WARNING
| Danger of freezing injuries. |
| The refrigerant can emerge as liquid or as vapour. |
| Do not open containers in which this refrigerant is
present. |
|
| If refrigerant containers are opened, the contents may
escape in liquid or vapour form. The higher the pressure in the
container, the more energetic the emergence will be. |
| How high the pressure is depends on two factors: |
| What type of refrigerant is in the container. “This is
because the lower the boiling point, the higher the pressure.” |
| How high the temperature is. “This is because the higher the
temperature, the higher the pressure.” |
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Wear protective glasses
Put on protective glasses. This will prevent the refrigerant entering the
eyes, which in certain circumstances can cause severe injury due to frostbite.
Wear protective gloves and apron
| Refrigerants dissolve fats and oils very well. Therefore,
when they come in contact with the skin, they take away the
protective layer of fat. Skin from which the natural oil and fat
have been removed is vulnerable to cold and germs. |
|
|
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| Do not allow liquid refrigerant to come
in contact with the skin |
|
The refrigerant will draw its latent heat of evaporation from its
surroundings. That can be your skin. This can result in very low temperatures.
The result is local frostbite (boiling point of R134a is -26.5°C at normal
atmospheric pressure).
Do not breath in refrigerant vapour
 Note
| In high concentrations, emerging refrigerant vapours can mix
with the air and displace the oxygen necessary for breathing. |
|
| Refrigerant can decompose in a burning cigarette. The
resulting substances are poisonous and must not be breathed in. |
|
Questions & answers
Handling refrigerants — Volkswagen Golf Mk7
What are the safe handling rules for R134a?
Never open the circuit without proper equipment. Wear safety goggles and gloves. Work in ventilated areas. Never heat a refrigerant container with an open flame.
Refrigerants used in car air conditioning systems belong to
the new generation of refrigerants, the chlorine-free,
partially-fluoridated hydrocarbons (H-CFC, R134a).
...
Before welding and brazing on vehicles (in the vicinity of
the air conditioning system components), extract the refrigerant
and then purge the system by blowing throu ...
