F-Gas FAQs

F-Gas FAQs

What is the F-Gas Register?

The F-Gas Register is a leading company & sole trader F-Gas certification body in the UK and we provide the lowest cost full F Gas certification in the UK.

We also provide a range of training courses, including Our City & Guilds 2079-11 Level 2, for Fluorinated gases and ozone depleting substances.

What is F-Gas Company Certification?

A company must be F-Gas Company Certified to handle fluorinated greenhouse gases (also known as ‘F-gases’) regulated by the EU if it is serviced by the following types of equipment for other businesses;

Stationary refrigeration systems that contain F-Gas
Stationary air conditioning and heat pump systems that contain F-Gas
Stationary fire protection systems that contain F-Gas
Servicing includes repairing, installing, decommissioning and maintaining

Your company employees must also be qualified as individuals if they handle F-Gas. Call us to find out how to get qualified to work with F-Gas as an individual.

Sole traders must be qualified as individuals and then certified as companies.

Certificates issued in other EU member states are valid in the UK.

What do I need to do in order to become an F-Gas qualified engineer?

In order to become an F-Gas qualified engineer you need to complete a training course and obtain a qualification with either of the following F Gas awarding bodies:

1) City and Guilds

2) CITB

3) Building Engineering Services Association

4) Logic Certification Ltd (LCL)

 

PLEASE NOTE: We cannot accept CITB cards or ACRIB cards. We need to see copies of qualification certificates to check the certificate code.


The following F-Gas qualifications titles are accepted for F-Gas certification:

 

CITY & GUILDS

2079

  • City & Guilds 2079-11(Category 1) Level 2 award in F-Gas & ODS regulations
  • City & Guilds 2079-12(Category 2) Level 2 award in F-Gas & ODS regulations

6187 

  • City & Guilds 6187-01 Level 2 award NVQ diploma in installing, testing and maintaining air conditioning and heat pump systems
  • City & Guilds 6187-02 Level 2 NVQ diploma in installing and maintaining refrigeration systems

7189

  • City & Guilds 7189-02 Level 2 NVQ Diplomas in Refrigeration Air Conditioning
  • City & Guilds 7189-03 Level 3 NVQ Diplomas in Refrigeration Air Conditioning

Unit Routes

  • City & Guilds 6187-92 Level 2 NVQ Diploma in Installing, Testing and Maintaining Air Conditioning and Heat Pump Systems
  • City & Guilds 6187-92 Level 2 NVQ Diploma in Installing and Maintaining Refrigeration Systems
  • City & Guilds 7189-92 Level 2 NVQ Diplomas in Refrigeration Air Conditioning
  • City & Guilds 7189-93  Level 3 NVQ Diplomas in Refrigeration Air Conditioning

 

CITB

  • CITB J11 (Category 1) Leak checking, recovery, installation, service & maintenance of equipment
  • CITB J12 (Category 2)  Installation, service & maintenance of equipment with a charge of less than 3kg (6kg if hermetically sealed) & leakage checking

LOGIC CERTIFICATION LTD (LDL)

  • Logic Certification 603/1917/3 LCL Level 3 award in F-Gas: Install, service, maintain, recovery, decommission, and leakage checking of systems (Category 1)
  • Logic Certification 603/1917/3 LCL Level 3 award in F-Gas: Install, service, maintain, recovery, decommission, and leakage checking of systems (Category 2)

BUILDING ENGINEERING SERVICES ASSOCIATION

  • BESA Refrigeration, Air Conditioning & Heat Pumps Qualification Category 1
  • BESA Refrigeration, Air Conditioning & Heat Pumps Qualification Category 2

QQI/FETAC

  • QQI/FETAC Handling F-Gas Refrigerants Level 5


Once you have completed a relevant F Gas training course, you will then be able to become F-Gas certified with The F-Gas Register.


