The short answer
A "small appliance" is not just a small system. Under §82.152 it must be fully manufactured, charged, and hermetically sealed in a factory with 5 pounds or less of refrigerant. Miss any element — field-assembled, field-charged, or over 5 lb — and it is not a small appliance, even if it holds only 4 lb. Recovery from a small appliance is percentage-based, not Table 1-based: 80% or 90% depending on equipment era and whether the compressor runs, or 4 inches of Hg vacuum as the alternative.
The definition, element by element
Section 82.152: "Small appliance means any appliance that is fully manufactured, charged, and hermetically sealed in a factory with five (5) pounds or less of refrigerant." The listed examples: refrigerators and freezers (home, commercial, or consumer use), medical or industrial research refrigeration equipment, room air conditioners (including window air conditioners, portable air conditioners, and packaged terminal air heat pumps), dehumidifiers, under-the-counter ice makers, vending machines, and drinking water coolers.
- 5 lb is the ceiling, inclusive. A factory-sealed unit holding exactly 5 lb qualifies; 5 lb 1 oz does not. A nameplate in ounces converts at 16 oz = 1 lb.
- Factory-sealed is doing real work. A split system field-charged with 4 lb is not a small appliance — it was not manufactured, charged, and hermetically sealed in a factory. That unit falls under Type II, not Type I.
- Who may work on it: persons who maintain, service, or repair small appliances must be certified as Type I technicians (§82.161(a)(1)(i)); Universal covers small appliances too. One exception: persons who dispose of small appliances (and MVACs/MVAC-like appliances) are not required to be certified (§82.161(a)(1)(vii)) — though the recovery itself must still be done properly with certified equipment.
Recovery: the 80% / 90% rules and the 4-inch alternative
Section 82.156(b) — before opening a small appliance or when disposing of one, recover with a §82.158-certified machine according to one of these:
| Equipment era | Compressor | Required recovery |
|---|---|---|
| Manufactured before Nov 15, 1993 | Either | 80% of the refrigerant (§82.156(b)(1)) |
| Manufactured on/after Nov 15, 1993 | Functioning | 90% (§82.156(b)(2)) |
| Manufactured on/after Nov 15, 1993 | Not functioning | 80% (§82.156(b)(2)) |
| Any era (alternative to the percentages) | Either | Evacuate to 4 inches of Hg vacuum (§82.156(b)(3)) |
Two exam traps live in this table. First, pre-1993 equipment has no compressor split — it is 80% whether the compressor runs or not. Second, the 4-inch vacuum is a standalone alternative in its own paragraph, not a bonus requirement on top of the percentages. Note what is not here: Table 1's evacuation levels (0/4/10/15 in Hg, 25 mm Hg absolute) apply to appliances except small appliances — Type I recovery is percentage-based by design.
Recovery options that only apply here
- System-dependent (passive) recovery. System-dependent equipment requires the assistance of components contained in the appliance to remove refrigerant (§82.152) — typically the appliance's own compressor — as opposed to self-contained (active) equipment, which removes refrigerant without the appliance's components. Small appliances are the natural home for passive recovery, because of the next rule.
- The 15-lb system-dependent limit (§82.156(e)). System-dependent equipment may not be used with appliances holding more than 15 lb, unless the equipment is permanently attached to the appliance as a pump-out unit. Every small appliance (≤5 lb) sits under that ceiling, so passive recovery is available for all of them — but the same method on a 20-lb system would violate §82.156(e).
- Process stubs (§82.154(e)(2), §82.152). Small appliances (except those containing only exempt refrigerants) may not be sold unless equipped with a process stub: a length of tubing providing access to the refrigerant inside the appliance that can be resealed at the conclusion of repair or service. That stub is where access fittings go — small appliances do not ship with standard service valves.
- Use equipment per the manufacturer's directions (§82.156(g)) unless those directions conflict with Subpart F, and use equipment certified under §82.158.
After recovery: where the refrigerant may go
- Back to the same owner (§82.156(h)). Refrigerant may be returned to the appliance it came from, or to another appliance owned by the same person, without being recycled or reclaimed. (MVAC and MVAC-like appliances are excepted from this paragraph.)
- Sale of used refrigerant requires reclamation (§82.154(d)(1)). Used refrigerant may not be sold or distributed for use as a refrigerant unless it has been reclaimed by an EPA-certified reclaimer (with narrow exceptions for MVAC-to-MVAC recycling, refrigerant contained in a sold appliance with a fully assembled circuit, and intra-company or intra-agency transfers). Mixing refrigerant types in one cylinder is how recovered refrigerant becomes un-reclaimable — keep types separate.
- Disposal records — the band small appliances fall below. The §82.156(a)(3) disposal-record duty (company name, location, recovery date, refrigerant type, monthly totals, transfers — kept 3 years) covers appliances with a full charge of more than 5 and less than 50 lb. Small appliances (≤5 lb) are below that band, so that particular record duty does not attach — but recovery before opening or disposal is still mandatory under §82.156(b).
Drill it
Type I is the shortest section and the easiest to overthink — the traps are all in the definition and the percentage table.