Gas news
Winter 2020
energysafe issue 58
Gas appliance
service commissioning
By Jason Treseder, Senior Gas Engineer
Gasfitters undertaking Type A gas appliance servicing work have a critical role in
ensuring gas appliances remain safe and effective throughout the life of the appliance.
When servicing or repairing gas
appliances, it is important that gasfitters
follow the correct commissioning
process as part of completing a
repair or service.
Gas appliance servicing is a broad
area and is essential for ensuring
a gas appliance remains in good
working condition.
This can include ongoing preventative
maintenance, which keeps the
appliance in good working order and
focuses on identifying upcoming issues
before they become a problem. It can
also involve repairs to an appliance
that has broken down or not working
properly.
A fundamental responsibility of all
gasfitters, licensed to perform gas
servicing on Type A appliances, is
to ensure a gas installation is safe.
This obligation under the Gas Safety
Act 1997 (the Act) applies equally to
new installations and maintenance
of existing installations.
ESV has published Gas Information
Sheets 57 and 59, which include
addition information addressing Type
A gas appliance servicing. Further
information on servicing is also available
in the recently published AS 4575
Gas Appliances – Quality of Servicing,
available to purchase at SAI Global
online.
Gasfitters are required to commission
a gas installation after making a
modification to the gas installation,
undertaking repairs, or service.
Commissioning a gas appliance is a
critical part of ensuring the appliance is
operating correctly in accordance with
the manufacturer’s instructions. This
process involves undertaking a range
of activities and often includes actions
like adjusting pressures, operating the
burners and checking for combustion
product spillage.
Clause 6.11 of AS/NZS 5601.1:2013 (A2)
– Gas Installations details information
on commissioning requirements. Further
guidance is provided in Appendix O and
Appendix Q of AS/NZS 5601.1:2013.
Technology development and the rise
in customer expectations has made
appliances more complex as they move
toward providing greater efficiency and
features for the owner. Consequently,
actions like replacing a gas valve or a
control board can require significant
adjustments and setup to ensure the
replacement parts operate safety and as
expected with the existing components.
A case example is electronic control
modules. Today, electronic control
modules are common in many types
of gas appliances and often contain
adjustments for gas test point
pressures, flue configuration, gas type,
fan speed setting and fan voltage
setting.
In many cases, the adjustments
are in the form of dipswitches and
potentiometers, but can also be in
the form of buttons adjusting internal
parameters in the control software.
You will need to configure the settings
to suit the model and installation of
the specific appliance.
Always carry out appliance
commissioning in accordance with
manufacturer instructions, once you
have replaced a part critical to the
operation of a gas appliance. This
includes gas valves, pilots, flame
sensors and electronic control modules.
Failing to commission the appliance
after a service or repair can result in
the appliance operating poorly or
breaking down prematurely.
A poorly operating appliance results
in a displeased client and additional
work. In extreme cases, it can leave
the appliance unsafe. This is not only
a breach of the Act and the AS/NZS
5601.1, but can also lead to potential
legal penalties.
Commissioning of the appliance after
replacing parts is critical in ensuring
the appliance is safe, reliable and that
it will perform its function as intended.
Observe all warnings from the
manufacturer when making adjustments
such as risk of electric shock. Always
follow safe work practices.
If the commissioning process is unclear
or if the manufacturer’s instructions
are not readily available, contact the
appliance manufacturer.
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