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Thread: Hall of shame.
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31-05-2005, 12:38 PM #1
Hall of shame.
Hello all.
I think we should have an area known as Hall of shame.(Or at least use this thread)
In this area we should put pictures of the worst refrigeration work that you have come across along with an explanation.
I have got some pictures that would be a good start but still trying to work out how to post them.
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05-06-2005, 01:01 PM #2
Re: Hall of shame.
This was a unit that I came across once.
The work was so bad that I had to take a photo of it.
Unit was serving a liquor coolroom.It was sold to the customer as a reconditioned unit.
Compressor was relatively new but the condensing unit was at least 20 years old.
Unit was sitiing out in the open(no cover on it). The capacitor is wrapped in a plastic bag, but still had water sitting in the top of it. Unit had TX valve but condensing unit has no reciever.
Unit had several leaks but amazingly enough it was still running.
Client wanted to know what to do. I told him to rip it out and start again.
This is the kind of work that gives fridgy's a bad name.
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05-06-2005, 10:52 PM #3
Re: Hall of shame.
Well, I don't know, most of the bits seem to be in the right place......
Brian - Newton Abbot, Devon, UK
Retired March 2015
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05-06-2005, 11:15 PM #4
Re: Hall of shame.
probably shouldn't admit this but...
at college the other week i was practising recovering refrigerant and charging the system. i got there and without thinking emptied the gas into the bottle that was already rigged up to the recovery unit, sat by the system.
when the gauges started to freeze over it was pretty obvious id messed up. i shouted my tutor over and he nearly had a bloody heart attack, turned out the bottle i was using was R22, and that the system had been running on R401A. according to my tutor i'd caused hundreds of pounds worth of damage, and now i'm not allowed to touch refrigerant unless under constant supervision, what a jip
...beat that!
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05-06-2005, 11:27 PM #5
Re: Hall of shame.
Originally Posted by Tim_Uk_TraineeBrian - Newton Abbot, Devon, UK
Retired March 2015
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05-07-2005, 09:12 PM #6
Re: Hall of shame.
Paid for my holiday that little job did
Regards Bernard
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06-07-2005, 06:41 PM #7
Re: Hall of shame.
Came across a mini split, 3.5 HP unit.
The complaint was that it was only installed a week ago but never really kept the place cool.
After one hour, the out door unit just stopped and never came back to work till the next morning.
Compressor was very hot, had to cool it with a hose, checked pressure after it came back to life, an amazing 450psi on the high side! only 33°C, normal.
Started to suspect air in the system, the refrigerant had a new smell, a bit like R 22 but something else with it, emptied the system, vacuumed and recharged, works fine, cool compressor, happy customer.
Did you see something like that? I asked the owner, showing at my vacuum pump.
No, The guy that installed it had an air compressor!!!
Chemi
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06-07-2005, 08:19 PM #8
Re: Hall of shame.
HI Chemi - cool
Have seen similer things but not so bad.
Discharge pressures going up to 300 to 350 Psi.
Senn guy's connecting different brands of indoors and out doors
match the capacity but MINUS capillery.(One brand has cap in the outdoor next in the idoor)and complain no cooling and compressor no suction
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05-02-2009, 09:19 PM #9
Re: Hall of shame.
Well, here goes,
Mnay years ago I worked on British Rail as a diesel fitter on the loco`s. Part of my job involved going out to standby generators that acted as a back up for the signals on the east coast main line.
On one visit I had to replace a cooling hose. After cutting off the old one I tried to fit the new one only to find I`d picked up a hydraulic one by mistake that in no way would fit over the hose fitting. Realising the genny could not be left off till a new hose was found I cut of the barb on the fitting so the hose would slide on.
Hose clips tightened, coolant refilled and engine started and tested. I went home feeling all`s well with the world
A few days later the power failed and the genny kicked in only to blow the hose off with the result that the engine failed along with the entire signal system from Kings Cross to Peterborough.
They never did find out why the hose had come off as I had to make out the failure report. Phew!!!
Now, where`s the next genny to repair
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22-02-2010, 11:57 PM #10
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23-02-2010, 10:18 AM #11
Re: Hall of shame.
