The HVAC industry uses all sorts of fancy words to classify refrigerant. As such, there are all sorts of complicated refrigerant acronyms: HFC, HCFC, CFC. Let's also not forget the mythical zeotropic, azeotropic, and near-azeotropic descriptors. Let's simplify those. (Though if you want to go back to the basics first, check out this article on […]

I don't do much in the way of “rack” refrigeration. However, I recently had a conversation with experienced rack refrigeration tech Jeremy Smith, and he got me thinking about EPR valves. I've heard EPR (evaporator pressure regulator) valves called suction regulators or hold back valves. In essence, they hold back against the suction line to […]

The primary role of setting an appropriate level of subcooling is to ensure that we deliver a full line of liquid refrigerant to the metering device. We want to do this at: A pressure differential required by the metering device At a temperature and pressure no higher than required for maximum capacity and efficiency But […]