Or the equivalent qualification from another European country


Qualifications that are not accepted;

IMI Level 3 Award in Automotive Refrigerant Handling (EC842-2006) (VRQ) Meets the requirements of EC regulation EU 2015 / 2067) 500/6771/0

City & Guilds: 2078 is for Ozone Depleting Substances and are not valid under the F-gas Regs.

CITB: J01 is for Ozone Depleting Substances and are not valid under the F-gas Regs.

The above two qualifications have been replaced by City & Guilds: 2079 evergreen qualification, and the CITB J11 refresher course.

*Companies can have engineers with Category 3 or 4 qualifications can become registered as long as they also have at least one engineer who holds a Category 1 or 2.

Are there any prerequisites to study the City & Guilds 2079-11 F-Gas course?

There are no pre-requisites to this training course however it is recommended that the delegates attending have a basic understanding of the following, to help all candidates a 28 page Pre-Course theory is available in their joining instructions which you will receive upon booking:

 

  • COSHHBasic knowledge of health and safety when working with chemicals and gasses.
  • Engineering Basic tool man ship, the use of tools and knowing what tools do.
  • The Refrigeration CycleBasic knowledge is always helpful but this is taught on the course
  • Pressure Temperature RelationshipBasic laws of physics, pressures and what happens to pressure if the temperature changes, we teach this on the course.
  • Thermodynamics As above the relationship between things and how they react to change, we teach this also.

You can find the City & Guilds 2079-11 course here.

I work with Mobile AC, do I need company registration?

Most companies who operate in the automotive industry do not require FGAS Registration, please contact us before proceeding if you operate in the MAC Sector’. The following are guidelines laid out by the Environment Agency regarding the Mobile Air Conditioning (MAC) sector:

  • Vehicles less than 3500kg and up to 8 passenger seats, i.e. Cars, 4×4 and Light Vans – Engineers should be qualified for the recovery of gas. This qualification is referred to as the ‘Safe Handing and Recovery of HFC F-gas for the MAC sector’ issued by City & Guilds, CITB, IMI or ABC.

 

  • Refrigerated trucks and trailers over 3500kg – i.e. Climate controlled goods vehicles – From 1st July 2017, engineers should be qualified for installation, maintenance, leak checking, and decommissioning. These qualifications are the same as for the stationary refrigeration a/c sector awarded by City & Guilds, CITB, BESA and Logic Certification, listed above. Please note, a shipping container is not classed as a vehicle so is not included in this category. And, AC units in the cabins of vehicles over 3500kg are also not relevant.

 

  • Vehicles that do not fit into either of the above two categories – e.g. Ships, Submarines, Planes, Helicopters, Trains, Trams, Tanks, Tractors & Excavators do not require engineers to be certified.

In addition, company F-gas certificates are not required for any of the sectors above.

It is important to note that although a certified Trucks and Trailer engineer will hold the same certification as those from the Stationary Equipment (SRAC) sector, they will need the cover of a company F-gas certificate prior to working on SRAC equipment.

If you do not have the F-gas MAC Recovery qualification issued by City & Guilds, CITB, ABC or IMI, ideally you should not work on cars and light vehicles. The only activity you could complete would be the filling of equipment after ensuring they are leak free.

To summarise, neither the mobile nor transport sector require company registration, only the Stationary Equipment (SRAC) sector requires this. The mobile sector requires the qualification outlined in point 1 whereas the transport sector requires a stationary equipment qualification such as the City & Guilds 2079-11 qualification.

And, regardless of your equipment type, you should never vent gas to the atmosphere, EC 517/2014 F-gas Regs Article 3 (Containment) should always be adhered to by using recovery equipment;

  1. The intentional release of fluorinated greenhouse gases into the atmosphere shall be prohibited where the release is not technically necessary for the intended use.
  2. Operators of equipment that contain fluorinated greenhouse gases shall take precautions to prevent the unintentional release (‘leakage’) of those gases.

They shall take all measures which are technically and economically feasible to minimise leakage of fluorinated greenhouse gases.

Where a leakage of fluorinated greenhouse gases is detected, the operators shall ensure that the equipment is repaired without undue delay.

