Why do we need to evacuate an air conditioning system o […]
Why do we need to evacuate an air conditioning system or a refrigeration system?
All the refrigeration system are designed to run without moisture and non-condensable gases else it may not work as designed and is likely to fail prematurely.
Presence of moisture in the air conditioning system may lead to the formation of acidic sludge in the oil and may cause restrictions on various places like expansion valve and evaporator coils thereby reducing the overall cooling effect.
In case of a hermetic compressor, it may cause deterioration of the insulation winding which may lead to short circuit and compressor motor burn out.
Non-condensable gases are just air which can enter during refrigerant charging, repair or maintenance. These gases take up space in the condenser and limit the amount of liquid refrigerant leading to reduced cooling efficiency.
Evacuation is carried out by using a vacuum pump and a recovery bottle, ones the system evacuates we need to wait for about 20-25 min to check the pressure gauge is holding the negative pressure (vacuum) as shown in the image.
This process may ensure that there are no leakages in the system as chances are air or moisture could enter via pipe cracks or leaky gasket or joints while performing evacuation procedure.