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Recovery, Recycling & Reclamation — EPA 608 Practice Questions

25 questions · 20% of the Core exam

Worked questions

1. Refrigerant that has been reclaimed must meet a published purity specification before it can be sold again. Which specification applies, and who is authorized to certify the batch?

  • AHRI 700 purity, verified by an EPA-certified reclaimer
  • BASHRAE 15 purity, verified by any technician holding Universal certification

    This is a safety standard covering refrigeration system design and machinery room requirements. It is not a refrigerant purity specification, and no field technician certifies reclaimed purity.

  • CUL 1963 purity, verified by the original equipment manufacturer

    This standard covers refrigerant recovery and recycling equipment itself, not the purity of the refrigerant, and equipment manufacturers do not certify reclaimed batches.

  • DDOT 4BA purity, verified by the cylinder supplier

    This is a Department of Transportation specification for the cylinder, describing how the container is built and tested. It says nothing about what is inside it.

Why A is correct

AHRI 700 is the purity specification that defines what reclaimed refrigerant must meet, covering contaminants such as moisture, acid, noncondensables, and other refrigerants. Reaching that level requires processing equipment and laboratory verification, and EPA restricts the work to certified reclaimers so that the label on the drum actually means something.

What this question is testing

The item tests the purity standard by name, the fact that only EPA-certified reclaimers may do the work, and your ability to tell a purity specification apart from a safety standard, an equipment standard, and a cylinder specification. The exam deliberately loads this answer set with real standards that serve other purposes.

On the job

This matters when a customer proposes reusing refrigerant from a building they are selling, or when a wholesaler offers reclaimed product at a discount. Reclaimed refrigerant from a certified reclaimer is legitimate and often a good value, because it has been analyzed and brought to specification. Refrigerant that a shop merely ran through a recycling machine is not reclaimed, no matter what anyone writes on the tag, and putting it into another owner's system is a violation.

Memory technique

40 CFR Part 82, Subpart F

Exam tip

Reclaim means reprocessed to AHRI 700 purity and verified by chemical analysis, done only by an EPA-certified reclaimer.

Where to look it up

Reclaim rhymes with reprocessed to a standard. Recycle is just a cleanup, and only a reclaimer can certify.

2. A system is charged from a cylinder that turned out to hold two refrigerants mixed together. What is the likely result in that system?

  • AThe two refrigerants separate in the receiver and the system settles back at its normal design pressures

    Refrigerants do not sort themselves out by gravity in a receiver. The mixture circulates as its own substance with its own pressure and temperature relationship, matching neither original refrigerant.

  • BThe compressor draws noticeably less current, because the mixture boils at a lower temperature than either refrigerant alone

    Current draw is more likely to climb as the compressor works against pressures it was never built for. Expecting lower amperage reads contamination as a harmless efficiency change.

  • COil returns faster to the compressor, which shortens run time but leaves no lasting harm to the equipment

    Better oil return would be an improvement, not a symptom. Contamination changes the pressure and temperature behavior of the charge; it does not tune the system for the better.

  • The system operates at pressures and temperatures it was never designed for, risking lost capacity and compressor damage

Why D is correct

Equipment is engineered around one refrigerant's pressure and temperature curve. A mixture shifts that curve, so charging targets, superheat, and subcooling no longer apply and the compressor may run well outside its intended conditions.

What this question is testing

Tests whether the candidate connects refrigerant purity to real machine behavior rather than treating contamination as a paperwork problem only.

On the job

Contaminated charges show up as callbacks that resist normal diagnosis: pressures that do not match any chart, superheat that cannot be dialed in, and a system that never quite cools. An identifier on the low side settles the question quickly. The repair is to recover the whole charge into a dedicated cylinder marked as mixed, replace the driers, evacuate, and recharge from a verified source, then bill the contamination separately.

Memory technique

One system, one refrigerant, one set of pressure charts. Break the first and the third stops working.

Exam tip

Pick the answer that describes the system running outside its design conditions. Choices claiming a mixture is harmless or beneficial are always wrong.

Where to look it up

Reuse limits in 40 CFR 82.156 exist because contaminated or mixed refrigerant is not fit for service in an appliance.

3. A technician recovers the charge from a system that suffered a severe compressor burnout. What is the appropriate destination for that refrigerant?

  • A certified reclaimer, because acid and burn contamination go beyond what field recycling can clean up
  • BBack into the repaired system after a single pass through the recovery machine's filter-drier and sight glass

    One pass through a drier does not guarantee acid removal, and no field equipment certifies purity. Returning that charge invites a second burnout on the replacement compressor.

  • CThe shared shop cylinder that holds the same refrigerant recovered from healthy systems on the truck

    Adding a burnout charge to a shared cylinder spreads acid into refrigerant that was clean and puts the whole cylinder at risk of rejection, wherever that cylinder happens to be kept.

  • DAny system of the same design belonging to a different customer on the route that week

    Refrigerant crossing to a different owner has to be reclaimed first regardless of its condition, and a burnout charge is the last thing to carry into another customer's equipment.

Why A is correct

Burnout residue is acidic and persistent. Field recycling reduces contaminants but cannot verify that the refrigerant is fit for service, so the charge is isolated in its own cylinder and sent to a certified reclaimer for reprocessing and analysis.

