What You Need to Know About Low-GWP Refrigerants and Potential Training Requirements
ESCO Institute-HVAC Excellence
Setting standards for the HVACR and building science industries.
A common question we receive almost daily at the ESCO Institute is whether the EPA will establish new requirements for technician training and/or certification for working with Low GWP Refrigerants.
The quick answer is that no one knows for sure! However, the EPA was granted the authority to establish technician training and certification standards for handling ASHRAE 2, 2L, and 3 refrigerants under Subsection h of the American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM) Act.
Having received this authority, the EPA published a proposed rule comprising over 96,000 words, akin to reading a typical novel, but in regulatory language. To address your key question about the ruling, here are the basics of the Proposed Rule:
The EPA is Proposed Rule addresses several issues, including but not limited to:
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In the proposed rule, the EPA asked whether they should establish training and certification requirements, what that training program might look like, and who should have to take it, having been granted the authority to establish said training and certification requirements under Subsection h of the AIM Act.
We have participated in the AHRI Safe Refrigerant Transition Task Force (SRTTF) to address every step of the supply chain in the safe refrigerant transition to Low GWP Refrigerants. Members of our team have presented on this important topic for the SRTTF, at the ASHRAE winter meeting, and at various industry stakeholder events. As a standards organization, it is our goal to keep you informed of the rule-making process as it continues. Once a ruling is published in the Federal Register, rest assured that the ESCO Institute will keep you apprised. Until then, remember as technologies change, we must educate ourselves on these changes to thrive and be successful, or risk becoming irrelevant.
Don, Due to comments being character restricted, please view our response here. https://escogroupreply.blogspot.com/2024/06/why-push-to-sell-tests-for-a2l.html
Drawing on my decades of experience, I aim to educate and inspire the next generation of HVACR technicians.
9 个月Most of us doubt they will require it. I would think they would force homeowners to have a license to fill their propane tanks for their gas grills first. It’s just people trying to sell test, that’s all it is. They’ve been selling R-290 refrigerant for years now with no testing required, we fuel our cars up everyday, light our gas grills and drive around in cars with A2L refrigerants under the hood of our cars without any concern. Why the push to sell test for A2L refrigerants, and who’s pushing it?