Every so often we pull something out of the filing cabinet that reminds us why customers keep trusting us with their fridges, freezers and air conditioning units — and this one’s worth sharing.
Andy Grove completed the Certificate in Safe Handling of Refrigerants through the Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Academy (ACRA). It wasn’t a quick tick-box exercise. The course covers 24 credits’ worth of unit standards, issued under MERSETA accreditation numbers 17-QA/ACC/0228/07 and 17-QA/ACC/0357/09, and it’s aligned to Pressure Vessel Regulation 1/10/2009 under the Occupational Health and Safety Act 86 of 1993.
In plain terms: this is the qualification that governs how refrigerants — the chemicals that make your fridge cold and your aircon blow cool air — are handled, recovered and disposed of safely and legally.
Why does this matter to you as a customer?
Refrigerant gas isn’t something a technician should be guessing their way through. Handled badly, it’s a safety risk to the technician, a risk to your appliance, and in some cases a risk to the environment. A technician who’s been trained and accredited under the Pressure Vessel Regulations knows how to:
- Safely recover and store refrigerant instead of venting it into the atmosphere
- Work around pressurised systems without putting themselves or your property at risk
- Comply with the legal requirements around refrigerant handling in South Africa
- Recognise when a system needs specialist attention versus a straightforward repair
This certificate sits alongside the rest of the training we’ve built up over the years — our OEM accreditations with Whirlpool, Speedqueen, Defy, KIC, Smeg and Bosch, our factory training through Whirlpool Europe and Samsung Korea, and Andy’s original trade qualification as an electrician back in 1987. It’s one more layer in a career built on doing things properly, not just doing them fast.
So the next time a technician arrives to look at your fridge or aircon, know that the gas work is being handled by someone who was trained — and accredited — to do it right.
Got a fridge, freezer, washing machine, tumble dryer or dishwasher giving you trouble? Get in touch and let’s get it sorted.