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Buried refrigerant piping at a Minneapolis home (C) Daniel Friedman S OstrowBuried Refrigerant Line Guidelines

Underground Refrigerant Pipe Installation Procedures & Warnings

  • POST a QUESTION or COMMENT about buried or underground HVAC system refrigerant piping or tubing routing, connections, materials, charging

Buried refrigeration equipment piping for air conditioners & heat pumps:

Is it permitted to route refrigeration tubing underground? If buried refrigeration lines are necessary, how should they be installed.

What problems occur when refrigerant tubing is run underground?

Page top photo: refrigerant pipes routed underground at a Minneapolis home. Note the absence of appropriate protection around these refrigerant lines.

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Underground or Buried HVACR Refrigerant Line Installation

Buried refrigerant piping photo contributed by IAP Reader - at InspectApedia.comQuestion: what's wrong with running AC piping underground?

2018/03/13 Kash said:

During the home inspection of the 1-year-old house, the inspector pointing out the AC piping lose, improperly run/buried, find attached the picture please advise if anything wrong with that or not and if it's not right what needed to be done. Thanks in Advance.

This question and reply were posted originally

at REFRIGERANT PIPING INSTALLATION - home.

Reply: liquid slugging risk with underground / buried refrigerant pipingREF

Kash:

Thank you for an excellent question that I might re-phrase as "Is it OK to bury air conditioning, heat pump, or other refrigerant lines"

Buried or underground refrigerant piping on residential HVAC systems is not recommended, but at least for some manufacturers and building codes, underground refrigerant distribution piping is not expressly prohibited, but where used it must be properly installed, protected,& insulated.

  1. Refrigerant floodback: The first concern with underground refrigerant piping, particularly the suction line, is that running refrigerant piping underground invites the accumulation of liquid refrigerant in the return or suction line.

    Where the refrigerant lines are underground and cooled by that location, the suction line may accumulate liquid refrigerant.

    Subsequently at the next compressor on-cycle the return of liquid refrigerant in the suction line can cause liquid slugging at the compressor motor. That in turn destroys the compressor.
  2. Refrigerant line corrosion & leaks: The second concern with un-protected underground refrigerant piping is that of corrosion. Copper refrigerant piping left unprotected underground is exposed to corrosion and leaks.
  3. At REFRIGERANT FLOODBACK, LIQUID SLUGGING we explain how liquid refrigerant entering a heat pump or air conditioner compressor motor can destroy it and we discuss the recommended time that the system should be LEFT OFF if was switched off while it was running

Johnson Controls Statement on Underground Refrigerant Piping

Here is what Johnson Controls advises where refrigerant piping must be buried:

Use PVC piping as a conduit for all underground installations.

See the illustration below, adapted from Johnson Controls' Application Data Sheet cited also below.

Watch out: Buried lines must be kept as short as possible to minimize the build up of liquid refrigerant in the vapor line during long periods of shutdown.

Specifications for buried refrigerant piping (C) InspectApedia.com

Lennox statement on underground refrigerant piping:

Refrigeration lines must not be buried in the ground unless they are insulated and waterproofed. Uninsulated copper lines buried in wet soil or under concrete can cause serious capacity loss and erratic operation as well as early failure due to corrosion.

Systems with buried refrigerant lines can experience significant or total capacity loss if allowed to transmit heat to the surroundings. In addition, buried lines are susceptible to corrosion which can shorten the life of the system.

For this reason, buried lines must rest inside a sealed, watertight, thermally insulated conduit. The lines must not contact the soil for any reason and the conduit must be designed so it cannot collect and retain water. 

I will add this and other citations in the article above. We can't know from just your photo how much buried piping is installed at the home in your photo nor exactly where it is routed. It MIGHT be that the only buried piping is vertical and that in this specific instance it's not damaging the compressor - but the possibility is certainly there. Kudos to your home inspector.

The refrigerant piping in your photograph is not following the industry-recommended best-practice and could risk damage to the compressor motor.

Watch out: some HVACR manufacturers explicitly prohibit routing refrigerant distribution piping underground for commercial systems. (Carrier Corporation, McQuay corporation & Trane Corporation). And even where buried refrigerant distribution lines are permitted, that installation may not be a recommended practice.

Mitsubishi Guidelines on Installing Buried Refrigerant Piping

Buried refrigerant piping guidelines from Mitsubishi - at InspectApedia.com Mitsubishi source cited in this articleRefrigerant lines must be installed below the frost line. The depth required past the frost line depends on the amount of foot or vehicle traffic that may pass over the refrigerant line path.

[Click to enlarge any image]

Include the sum of Lengths A and B (see Figure 1) in the calculation for maximum vertical lift for the respective unit. See the System Design Section in the Engineering Manual(s) to obtain the maximum allowable vertical lift.

For Length C, there is no limitation other than the standard piping line length guidelines.

Length D must be a minimum of 20 inches.

Use 45° elbows to simplify covering the refrigerant lines with casing. For refrigerant piping with outside diameters of up to 3/4″, soft tubing can be used and large sweeping curves can be bent by hand.