I can't work out four things.Why the gauges was freezing up.How you can reclaim gas into a Refrigerant bottle of R22,past the built in none return valve.why your tutor was using R22 after Dec 09.unless it was a recovered R22 from site.the only cost is for disposal of the now mixed refrigerant at about Ł10/Kg + cost of wasted R401A .The R22 should be returned anyway by now.
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14-08-2005, 05:26 AM #12
Re: Hall of shame.
Hello
One of our guys took 8 hours to install an evaporator in a cold room!after 10 hours he rang t say it just wouldnt cool,i checked the system over and after scratching me head i found the problem,he had left the orifice out of the tev i found it laying in the drip tray! Bloody Kiwi,sSkiing,Fishing,Boating,Walking and chilling out in the clean fresh air......oh and a 8 hour days work sometimes!
Come to New Zealand its great :D
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29-08-2005, 07:19 PM #13
Re: Hall of shame.
Here is one more for review. This happened about 20 years ago, when I was doing service and installations.
The owner asked for a cost to install a cold room for apple storage. He wanted glass display doors and racks on the front of the cooler for retail sales.
Did the drawings, layout, and proposal and dropped them off. Several months went by with no notice to start the job. (I had been doing the regular work for many past years for this family).
One day at the facility I asked "what is the status of the apple cooler?" Found out it was being completed by a part-time refrigeration guy. The other part of his time he was a preacher in a church. His cost was much lower, so he got the job.
Can you see were this is going??
The cooler was built with framed up lumber, fiberglass sheets, and styrofoam board (1" thick). No vapor barrier was installed. Interior lights were open incadescent bulbs (not vapor-proof light fixtures). Door lighting was installed with normal fluorescent tubes (no low-temperature ballasts). Door heaters were not wired up (doors frames sweated and were foggy). Air defrost timer was set for 3 hours off (3 times a day). Temperature would not come down (big surprise there).
The owner asked me to fix it. By the time we got done correcting all of the problems, the total cost was almost double my original cost.
Some people will believe cost determines the quality. Others think cheaper is saving money. Both (myself and the preacher) promised the owner that our proposals would do what he required. The finall version worked quite well, but it was a painful project for the owner.
Moral to the story.... It takes money to make a system work properly and it must be installed by qualified people.
I'm sure everyone has seen these systems. piping runs that sag or are crooked, exposed wiring and cables, and any other poor installation practice you can imagine.
In my opinion, the cost is not the primary point to use for judging the installation or who to award the project to. It is the workmanship and knowledge that make the system run trouble-free from the initial start-up.
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16-09-2005, 08:39 PM #14
Re: Hall of shame.
Hi all
Last week I had a back bar unit, returned back to the workshop, with a gas leak ( or should I say without an ounce of refrigerant in it), one of our sub-contractors had been out to the unit and changed the evaporator, which was fair enough. The day later he had to go back to the unit and top it up, then it came back to us. It took me five minutes with a bottle ofn to hear a hiss in one of the condensor coils and I mean it wasn't even a misable leak.
NeilIf you can't see it, it can't hurt you.
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15-11-2005, 10:33 PM #15
Re: Hall of shame.
The worst case of bad practice I ever found was about 8 years ago when I was called out at about 10pm to Lincon area, well over a 1 1/2 hours drive away. The customer was beside himself, because his loaded vehicle didn’t cool on standby. The last thing I wanted to find was a seized compressor, but worse was to come. The unit had been visited two weeks earlier by another engineer and the contactor had been faulted as
in-operational. As the “engineer” hadn’t got a suitable contactor, he had bridged the contactor and overload out with three bits of wire! He told the customer to keep an eye on the unit and switch it off at the mains when it got to set point. Well it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to guess that after the compressor seized it took the mains motor with it. So after some time I finally changed the Standby Compressor, the mains motor, the contactor and overload. I left a very happy customer at 3am, the following morning. The engineer in question left not long after that!
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24-11-2005, 02:41 AM #16
Re: Hall of shame.
I can't help but post to this thread with the worst one I've ever heard of. I've got heaps I could recount that I've seen but this is the absolute worst.
This from a guy who is sadly still working in the industry.
