A recovery machine pulls refrigerant from the system, condenses it, and pushes it into a gray and yellow topped recovery cylinder that must never be filled past 80 percent of its capacity. Recovered refrigerant may be returned to the same owner's system or sent for reclaim. Venting fluorocarbon refrigerants is illegal, and technicians must be certified to buy and handle most refrigerants.
Hook up the recovery machine and pull it into the 30 pound tank, it's at 18 pounds now so watch the scale.
Weigh the recovery cylinder as you go; overfilling past 80 percent leaves no room for liquid to expand.
Also heard as
- refrigerant recovery
Related terms
Refrigerant
The working fluid that carries heat around a refrigeration or air conditioning system by boiling and condensing.
Pump down
Moving a system's refrigerant into the condenser or receiver by shutting the liquid line and running the compressor.
Burnout
A compressor motor failure that overheats the windings and contaminates the system with acid, sludge and carbon.
Schrader valve
A spring-loaded valve core in a refrigerant service port, opened by the depressor in a gauge hose fitting.