What this question is testing

Tests combined judgment: contamination severity, cylinder segregation, and the ownership rule all bear on the answer, and the candidate must weigh all three.

On the job

On a burnout the tech recovers into a marked cylinder, replaces the liquid line drier, installs an oversized suction line drier, and often takes an acid test after a few hours of run time. Reclaimers accept burnout refrigerant, sometimes at a lower credit or with a processing fee. The economics still favor sending it out compared with paying for a second compressor because acid was left in the system.

Memory technique

Burnout means burn the bridge: that charge never goes back in and never joins the clean cylinder.

Exam tip

Burnout questions reward the cautious answer. When acid is in the picture, isolate the charge and send it out.

Where to look it up

Reuse limits in 40 CFR 82.156 plus the definition of reclamation in 82.152; acid-contaminated refrigerant needs plant reprocessing.

4. Recovery cylinders follow an industry color convention so nobody mistakes them for containers of virgin refrigerant. What does that convention look like?

  • AA solid green body with a white shoulder

    Green and white are not the recovery combination. Solid colors on virgin cylinders identify a specific refrigerant product.

  • BA solid black body with a red valve handle

    Black with a red handle is not a recovery marking and would not be recognized by a reclaimer or a distributor.

  • CA blue body with an orange top

    Blue and orange are not the recovery combination, although individual refrigerants do carry assigned colors of their own.

  • A gray body with a yellow shoulder

Why D is correct

Gray body with a yellow shoulder is the recognized marking for refrigerant recovery cylinders, distinguishing them at a glance from the color-coded cylinders used for virgin refrigerant.

What this question is testing

Tests recall of the recovery cylinder color convention and reinforces that color identifies the cylinder's purpose rather than the refrigerant inside it.

On the job

Techs learn to spot the gray and yellow cylinders in a crowded shop or truck bed instantly, which matters when a recovery machine is running and hoses are being moved. The color says recovered, and the label says which refrigerant. Reclaimers and distributors expect both. A gray and yellow cylinder that shows up with no label still has to be identified before anyone will accept it.

Memory technique

Yellow on gray means caution, used gas. Think of a yellow warning light on a gray steel drum.

Exam tip

Two-tone gray and yellow equals recovery. A single solid color equals a specific virgin refrigerant.

Where to look it up

Industry standard recovery cylinder marking used with DOT-approved refillable cylinders under 40 CFR 82.156 recovery practice.

21 more in the bank

Answers and explanations for these are in the app.

  • A technician pumped the entire charge out of a rooftop unit into a cylinder and hauled it back to the shop without processing it in any way. Which of the three R's describes that operation?
  • On-site recycling equipment cleans refrigerant well enough to return it to the same system it came out of. What does that equipment actually do to the refrigerant?
  • A technician using certified recovery equipment follows correct procedure, and a small puff of vapor escapes when the hoses are disconnected at the end of the job. How does EPA treat that release?
  • R-22 recovered from a system belonging to one building owner is going to be charged into a condensing unit belonging to a different customer. What must happen to that refrigerant first?
  • Recycling and reclamation both clean up used refrigerant, but the work happens in very different places. Where does reclamation take place?
  • Refrigerant recovered from one of those rooftop units is going to be charged into a second rooftop unit belonging to that same owner. What does EPA require before that charge goes back into service?
  • Reclaiming refrigerant is a regulated activity, not just a matter of owning the right machine. Who is permitted to reclaim refrigerant?
  • Used refrigerant that goes back into the market as a reclaimed product must come from an EPA-certified reclaimer. What does that certification actually accomplish?
  • A recovery cylinder turns out to contain two different refrigerants mixed together. What is the realistic outcome for those contents?
  • On-site recycling equipment cannot turn a cylinder of mixed refrigerants back into a single usable refrigerant. What is the technical reason for that?
  • A technician is about to recover the charge from an unfamiliar system into a cylinder that already holds refrigerant from another job. What should be done first?
  • Recovering from a burned-out system can carry acid and sludge straight into the recovery machine. What is the standard precaution?
  • A service truck often carries recovery cylinders holding different refrigerants at the same time. What has to be done so the contents never get confused?
  • A recovery cylinder that previously held one refrigerant is going to be used for a different refrigerant. What must happen before it is filled?
  • In a sales listing the words recovered and reclaimed describe two very different products. What is the distinction that matters to the buyer?
  • Some used refrigerant is too contaminated or too badly mixed to be brought back to specification purity. What is the proper end of the line for that material?
  • Refrigerant that has only been run through on-site recycling equipment carries one important limitation. What is that limitation?
  • A building owner asks whether reclaimed refrigerant is a second-rate substitute for new refrigerant in a repair. What is the accurate answer?
  • A charge is recovered from a system, a component is replaced, and the technician wants to put that same refrigerant back into that same system the same day. What does EPA require in between?
  • Recovered refrigerant has to go into an appropriate container before it leaves the jobsite. What kind of container is required?
  • Reclaimed refrigerant must meet the AHRI 700 purity specification before it can be sold. What does that specification actually set limits on?

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