Refrigerant lines must be insulated separately. A minimum of 1/2" thick insulation is required. If possible, install casing as one continuous piece.

If the casing includes joints, contact the casing manufacturer for instructions on how to make them watertight. Flexible watertight drain line is recommended. DO NOT USE flexible perforated drain pipe [to route refrigerant piping] - Mitsubishi guidelines for underground installation of CITY MULTI R2-series and Y-series and S-series refrigerant piping, cited below.

Puron statement on Long Lines, Buried Lines, Refrigerant Migration & Elevation Changes in Refrigerant Lines

Longer line sets require additional refrigerant charge that must be managed throughout the entire range of possible ambient conditions. Off--cycle refrigerant migration that results in excess refrigerant in the compressor at start up, or condensed liquid refrigerant in the suction line at start up must be avoided for compressor reliability.

Follow all accessory requirements in this Guideline to control off--cycle refrigerant migration (see Table 1).

Another concern is proper line set sizing and construction to control oil return to the compressor, and minimize capacity losses. In residential applications, proper suction line sizing is critical to achieve adequate oil return, and maintain expected system performance.

Oil return in heating mode is different from cooling mode thus, in some cases, heat pumps have additional line set limitations from air conditioning units. ...

The third concern is refrigerant metering. Elevation changes affect pressure drop in refrigerant lines. These effects must be considered when sizing liquid lines and orifice--metering devices. - Puron,  Residential Piping & Long Line Guideline, cited below

Trane Statements on Underground Refrigerant Lines

Avoid putting refrigerant lines underground. Refrigerant condensation or installation debris inside the line, service access, and abrasion/corrosion can quickly impair reliability.

Any heat that transfers from the surrounding air to the cooler suction lines increases the load on the condenser (reducing the system’s air-conditioning capacity) and promotes condensate formation. After operating the system and testing all fittings and joints to verify that the system is leak-free, insulate suction lines to prevent heat gain and unwanted condensation.

- Trane, "Tube Size and Component Selection for RAUC Split Systems (20–120 Tons)" cited below.

It is advisable to avoid running refrigerant lines undergroundw henever possible. If it is absolutely necessary to run refrigerant lines underground, they must be run in 6" P.V.C. conduit.

Use 45° elbows to facilitate pulling the tubing through the conduit. The purpose of the conduit is to keep water away from the refrigerant lines. Careful sealing, where the lines enter and leave the conduit is critical. Some installers install a drain in the lower parts of the conduit.

Bear in mind, that if the water table rises above the drain, water may be forced into the conduit. Vapor and liquid lines must be insulated inside the underground chase. - Trane, Refrigerant Piping Manual for Small Split Cooling & Heat Pump Systems - cited below.

Additional Steps to Protect the Compressor from Flood-Back Refrigerant where Lines are Underground

OPINION: even where buried/underground refrigerant lines have been installed following best-practices there are additional practices that can protect the compressor from liquid floodback damage. From my reading it's not clear that these measures are needed if your buried refrigerant piping follows the manufacturer's instructions.

More information about various causes of refrigerant flood-back into the compressor is at REFRIGERANT FLOODBACK CAUSES.

Buried & Other Refrigerant Piping Codes, References, Standards

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Reader Comments, Questions & Answers About The Article Above

Below you will find questions and answers previously posted on this page at its page bottom reader comment box.

Reader Q&A - also see RECOMMENDED ARTICLES & FAQs

On 2021-04-11 by (mod) - buy 4" diameter conduit / sleve to bury copper refrigerant piping?

@Dan Medler,

I can see why you're asking because doing my own search I couldn't find a 4 inch diameter conduit sold for the purpose of installing buried air-conditioning or heat pump refrigerant lines.

There is a range of flexible conduit and also insulation products for refrigerant piping as well as coated copper refrigerant tubing that is designed for direct burial as we show below in an example from Gas-Tech.

Often refrigerant piping that must be buried is placed directly into the soil, with the caveat that you should keep such runs short to avoid accumulation of refrigerant in the buried section when the system is turned off; details are in the article above.

I have added some additional refrigrant piping installation manuals and guides to those offered near the end of the article above - do take a look.

Can you say more about your application and why we're looking for a 4-inch diameter refrigerant tubing conduit?

On 2021-04-11 by Dan Medler

Where can I buy flexible 4in sleeve to bury copper refrigeration piping

On 2020-09-15 by gilsulate

Thank you so much to share this article.

On 2018-06-08 - by (mod) -

Possibly if the line has been exposed to weeks and corrosion. Be sure that you read the concerns described in the article above.

On 2018-06-07 by Richard

If I install a new HVAC system and the refrigerant line runs underground do I need to replace the refrigerant line?

Question: covers for refrigerant piping for a heat pump

Where can I find the plastic covers for my heat pump lines that run on an exposed wall.

Reply:

Your local HVAC supplier carries piping covers and insulation. You may also find these products at building suppliers such as Loews or Home Depot.


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