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EPA 608 Type II
Practice Test

Type II is the section that matters most for a typical HVAC career, because it covers the equipment most technicians touch every day: split systems and heat pumps using R-410A, legacy R-22 systems still in service, and commercial refrigeration. It is also the most technical section, with required evacuation levels that vary by charge size and equipment age, leak-repair thresholds that vary by appliance type, and the recovery and charging practice that goes with a system operating well above atmospheric pressure.

30
Questions
25
Per Attempt
70%
To Pass
Lifetime
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Practice
Take the Type II Practice Test
25 questions drawn at random from a bank of 30. Every answer comes with an explanation, and you can retake it as many times as you like.
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Safety

Before working on a rooftop unit, the most important electrical safety step is to:

Scope
What EPA 608 Type II Covers
High-pressure and very high-pressure appliances — residential and commercial AC, heat pumps, and refrigeration.
High-pressure appliance definitions
2 practice questions in the bank below.
Required evacuation levels
4 practice questions in the bank below.
Leak repair thresholds and deadlines
5 practice questions in the bank below.
Recovery and recovery equipment
5 practice questions in the bank below.
Refrigerant charging
2 practice questions in the bank below.
System diagnostics and pressure
5 practice questions in the bank below.
Oils, moisture, and contamination
3 practice questions in the bank below.
Nitrogen pressure testing
1 practice question in the bank below.
Safety
3 practice questions in the bank below.
Who needs this section
Most working HVAC technicians. Type II covers residential split systems, rooftop units, heat pumps, and commercial refrigeration.

Key Takeaways

The EPA 608 Type II exam is 25 multiple-choice questions and requires 70% to pass. It covers high-pressure and very high-pressure appliances — residential and commercial ac, heat pumps, and refrigeration. Certification never expires, and the exam is open-book.

  • Free practice bank: 30 questions, every answer explained
  • 25 questions per attempt, randomized · unlimited retakes
  • Core must be passed alongside any Type section
  • Exam cost is typically $20–$40 at an EPA-approved testing organization
Answer Key
All 30 Type II Questions Explained
The full bank with correct answers and the reasoning behind each one. Use it to study before you test, or to review after an attempt.

1. A high-pressure appliance is one that uses a refrigerant with a boiling point:

  1. Above 50°F at atmospheric pressure
  2. Between −50°F and 10°F at atmospheric pressure
  3. Below −50°F at atmospheric pressure
  4. Exactly 32°F at atmospheric pressure
Answer: B — Between −50°F and 10°F at atmospheric pressure
High-pressure refrigerants such as R-22, R-410A, and R-134a boil between roughly −50°F and 10°F at atmospheric pressure, which means the system operates above atmospheric pressure throughout. Below −50°F puts a refrigerant in the very-high-pressure category, and above 50°F makes it a low-pressure refrigerant.

2. For a high-pressure appliance with a charge of less than 200 pounds, manufactured after November 15, 1993, the required evacuation level before opening the system is:

  1. 0 inches of mercury
  2. 4 inches of mercury
  3. 10 inches of mercury
  4. 15 inches of mercury
Answer: C — 10 inches of mercury
Ten inches of mercury applies to post-1993 high-pressure appliances under 200 pounds; the requirement deepens to 15 inches at 200 pounds or more. Equipment manufactured before November 15, 1993 has a shallower table, which is why the question always tells you the manufacture date and the charge size.

3. For a high-pressure appliance with a charge of 200 pounds or more, manufactured after November 15, 1993, the required evacuation level is:

  1. 4 inches of mercury
  2. 10 inches of mercury
  3. 15 inches of mercury
  4. 25 mm of mercury absolute
Answer: C — 15 inches of mercury
Fifteen inches of mercury is the deeper requirement that comes with the larger charge, on the reasoning that more refrigerant left behind means a larger release. The 25 mm Hg absolute figure belongs to low-pressure appliances and is a Type III answer.

