. rioritizing Leak Tightness During Commercial
Refrigeration Equipment Installation
Food retail stores can save a significant amount of money and reduce
impacts to the environment by ensuring that commercial refrigeration
equipment is leak-tight when installed. The typical food retail store refrigeration
system leaks an estimated 25% — or approximately 1,000 pounds — of refrigerant
annually. In addition to being expensive, these leaks have significant implications
for the environment, since most refrigerants are ozone-depleting substances or
greenhouse gases, or both. According to several studies, refrigerant leaks can
account for more than one third of a typical food retail store's annual greenhouse
gas footprint (see the graphic at right).
Why Prioritize Leak Tightness During Equipment Installation?
There are a number of reasons why food retail stores should prioritize leak tightness
during commercial refrigeration equipment installation, including the following:
Leaks are expensive. Ensuring leak tightness saves money, since new
refrigerant must be purchased to replace refrigerant that is leaked. It is
estimated that if every food retail store in the country reduced its refrigeration
system's leak rate to the GreenChill Partner average, the industry would save
approximately $108 million every year on reduced refrigerant costs. Ensuring
leak tightness at the time of installation means that a refrigerant system will
begin generating cost savings the moment it becomes operational.
GREENCHIL
Breakdown of Greenhouse Gas
Emissions in a Typical Food Retail
Store, by Source
Natural
Gas Fleet
4% Transportation
13%
Aviation
Fleet
0%
Source: Verisae. 2008. Measuring Your Carbon
Footprint. FMI Sustainability Task Force Meeting,
January 16, 2008.
Leaks harm the ozone layer, or contribute to climate change, or both. Most commercial refrigeration systems
in the U.S. use hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC) or hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) refrigerants. When leaked, HCFC
refrigerants contribute to ozone depletion. In addition, these refrigerants are very strong greenhouse gases,
with potencies of as much as 1,800 times that of carbon dioxide in terms of their global warming potential. While
HFC refrigerants do not contribute to ozone depletion, they too are potent greenhouse gases, often more potent
than HCFCs. The most commonly used HFC refrigerants are nearly 4,000 times stronger than carbon dioxide in
terms of global warming potential. Regardless of the refrigerant used in commercial refrigeration equipment, the
bottom line is that if the refrigerant does not leak, it cannot contribute to ozone depletion or climate change.
Prioritizing leak tightness at installation sends a clear message to technicians and employees. Prioritizing leak-
tight installations from the moment the refrigeration equipment is brought into the store sends a clear message
to the company's technicians and employees that the company is committed to reducing refrigerant leaks.
Making this commitment clear and evident at the onset helps ensure that leak tightness remains an important
issue for a company's technicians and employees, as there will be additional opportunities to ensure that
equipment is leak-tight during ongoing operations and maintenance.
Waiting until leaks become a problem before addressing them only makes the problem bigger. Leaks in
refrigeration equipment get worse overtime, as the area through which the refrigerant leaks gradually increases
in size. The larger the size of the leak, the more refrigerant is wasted. At the time of installation, leaks can
be identified using hydrogen or helium gas to test the system, before the system is charged with refrigerant,
meaning no refrigerant is wasted before leaks are addressed.
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GreenChill Best Practices Guideline
Ensuring Leak-Tight Installations of Commercial
Refrigeration Equipment
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Stratospheric Protection Division
GreenChill Partners
Food Retailers
ACME Markets
Albertsons
Intermountain West
Albertsons/Lucky
Southern California
Bel Air Markets
Bigg's
Bloom
Bottom Dollar
Cub Foods
Farm Fresh Food &
Pharmacy
Food Lion
Food Source
Fresh & Easy
Giant Eagle
Hannaford
Harris Teeter
Harvey's
Hornbacher's
Jewel/Osco
King Kullen
King's
Mr.Z's
Nob Hill Foods
Organic Valley
Price Chopper
Publix
Raley's
Reid's
Shaw's/Star Markets
Shop 'n Save, St. Louis
Shoppers Food &
Pharmacy
Sprouts Farmers Market
Supervalu Inc.
Sweetbay
Weis Markets
Whole Foods
Wild by Nature
Advanced Refrigeration Technology
Manufacturers
Hill Phoenix Kysor Warren
Hussmann
Zero Zone
Chemical Manufacturers
Arkema Honeywell
Dow Chemical Ineos Fluor
DuPont
GreenChill Best Practices for Ensuring Leak-Tight
Installations
In 2008, the EPA GreenChill Partnership launched a collaborative effort
with its advanced refrigeration technology manufacturing and food retailer
Partners to develop a guidance document on leak-tight testing during
equipment installations. This GreenChill Best Practices Guideline: Ensuring
Leak-Tight Installations of Commercial Refrigeration Equipment, which
was co-authored by experts from GreenChill Partner companies (including
Farm Fresh/Supervalu, Hill Phoenix, Hussmann, Kysor Warren, and Zero
Zone) and the EPA, was peer reviewed by a broad range of commercial
refrigeration stakeholders and piloted in GreenChill Partner stores. The
guideline describes a process for testing a refrigeration system for leaks
immediately after installation, which includes the following steps:
• Pre-check and preparation procedures
• Pressure testing procedures and standards
• Stair-step evacuation procedures and standards
• Charging the system with refrigerant
• Final check procedures
• The full guideline is available at
www.epa.gov/greenchill/downloads/LeakGuidelines.pdf.
EPA's GreenChill Advanced Refrigeration Partnership
The GreenChill Partnership is made up of industry leaders in green
refrigeration technology and environmental stewardship. GreenChill is a
cooperative alliance with the supermarket industry to support and promote
green technologies, strategies, and practices that protect the ozone layer,
reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and save money. GreenChill Partners
in the food retail industry have refrigerant emissions rates nearly 50% lower
than the EPA-estimated industry average.
The GreenChill Partnership researches advanced technology and servicing
practices and provides Partners with tools that can be used to attain
corporate environmental goals. Partners also benefit from the opportunity to
share information on environmental best practices and increased publicity
for their commitments to their environmental goals.
For additional information on the GreenChill Partnership, please contact:
Keilly Witman at (202) 343-9742 witman.keilly@epa.gov
www.epa.gov/greenchill
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