VASA issues safety warning on flammable refrigerants

Throughout our industry recently, it has become quite common-place to see persistent attempts to promote and market flammable refrigerants, as so-called ‘drop-in’ replacements, for use as a retrofit option in mobile air conditioning systems.

This practice has the potential to be dangerous, and could place your technicians, your customers and the general public at risk.

Flammable refrigerants should only be used in mobile air conditioning equipment specifically designed for their safe use, or as a retrofit option, only where the manufacturer has provided prior written approval and endorsed safe operating and retrofit procedures.

When flammable refrigerants have been used as a “drop-in” replacement in mobile air conditioning systems, there are documented cases of the refrigerant igniting and exploding in flame, causing personal injury and equipment damage.

In these documented cases a hydrocarbon refrigerant was used as a ‘drop-in’ replacement for equipment originally designed to operate on either R12 or R134a.

For safety’s sake, for all concerned, a flammable refrigerant should not be used in mobile air conditioning equipment which was not specifically designed for their safe use.

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