A mate went to a callout on an upright display freezer that had just been installed and wasn't working properly. I can't remember the fault but it was likely due to the installation. While he was there he isolated the power to work on the controls but realised after nearly blowing himslf up that he still had power on the control circuit.
He traced back the wiring to reveal that the unit had TWO 10 amp supply cables. It seems the defrost heaters drew about 18 amps so the "mechanic" decided to overcome the problem of having one ten amp gpo supplying the fridge he'd put on a second 10 amp cable in to cope with the current.
My mind is blown by the idiocy not only of having two supplies to isolate for safety but the obvious fault of having a LIVE three pin plug when you unplugged one of the two supplies.
Sadly I didn't do the job or I would have had the authorities there to witness it.
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13-12-2005, 06:56 PM #17
Re: Hall of shame.
HI guy's
Back in early this year I fitted a small Daikin wall mount.
The customer said "just put the condenser on that wall nothing ever comes down this sideroad"
I said "sure I'll put it at 2 metres to stop the kids messing with it"
2 weeks later "err something seems to have hit the a/c can you come and fix it-oh and put it up another metre nothing will hit it then"
So I did -and something did!! So I came back and re-fixed it for the second time
On Monday we get another call "Hmm somethings really smacked it this time"
This is what I found today
cheers
richard
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17-01-2007, 12:33 PM #18
Re: Hall of shame.
Hi chaps, I'm quite new here, does anyone have the generic fault codes for Hitachi splits?
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17-01-2007, 12:48 PM #19
Re: Hall of shame.
See it, posted it in the wrong section, nobody will notice it here.
It's better to keep your mouth shut and give the impression that you're stupid than to open it and remove all doubt.
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17-01-2007, 12:57 PM #20
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09-08-2010, 08:23 PM #21
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05-10-2010, 02:57 PM #22
Re: Hall of shame latest update now 115 photos.
hi all
for the last few years ive been collecting photos of bad installs, some are mine some have been sent to me.
there used to be a link from the mylg dot co dot uk web site (im not aqllowed to post links apparantley its advertising) but i think its now broken
so try the link from freedomhp dot co.uk click the resources tab and look at the how not to do it link
i think you will like them
regards
Graham (used to be hendrag)
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03-02-2011, 01:16 AM #23
Re: Hall of shame latest update now 115 photos.
If in doubt read the instructions. If still in doubt follow them.
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03-10-2005, 01:55 PM #24
Re: Hall of shame.
Originally Posted by Jamie
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07-10-2008, 08:36 PM #25
Re: Hall of shame.
yeah nice one,i had similiar problem Hi there, i once had a coldroom to commission, a little 1/2 hp L'unite con unit, Pressure test and vac out, charge with R134a. When i run it, it ran into a full vacuum i couldnt understand why, i kept adding gas, stillrunning in vacuum, checked all valves all seemed ok, I had to take the gas out and take unit apart to discover why, I found a small red plastic plug still in the opening of the liquid rotolack valve. I swore at the install guy, He just laughed.
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15-10-2006, 08:07 PM #26
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15-10-2006, 08:10 PM #27
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25-02-2008, 07:17 PM #28
Re: Hall of shame.
I've seen the same once. On a direct driven TK Transport unit. The driver complained of poor cooling capacity. Found lack of refrigerant. (bubles in sight glass) Tried to fill up. Then liqiud back to the compressor. Not possible to get the TEV adjusted. There was some cooling capacity due to the distributor acting as a (way to big) capilary tube. Dismantled the TXV. No orific. The installer had even installed an O-ring in the place of the orific to get the flare sealed against the TEV. Unbelievable it was not leaking.
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26-02-2008, 12:39 AM #29
Re: Hall of shame.
It's impossible to make anything foolproof because fools are so ingenious...
Don't ever underestimate the power of stupid people when they are in large groups.
Please, don't teach me how to be stupid....
No job is as important as to jeopardize the safety of you or those that you work with.
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26-02-2008, 01:23 AM #30
Re: Hall of shame.
Wish I had a photo of it to show but did not think at the time.
I saw 10 air conditioning units stood one in front of the other. They were only about 18inch apart and all faceing the same way.