What are the F-Gas regulations?

The main objective of the F-Gas EC regulations is to contain and thereby reduce emissions of F-Gases as covered by the Kyoto Protocol, with the overall aim being to help combat climate change.

The obligations in the F-Gas Regulation (EC Regulation 842/2006) and the Ozone Regulation (EC Regulation 2037/2000) affect many sectors such as the engineering, environmental, refrigeration and air conditioning.

In some cases, the obligations lie with the owner / operator of the equipment. In others, the obligations lie with third parties, such as equipment suppliers, maintenance contractors and waste handling companies.

The full F-Gas regulations can be found here

Will these regulations affect me and my business?

F-Gas Regulations apply to and affect all sizes and types of businesses, from sole traders and partnerships to larger, limited companies and public limited companies.

If your business carries out the installation or servicing of refrigeration, air-conditioning or heat pump equipment that contains, or is designed to contain, F-Gas refrigerants then by law, you must obtain an F-Gas company certificate.

Why do I require an F-Gas company certificate?

If your business does not have an F-Gas company certificate by 4 July 2009, your company will be subject to Local Authority enforcement measures.

The F-Gas regulations place strict obligations on operators of SRAC equipment and if your business is not certified you will be placing your customers at risk.

How often will my F-Gas certificate need to be renewed?

Your F-Gas certificate needs to be renewed every 3 years. You can renew your F-Gas certificate by logging into your account with your username and password, and selecting ‘renew F-Gas membership’.

If you do not have a record of your F-Gas login details, please send an e-mail to info@fgasregister.com or call us on 01225 667 697, and we will give you your f gas login details.

FIA fire registration

Please note that the F-Gas register is providing company or sole trader F-Gas certification and training for stationary refrigeration and air-conditioning maintenance companies.

For Fire certification for fire protection systems. you should refer to FIA HERE

For how many years will my F-Gas certification be valid?

Your F-Gas certification will be valid for three years.

Can I change the personal details of my existing F-Gas certificate?

Yes, you can e-mail the desired changes to info@fgasregister.com and our F-Gas Register team will be able to make the modifications required.

My company only deals with automotive handling, do we need an F-Gas company certificate?

F-Gas company certification is only required for businesses that work on third parties equipment within the Stationary Refrigeration and AC sector. If you are in the automotive sector, you do not need a company F-Gas certificate.

I tried to register online, but never received my automated password via email?

The F-Gas system automatically sends out a password to your inbox within a couple of seconds.

If you did not receive it, please check your ‘Spam’ folder.

In the case your F Gas password is not in your ‘Spam’ folder, please send an e-mail to info@fgasregister.com or call us on 01225 667 697 and we will give you your login details so that you can complete your F-Gas company or sole trader certification.

What is F-Gas Company Certification?

A company must be F-Gas Company Certified to handle fluorinated greenhouse gases… Your company employees must also be qualified as individuals if they handle F-Gas. Sole traders must be qualified as individuals and then certified as companies.

Will these regulations affect me and my business?

F-Gas Regulations apply to and affect all sizes and types of businesses, from sole traders and partnerships to larger, limited companies and public limited companies.

If your business carries out the installation or servicing of refrigeration, air-conditioning or heat pump equipment that contains, or is designed to contain, F-Gas refrigerants then by law, you must obtain an F-Gas company certificate.

Do I need to be a F-Gas company certified if I only use sub-contractors?

In order to obtain a company F-gas certificate, you should employ engineers directly on your books paying National Insurance etc for them.

If you are a business that organises other companies / businesses to perform work on your behalf, you cannot have your own F-gas certificate as you do not directly employ your own staff.

 

If you sub-contract work to another business and in order to protect your clients responsibilities towards their equipment (and often to honour equipment’s installation warranties) you should ensure your sub-contractors are qualified to City & Guilds or CITB AND that they hold a company F-gas certificates – this includes self employed sole traders, including those working for larger businesses.