EPA Section 608 certification
What each 608 section actually tests
The exam is four independent 25-question sections — pass each at 18 of 25. Core is required for everyone; add Types I, II and III and the certification becomes Universal. Here is what each section is really about.
2018 or 2026 exam?
The format above is set by federal rule and hasn’t changed since 2016 — but question banks do. ESCO Institute, one EPA-approved certifying organization, released an updated Section 608 test bank in August 2026 and keeps its 2018 exam available until January 1, 2027, each with its own study manual and pressure-temperature chart (as of October 2026). Book the edition you studied for. This guide follows the current regulations, so it applies to either.
Core (everyone takes it)
Ozone science and the treaty layer (why chlorine chemistry made CFCs a problem, ODP vs GWP), the refrigerant family ladder from CFC to HFO and the safety classes that come with it (A1, mildly flammable A2L, highly flammable A3), the venting prohibition — which covers HFCs and other non-exempt substitutes, not just CFCs — and its de-minimis carve-out, the three Rs — recover vs recycle vs reclaim — the sales restriction, and shop safety: cylinder handling, PPE, and why pressurizing with anything but regulated nitrogen is how people get hurt.
Type I — small appliances
Factory-sealed systems holding five pounds of refrigerant or less: recovery requirements and the specific evacuation levels small appliances must reach, with and without a working compressor.
Type II — high-pressure systems
The equipment most technicians service daily: evacuation requirements by appliance size and condition, leak inspection and leak-repair rules, and safe recovery from systems under real pressure.
Type III — low-pressure systems
Chillers that run below atmospheric pressure: their distinct evacuation targets, leak-testing pressure limits, and the recovery quirks of machines that want to pull air IN rather than leak refrigerant out.
Numbers stable enough to memorize
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Four sections × 25 questions; each section passes independently at 70% — 18 of 25. Core plus all three types = Universal certification.
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Recovery cylinders fill to 80% of capacity, maximum — never more.
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Never heat a refrigerant cylinder above 125°F, and never mix refrigerants in one cylinder.
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Pressure-test with regulated nitrogen only — never oxygen or compressed air.
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Recovery cylinders are gray-bodied with yellow tops.
Deliberately absent: current leak-repair trigger percentages and the HFC phasedown’s present step — those move with rulemaking. Learn the mechanism: a leak rate calculated whenever refrigerant is added, a repair due within 30 days once it is over the threshold for the appliance’s category, and two regimes deciding which appliances are covered (as of 2026: the Section 608 rule for 50 pounds or more of an ozone-depleting refrigerant, and since January 2026 the AIM Act rule for 15 pounds or more of an HFC, home and light-commercial AC excluded). Check current values against epa.gov before your exam.
Drill free EPA 608 practice questions — no signup
Keentune is an independent study tool — not affiliated with the EPA or any EPA-approved certifying organization, and no pass is promised. Content written from public primary sources (40 CFR Part 82 Subpart F, 40 CFR Part 84 and epa.gov); exam-edition details from ESCO Institute’s public Section 608 page, read October 2, 2026. The proctored exam itself is taken through an EPA-approved certifying organization.
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