4. Very high-pressure appliances, such as those using R-13 or R-503, must be evacuated to:

  1. 25 mm of mercury absolute
  2. 10 inches of mercury
  3. 15 inches of mercury
  4. 0 psig
Answer: D — 0 psig
Very high-pressure refrigerants cannot practically be pulled into a vacuum with standard recovery equipment, so the requirement is simply to bring the system down to atmospheric pressure — 0 psig. Trying to apply the high-pressure table here is a common exam trap.

5. Under the leak repair requirements, which appliances are covered?

  1. Appliances with a full charge of 50 pounds or more
  2. All appliances regardless of charge
  3. Appliances with a full charge of 100 pounds or more
  4. Only commercial refrigeration systems
Answer: A — Appliances with a full charge of 50 pounds or more
Fifty pounds of full charge is the threshold that pulls an appliance into the leak repair program — leak-rate calculation, repair, and verification testing. Below that, the venting prohibition and recovery rules still apply, but the formal repair-and-verify process does not.

6. For comfort cooling appliances subject to the leak repair requirements, the annual leak rate that triggers repair is:

  1. 5%
  2. 10%
  3. 20%
  4. 30%
Answer: B — 10%
The 2016 rule set three thresholds effective January 1, 2019: 10% for comfort cooling and other appliances, 20% for commercial refrigeration, and 30% for industrial process refrigeration. They replaced the older 15%, 35%, and 35% figures, so a study guide printed before 2019 may show the wrong numbers.

7. The trigger leak rate for commercial refrigeration appliances is:

  1. 10%
  2. 20%
  3. 30%
  4. 35%
Answer: B — 20%
Commercial refrigeration sits at 20% under the current thresholds, between comfort cooling at 10% and industrial process refrigeration at 30%. Grouping them from lowest tolerance to highest — comfort cooling, commercial refrigeration, industrial process — is the easiest way to keep them straight.

8. Once a covered appliance is found to exceed its trigger leak rate, repairs must generally be completed within:

  1. 7 days
  2. 30 days
  3. 90 days
  4. One year
Answer: B — 30 days
Thirty days is the repair window, followed by initial and follow-up verification tests to confirm the repair held. If repair is not feasible, the owner must instead develop a retrofit or retirement plan within 30 days and complete it within one year — the one-year figure belongs to that path, not to the repair itself.

9. The fastest method of removing a large refrigerant charge from a system is:

  1. Passive recovery with the compressor running
  2. Vapor recovery through the low side
  3. Push-pull liquid recovery
  4. Recovering through a filter-drier
Answer: C — Push-pull liquid recovery
Push-pull uses the recovery machine to pull vapor from the cylinder and push liquid from the system, moving the charge as a liquid column. It requires enough charge to justify the setup — typically 10 to 15 pounds or more — and you finish with conventional vapor recovery to clear the remainder.

10. Recovery goes unusually slowly on a hot day. The most effective corrective action is to:

  1. Warm the recovery cylinder
  2. Add nitrogen to the system to push refrigerant out
  3. Reduce the hose diameter
  4. Cool the recovery cylinder, for example in an ice bath
Answer: D — Cool the recovery cylinder, for example in an ice bath
Recovery is driven by the pressure difference between the system and the cylinder, so a hot cylinder fights you. Cooling it lowers cylinder pressure and speeds transfer. Adding nitrogen contaminates the recovered refrigerant with a non-condensable and can make it unreclaimable.

11. Polyolester (POE) oil used with R-410A requires special handling because it:

  1. Absorbs moisture from the air rapidly and is difficult to dry once wet
  2. Cannot be used with copper tubing
  3. Is flammable at room temperature
  4. Breaks down above 100°F
Answer: A — Absorbs moisture from the air rapidly and is difficult to dry once wet
POE is hygroscopic — it pulls moisture out of the air quickly and holds it chemically, where mineral oil would let it settle out. That is why POE containers stay capped, why lines are kept sealed during installation, and why moisture in an R-410A system leads to acid formation faster than in an older R-22 system.

