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 specifi 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
specifi 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.
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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 specifi ed by the manufacturer.
Unspecifi 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.