12
Safety precautions
3. Repairs to sealed components
• During repairs to sealed
components, all electrical supplies
shall be disconnected from the
equipment being worked upon prior
to any removal of sealed covers, etc.
• If it is absolutely necessary to have
an electrical supply to equipment
during servicing, then a permanently
operating form of leak detection shall
be located at the most critical point
to warn of a potentially hazardous
situation.
• Particular attention shall be paid
to the following to ensure that by
working on electrical components,
the casing is not altered in such a
way that the level of protection is
affected. This shall include damage
to cables, excessive number of
connections, terminals not made
to original speci
fi
cation, damage to
seals, incorrect
fi
tting of glands, etc.
• Ensure that apparatus is mounted
securely.
• Ensure that seals or sealing
materials have not degraded such
that they no longer serve the
purpose of preventing the ingress of
fl
ammable atmospheres.
• Replacement parts shall be in
accordance with the manufacturer’s
speci
fi
cations.
NOTE: The use of silicon sealant may
inhibit the effectiveness of some types
of leak detection equipment.
Intrinsically safe components do not
have to be isolated prior to working
on them.
4. Repair to intrinsically safe
components
• Do not apply any permanent
inductive or capacitance loads to
the circuit without ensuring that
this will not exceed the permissible
voltage and current permitted for the
equipment in use.
• Intrinsically safe components are
the only types that can be worked
on while live in the presence of a
fl
ammable atmosphere.
• The test apparatus shall be at the
correct rating.
• Replace components only with
parts speci
fi
ed by the manufacturer.
Unspeci
fi
ed parts by manufacturer
may result ignition of refrigerant in
the atmosphere from a leak.
5. Cabling
• Check that cabling will not be
subject to wear, corrosion, excessive
pressure, vibration, sharp edges or
any other adverse environmental
effects.
• The check shall also take into
account the effects of aging or
continual vibration from sources
such as compressors or fans.
6. Detection of
fl
ammable
refrigerants
• Under no circumstances shall
potential sources of ignition be used
in the searching or detection of
refrigerant leaks.
• A halide torch (or any other detector
using a naked
fl
ame) shall not be
used.