The air from unit one was sucked into unit two, unit two's air was sucked into unit three, unit three's air was sucked into unit four.
You get where this is going?
Units six onwards only worked when the unit infront was off on HP.
taz.
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26-02-2008, 02:48 AM #31
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03-03-2008, 10:00 AM #32
Re: Hall of shame.
how in blue blazes can someone forget about the dam orifice you might as well forget to put underwear on
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11-09-2005, 07:09 PM #33
Re: Hall of shame.
Hear this one (I mean read this one )
Last year a supermarket asked us to ckeck one of their A/Cs we had the call from the guy who monitors the electrical work there , i send a technician to see it , he found the compressor burned out , 5Tones compressor , he writed me the report , i faxed the suppermarket with the price i want to do the job , well i didn't had a reply in 2 weeks , then the phone rings , it was the guy from the suppermarket asking to come and fix the AC , as i arrived to the site i discovered that the compressor was changed a week before , but it knocked out again because the first compressor failure was a windings burn out , the one who changed the compressor didn't bother himself to change the filter driyer , and as i assume to flash and vaccum the system .
The supermarket payed about twice the price of replacing the compressor . . .
Money makes a real deal for good work and this should be conducted by a professional with conscience , not only a professionalEngineering, sciences, math, physics and my brain will generate "not responding " soon
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17-09-2005, 07:56 PM #34
Re: Hall of shame.
Hi guys , follow this internal link of a thread I posted days ago , but it seems it was posted in the wrong place , and it had replies i didn't delete it and post it here , and i don't want to attach the pics again to not take double the place for it on the sever . . .
see it and comment it
http://www.refrigeration-engineer.co...ead.php?t=3088
Cheers and best regardsLast edited by botrous; 05-11-2005 at 09:07 PM.
Engineering, sciences, math, physics and my brain will generate "not responding " soon
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26-09-2005, 02:09 PM #35
Re: Hall of shame.
Most of the poor installations of equipment I have seen are those designed by worthless engineers and consultants , who know how all the figures are suppost to look and calulate , but wouldnt have a clue about servicing. They put equipment in the most stupid places.
Come time to repair it where are they then.
I would say a book or collage course wont make you any expert or even proficant.a fridgies life is that of never quite understanding.
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26-09-2005, 08:35 PM #36
Re: Hall of shame.
Originally Posted by Greg W
that said, I've never come across a job where anyone has asked -"how do you intend to get access for servicing".
Not only for our trade but for electricians etc.
All the CDM regs seem to mean is -" have you submitted your CDM paperwork before you start work on site?" - after that it is rarely mentioned.
Just another case of someone covering their arse in case something goes wrong
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26-09-2005, 08:52 PM #37
Re: Hall of shame.
Frank
These CDM Regulations........can u point me further where I can download a copy?
Or tell me where to look
If we see a " dodgy" install, we can take it further you know!!
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26-09-2005, 09:13 PM #38
Re: Hall of shame.
May this be of any help?
http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/cis44.pdf
Chemi
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26-09-2005, 02:12 PM #39
Re: Hall of shame.
I would say a book or collage course wont make you any expert or even proficant.Engineering, sciences, math, physics and my brain will generate "not responding " soon
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03-10-2005, 03:02 PM #40
Re: Hall of shame.
Good idea about the "Hall of shame" you got there.Unfortunately,there are way too many "Mickey Mouse Mechanics",as we call them in South Africa,out there.Either that or they need to up the level of training a bit.That's disgusting!!!!
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03-10-2005, 03:33 PM #41
Re: Hall of shame.
As Konrad said South Africa is cowboy country when it comes to refrigeration mechanics. It's shoot & hope for the best.
I was called out recently to a sight, because the multiplex packs were not working. There were 2 multiplexes, 1 medium temp R22 & 1 low temp 404a. The guy was complaining that the compressors were cycling on & off too quickly & the electronic control i had set up was faulty. After some inspection i found the 1 medium temp cabinet had it's R22 liquid line going into to the cabinet but the suction line from the same cabinet was connected to the common 404a suction line. The blend of ****tail refrigerants was duely released into our atmosphere. There goes them beautiful african sunsets.
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03-10-2005, 08:16 PM #42
Re: Hall of shame.
