formerly adopted at the end of 2006 and companies will then have 18 months to put the measures into force. The regulations will place responsibility on member states to improve the control, containment and monitoring of HFCs. This will include monitoring installations, improving system design as well as ensuring recovery of refrigerants during service work and decommissioning is only carried out by qualified personnel.

The majority of the weight of the regulations however will in fact fall upon the end user of the products. The owner operator will ultimately have responsibility for prompt leakage repair, leakage checking and record keeping. They will be responsible for ensuring this is done by appropriately qualified personnel.



The frequency of the leakage tests will vary depending on the weight of refrigerant in the circuit. For example, and with some exceptions, systems holding 3kg and over will need to be checked once every 12 months, 30kg systems, once every six months and those 300kg and over should be checked once every three months.

If a leak is then found during this process, it must be reported and the system inspected again within one month of the leak repair, to ensure its effectiveness.

The legal operator is responsible for ensuring that any refrigerant needing to be recovered can only be done so by a certified person, proven to be competent to the agreed standards of the member states of the EU. In three years time, following the implementation of the regulations, only certified companies, ( final details of personnel and company certification still to be approved by EU ) will be able to buy HFCs.

However, while this may seem to be a massive obstacle, government currently estimates that 60%-70% of existing technicians handling F-gasses already have the appropriate qualifications, leaving between 5,500 and 8,000 to either get more training or to be assessed.

Operators will be set minimum standards for inspections which they must adhere to, and will be subject to strict controls and monitoring. One key change will be the introduction of indelible product labels for air conditioning which will give a clear indication that the system contains an f-gas, and the quantity used. For field installed systems this would have to be completed by the installer.

The accompanying product manual will also have to list the f-gas used and state its global warming potential.



The new regulations also demand that logs are kept on any plant containing 3kg or over and must include a record of all works carried out on the system. The log will provide totals of the installed charges, as well as those recovered and lost, making it possible to calculate the leakage rate of the equipment. Records must also be kept on the company or technician performing the servicing and maintenance which will be made available to the competent authority/commission.

Record keeping will fulfil one main objective as well as proving that the operator is keeping within the law. It will result in the responsible use and maintenance of F-gas systems thus helping drastically to reduce unnecessary emissions that are adding to global warming.

There is already one voluntary scheme in place for the monitoring of all refrigerants including HFCs which has been established for over 11 years - REFCOM. The scheme, run by the HVCA, is most likely to be the model adopted by the future compulsory scheme.

With a scheme such as this in place, it is hoped that the result will be the disappearance of rogue traders across the industry which all of us will welcome.

Of key importance is for the industry to work together and in line with the regulations. Without viable alternatives, HFC refrigerants remain to be the most energy-efficient way of maintaining indoor climate control at present and for the foreseeable future. The only way forward is for the industry as a whole to take heed of the new regulations, work with them and continue to promote high standards for all installation and maintenance work.