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 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.
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.