As Konrad said South Africa is cowboy country when it comes to refrigeration mechanics. It's shoot & hope for the best
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03-10-2005, 10:03 PM #43
Re: Hall of shame.
Originally Posted by frank
You took the words out of my mouth
We were doing some work for a company who had installed a system into a large supermarket chain.
I was discussing with the owner that we were looking for another mechanic. He informed me to see if I could get a mechanic from South Africa as they were the best.
I guess there is good and bad everywhere.
Although this company went belly up shortly afterwards.
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04-10-2005, 07:05 AM #44
Re: Hall of shame.
Hi Marc
All the best guys have already left the country & all gone elsewhere in the world. The guys don't get paid well here. So maybe those South African boys down under aren't so bad after all.
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04-10-2005, 05:34 PM #45
Re: Hall of shame.
Just so you know Mark,I am an South African citizen,but working in the UK.You might have misunderstood my statement I made.I was commenting on the crappy job the technician did on the photo I saw.No hard feelings though.I thank all the other members for your comments and replies.You were correct in your statements,the level of training is good in South Africa and South Africans come highly recommended.Keep it up boys!!!!!
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17-10-2005, 10:02 AM #46
Re: Hall of shame.
Heres a good one. We sold a couple of monoblock thru- the - wall packaged coldroom units to a East Coast of Scotland refrigeration company whose customer was on a West coast island. The customer decided to do his own installation as it merely meant cutting a hole in the wall and pushing the unit into it. They phoned a few days later complaining that the rooom was getting very hot! Yes - you guessed it; they installed them back to front with the condensing unit section INSIDE and the evaporator section OUTSIDE.
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25-10-2005, 11:19 AM #47
Re: Hall of shame.
Hi Guys
I've a good one while installing a Mitsu split yeaars ago in a shopping Center in Dublin. The owner of the shop next door asked me to have a look at his A/c install. I went in and there was a young apprentice standing in front of a Condensing unit that he had hung in the shop.
His supervisor had gone to do a service call and instructed him to hang the unit. The poor guy was beside himself when I explained the situation to him and being the nice guy that I am I helped him take the condenser down and carry it to the roof and showed him how to hang the indoor.
Often wondered what would have happened if I had'nt been there. im sure it would have been resolved but someone would have got it in the neck for the mess.
By the way it was (to paraphrase members of this site )A ****ing Diakin split.
T
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05-11-2005, 06:01 PM #48
Re: Hall of shame.
I remember a time long ago (about 8 years ago) when my mom brought her car to a professional auto repair shop to get the A/C compressor replaced. The mechanics just cut the pipes and let the gas out, making a lot of fog in the process! IIRC, that's supposed to be illegal, but the shop has done that for quite a while. Of course, those cans of "freeze spray" used for electronics troubleshooting are just aerosol cans filled with refrigerant. Maybe that law only applies to some refrigerants.
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06-11-2005, 10:17 PM #49
Re: Hall of shame.
got called to a heiair (sp?) system in a warehouse once. there were to identical units that had been installed 2 weeks previous. One system was operating fine the other just kept cutting out. After replacing the whole condensor went away think it was fine. the system worked fine for a week, then same problem. Was told to change the condensor again so we did. worked fine for a week then the same thing happened again.Now 3 compressors have gone down.
By this point me, the bloke i work with and the customer are getting pi**ed off. And so are management. Whilst pottering about in the fusebord cupbord i realise that the yellow phase coming into the warehose is extreamly hot and theres a smell of burning.
After investigation phase mains fuse and burned out.
so after getting through 4 condensors the customer was unhappy to find out that it was nothing to do with what the AC engineers had done but his fuse that had blown. Needless to say he wasn't happy with the bill.
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06-11-2005, 11:07 PM #50
Re: Hall of shame.
You mean 4 Compressors?
Reminds me of a Chinese Proverb....
He who makes a mistake once.......... its ok
He who makes the same mistake again............
Well, figure........Any opinions, statements and facts expressed in this message do not constitute legal advice in any shape or form and is given for a general outlook in nature. You are advised to seek appropriate and specific professional assistance from a regulated and authorised advisor for definitive advice.
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