EPA 608 study guide
EPA 608 · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
Section 608 Technician Certification is the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency credential required under EPA regulations at 40 CFR Part 82, Subpart F, issued under Section 608 of the Clean Air Act. Technicians who maintain, service, repair, or dispose of equipment that could release ozone-depleting refrigerants into the atmosphere must be certified, and since January 1, 2018 that same requirement extends to appliances containing most substitute refrigerants, including HFCs. A candidate earns the credential by passing an EPA-approved test administered by an EPA-approved certifying organization; EPA writes the rule but does not itself give the exams. The EPA 608 study guide has 4 sections and about 1,562 words.
01Type I - Small Appliances
Type I is the small-appliance category: hermetically sealed, factory-charged equipment holding 5 lb of refrigerant or less . Typical examples are household refrigerators and freezers, window and portable air conditioners, dehumidifiers, water coolers, vending machines, and small ice machines.
385 words, about 2 min02Type II - High-Pressure Appliances
Type II covers high-pressure equipment that is not a small appliance or a low-pressure chiller: residential split systems, packaged and rooftop units, and high-pressure chillers. The refrigerants are the familiar ones - R-22, R-410A, R-407C, R-134a, R-12, R-500, R-502 - all of which boil well below ambient at atmospheric pressure, so a leak pushes refrigerant out rather than pulling air in.
379 words, about 2 min03Type III - Low-Pressure Appliances
Type III covers low-pressure appliances, almost always centrifugal chillers using R-11, R-113, or R-123. These refrigerants boil above ambient at atmospheric pressure, which means the machine normally runs in a vacuum : a leak pulls air and moisture in instead of pushing refrigerant out.
395 words, about 2 min04Universal (Types I, II, and III)
Universal certification is awarded after passing all three type exams, so the questions test your ability to attach the right rule to the right appliance class rather than to learn new subject matter. Expect mixed scenarios: a rooftop unit, a dehumidifier, and a chiller in the same question stem.
403 words, about 2 min