Will Reclaiming mix of Nitrogen Break Re-claimer

[philthy]

Hi Guys

I have an employee that has told me if you reclaim a mix of refrigerant with a mix of Nitrogen it will break the reclaimer . Has anyone heard of this i have done it many times before and never had any problems in fact we where taught to do this at Tafe. You can use a mix of Nitrogen and refrigerant to leak check a system so that it will be picked up with an electronic leak detector.

Phill

[Grizzly]

Hi philthy
I guess there is an element of truth in the statement.
Given that Nitrogen is a non condensable gas, therefore if any is drawn into the reclaim unit it could cause problems.
More likely the increased pressure that may exist could easily push a slug of Liquid through the Unit which is just as bad.
Throttle the unit and proceed slowly and you should be OK.

Trying to rush and pulling liquid is the normal killer. Despite the claims that most units shift Liquid.
How much is the real question?
Grizzly

[philthy]

Hi Grizzly thanks for your reply.

It would be interesting to see what more people think as well especially everyone out there that will use a mix to locate with a digital leak detector.

Thanks again Griz

[RANGER1]

Hi Grizzly thanks for your reply.

It would be interesting to see what more people think as well especially everyone out there that will use a mix to locate with a digital leak detector.

Thanks again Griz


Before we new about the ozone layer & global warming etc, it was normal to put a bit of ***** in & pump up the pressure with nitrogen.
Of course we never reclaimed it, we let it go to atmosphere.

I can't practically see how you could do it if a reasonable amount of nitrogen was used.
The discharge pressure of the reclaim would skyrocket, I would have thought.
I would suggest these days higher nitrogen test pressure used to test after unit reclaimed.
Some have suggested on this forum in the past to add helium & use something like Big BLue or soapy water to find leak/s.

[philthy]

Hi Ranger

Dont get me wrong i would never put the ***** in after the nitrogen. This would only be in a situation where the system is short of gas not empty. You are adding the nitrogen to pump up the pressure so it is easier to find with a electronic leak detector. The gas is going to be reclaimed anyway for when you have to repair the leak.

Phill

[monkey spanners]

I think it would be ok until the head pressure got too high, you would likely need a big recovery cylinder to stop the pressure getting too high and also need to be careful not over pressure the recovery cylinder.