Guidance on F-Gas Regulations
The F Gas Regulation (842/2006)
This is EC Regulation aims to reduce emissions of HFCs, PFCs and SF6. The key obligations in this Regulation applied from July 2007. In Great Britain the Fluorinated Greenhouse Gases Regulations 2008 (Statutory Instrument No 41) applied from 15th February 2008. This Statutory Instrument prescribes offences and penalties applicable to infringements of the EC F gas Regulation and lays out the current qualifications and certification requirements.
Who is responsible for compliance?
The EC F gas Regulation defines the operator as follows:
“Operator means the natural or legal person exercising actual power over the technical functioning of the equipment and systems covered by this Regulation” the EC F gas Regulation usually places responsibility with the owner, even if there is a comprehensive maintenance contract in place.
The actual obligations depend on the amount of refrigerant in each separate system. Two plants are considered to be separate if there is no interconnection between their refrigerant circuits (i.e. refrigerant cannot flow from one system to the other).
Obligations for the operator and Rapid Air Conditioning
The obligations below have a direct affect on the length of time a service will take as part of the regular checks now required the gas in the system will need to be recovered into a container, the container is then weighed. If the weight doesn't match the weight on the label on the equipment an investigation will need to be carried out to determine the source of the leakage.
There are 6 main obligations in the F Gas regulations that will affect operators of refrigerant equipment.
| Obligation | Applicability | Person Responsible |
| Recovery of F gases during plant servicing and maintenance and at end of plant life | All stationary systems | Operator |
| Use adequately trained staff to carry out installation, servicing and maintenance and leakage checking | All stationary systems | Rapid |
| New equipment shall be labelled | All stationary systems | Operator |
| Take steps to prevent F gas leakage and repair detected leaks as soon as possible | All stationary systems | Operator |
| Regularly check for leakage | Stationary systems above 3kg or 6kg (for a hermetically sealed system) | Operator |
| Keep certain records about refrigeration plant that uses F gases | Stationary systems above 3kg | Rapid |
| Fit automatic leak detection system | Stationary systems above 300kg | Operator |
By having a service and maintenance contract with Rapid Air Conditioning we will ensure the above obligations are carried out as detailed in your service agreement.
Leak Testing Frequencies
Your service and maintenance agreement may be affected by the leak testing frequencies which are dependant on the size of the installed system.
| Frequency | Normal Systems | Hermetically sealed systems |
| None | <3kg | <6kg |
| Annual | 3kg - 30kg | 6kg-30kg |
| 6-monthly | 30kg-300kg | 30kg-300kg |
| Quarterly | >300kg | >300kg |
If you have any questions about F Gas regulation please download the guidance document from DEFRA here
Or call Rapid Air Conditioning to see how your service and maintenance contract will be affected on 0800 131 3343
