Groundbreaking Australian research behind new flammable refrigerants safety guide

A new guide on how to work safely on vehicles where it is known or suspected that flammable refrigerants may be present is now available for free download by VASA members and is essential reading.

This document is the result of a groundbreaking project between Refrigerant Reclaim Australia, VASA and GHD Engineering to study the management of health and safety risks associated with the use of flammable gases, including refrigerants, in an automotive workshop environment.

It covers topics including legal matters related to refrigerant classifications, dangerous goods, work health and safety, hazardous areas and working with flammable refrigerants, including what to do if a system contains a flammable refrigerant classified A3 or A2L. Handling mixtures of non-flammable and flammable refrigerants is also covered.

At the end of the document are a workshop safety checklist and risk assessment worksheet to use when flammable refrigerants are encountered.

During the early research stage of this project, it became clear to GHD Engineering that it would have to conduct a series of world-first studies to establish the number of vehicles containing flammable refrigerant that can occupy a workshop and safe exclusion zones for venting and vacuum pumping A3 and A2L refrigerants, or in a hose leak scenario.

The project could not have been completed without the assistance of Queensland-based VASA member workshops Gympie Auto Air, Mr Cool and SuperCool Southport.

Download: Flammable Refrigerants and Safety in Automotive Applications.