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.
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, the venting prohibition 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
Hermetically sealed systems holding under five pounds: 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 concepts, 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 18 of 25 (72%). 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 (annualized leak rate, the 30-day repair clock, a stepwise phasedown), and check the 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 and epa.gov). The proctored exam itself is taken through an EPA-approved certifying organization.
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