Static sparks from gauge lines

[monkey spanners]

Was recovering some refrigerant today and noticed the gauge lines crackling with static, this is the sort of thing that can damage digital manifolds and scales etc.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rue3S2zzmao

[Brian_UK]

Possibly not too good for hydrocarbons either.

[Tesla]

I had this before to MS. When I was charging a system with 65kG bottles and the bottle was on a trolley with rubber wheels, there was a shifter (spanner) leaning against the trolley there were sparks with a gap of about 1mm - so I guess about 2000V. Good you got it on video. Like you said due to the high velocity of the refrigerant but most guys would not notice as they use Schroeder depressors in their gauge lines which dramatically slows the velocity and process for that matter. Nice Refco Gauges too.

[Grizzly]

Hi MS.
Have you eve thought of becoming a trainer.
Please tell me you have an apprentice?

That phenomena has a technical term.
It's called "Bollocking in"!
Quite a rare sight on 1/4" lines.
Grizzly

[RONB]

I get this all the time when dump charging packs. The best thing to do is get a length of cable (1.5) and wrap one end on to the bottle adaptor and one end to the unit you are charging and the static will go.

[monkey spanners]

First time i saw this was working on a coldroom roof where the unit was, every second or so i could hear a spark like an electric fence, then noticed it was jumping between the gauge line and the roof!

This system had 7kg R404A in it but only got about half in the bottle before it equalised so i then took vapour back out the recovery bottle into the suction on the system to chill the bottle down, then it got 6kg in before i ran the recovery machine.

No apprentice yet, would need more work!

[install monkey]

pat test ur chinese reclaim rig!

[monkey spanners]

pat test ur chinese reclaim rig!

I'll get Patrick to look at it asap

[install monkey]

would have thought the rubber in the lines would be an insulator- is it still there if u unhook the gauges and hang them on something non metallic?

[chilliwilly]

Just popped into this post from the "pulling a vacuum on a semi hermetc compressor thread".

It also just goes to prove that refrigerant is an insulator, and will have high resistance unless contaminated with moisture. If the rate of flow and the ambient RH condition was matched when recharging from a recovered refrigerant that may be contaminated, then maybe static would be produced and no sparks?