PS Magazine - TB 43-PS-721

PS, The Preventative Maintenance Monthly

ISSUE 721

DECEMBER 2012
PS Magazine - TB 43-PS-721 - Page 13 of 33
23
PS 721
DEC 12
Contaminated
Refrigerant
a
Grave Risk
WARNING!
±
If you suspect your FDECU has contaminated refrigerant, do not service or remove
the refrigerant from the FDECU. Do not perform preventive maintenance checks and
services on the refrigeration system components, tubing, fittings and outside
coil. Do not perform scheduled or unscheduled maintenance. Do not prepare
the FDECU for shipment or storage.
Bad Refrigerant
The root of the refrigerant problem
is the source of supply. The FDECU
uses
R-134A
refrigerant,
which
must
be ordered only through the Defense
Logistics
Agency
(DLA).
R-134A
ordered through DLA is considered safe.
But R-134A purchased OCONUS from
non-DLA sources may be contaminated
with R-40.
Cylinders
holding
contaminated
R-134A
may
have
legitimate-looking
vendor’s labels that say the contents are
R-134A. Don’t be fooled. These labels are
forged. You can’t be sure of the contents
of the cylinder just by looking at the label.
You must check the supply records.
Which FDECUs Are at Risk?
These FDECUs are suspected of having contaminated R-134A:
•
FDECUs±that±have±been±deployed±OCONUS±in±the±last±36±months.
•
FDECUs±that±have±not±been±deployed±OCONUS±but±have±no±records±
proving±repairs±and±services±were±done±using±DLA-certified±refrigerant.
FDECUs that have not been deployed OCONUS and have records proving
repairs and services were done using DLA-certi±ed refrigerant are considered safe.
FDECU…
units that have
field deployable
environmental control
units (fdecu), models 2,
3, 4, 5 and 9, nsn 4120-
01-449-0459, pay
Close attentioN!
your fdecu could
have a refrigerant
contaminated with
methyl chloride,
also known as
r-40.
methyl chloride
is suspected of
causing
cancer.
it’s also
flammable
and
explosive
when exposed to the
atmosphere or aluminum.
it could damage the fdecu.
what’s
worse, it
could
injure
or
kill
you
or
others.
you
can’t
gO
by my
LoOks
alone!
Never±
purchase±
R-134A±
from±
non-DLA±
sources
721 22-23.indd
1-2
10/26/12
3:38 PM
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