12. R-410A operates at pressures roughly how much higher than R-22 at the same conditions?

  1. About 10% higher
  2. About 50% to 60% higher
  3. About the same
  4. About 200% higher
Answer: B — About 50% to 60% higher
R-410A runs roughly 50 to 60 percent higher than R-22, which is why it requires gauges, hoses, and recovery equipment rated for it and why R-410A service cylinders are rose-colored and built to a higher pressure rating. Using R-22-rated equipment on R-410A is a rupture hazard, not just a measurement error.

13. R-410A must be charged into a system as a liquid because it is:

  1. Too dense to charge as a vapor
  2. An azeotropic blend that separates when charged as vapor
  3. A near-azeotropic (zeotropic) blend whose components would fractionate if charged as vapor
  4. Corrosive in the vapor phase
Answer: C — A near-azeotropic (zeotropic) blend whose components would fractionate if charged as vapor
Blends with components of different boiling points fractionate when vapor is drawn off the cylinder, so the refrigerant entering the system no longer matches the blend on the label. Charging liquid — throttled through the manifold into the suction line, never liquid-slugged into a running compressor — keeps the composition correct.

14. On a system with a fixed-orifice metering device, the technician charges by:

  1. Subcooling
  2. Discharge line temperature only
  3. Sight glass clarity only
  4. Superheat
Answer: D — Superheat
Fixed-orifice systems are charged by superheat, because the orifice does not control evaporator superheat and it varies with charge. TXV and EEV systems are charged by subcooling instead, since the valve holds superheat roughly constant and subcooling becomes the meaningful indicator of charge.

15. High head pressure combined with high subcooling most commonly indicates:

  1. An overcharged system or restricted condenser airflow
  2. A failed compressor valve
  3. An undercharged system
  4. A plugged metering device
Answer: A — An overcharged system or restricted condenser airflow
Excess refrigerant backs up in the condenser, increasing both the pressure and the amount of liquid subcooled below saturation. Restricted condenser airflow produces a similar picture. An undercharge would show the opposite — low subcooling with low head pressure.

16. When brazing refrigerant lines, dry nitrogen should be flowed through the tubing in order to:

  1. Cool the joint faster
  2. Prevent cupric oxide scale from forming inside the tubing
  3. Improve solder adhesion
  4. Satisfy an EPA requirement
Answer: B — Prevent cupric oxide scale from forming inside the tubing
Heating copper in the presence of oxygen forms a black flaky oxide inside the tube that later breaks loose and plugs metering devices and filter-driers. A low-flow nitrogen purge displaces the oxygen so the interior stays clean. It is a best practice enforced by manufacturers, not an EPA rule.

17. After a compressor burnout, refrigerant recovered from the system should be:

  1. Mixed with virgin refrigerant to dilute the acid
  2. Recycled on site and returned to the same system
  3. Kept separate and sent for reclamation or disposal, because it is acid-contaminated
  4. Vented, since it is contaminated
Answer: C — Kept separate and sent for reclamation or disposal, because it is acid-contaminated
Burnout refrigerant carries acid and combustion byproducts that on-site recycling will not remove, and returning it would destroy the replacement compressor. Recover it into a dedicated cylinder, label it, and send it for reclamation or destruction. Venting it is a violation regardless of its condition.

18. A suction-line filter-drier installed after a burnout should be:

  1. Left in place permanently
  2. Installed backwards to trap debris
  3. Installed in the liquid line instead
  4. Checked for pressure drop and typically removed or replaced after the system has run and cleaned up
Answer: D — Checked for pressure drop and typically removed or replaced after the system has run and cleaned up
A burnout cleanup drier collects acid and debris and will develop pressure drop as it loads up. Monitor it across the first hours of operation and replace or remove it once the system is clean, or the restriction it creates will starve the compressor of suction pressure.

19. The maximum pressure that may be applied when leak-testing a system with nitrogen is determined by:

  1. The lowest-rated component in the system, per the manufacturer's specification
  2. A fixed 150 psig limit set by EPA
  3. The nitrogen cylinder pressure
  4. The refrigerant's critical pressure
Answer: A — The lowest-rated component in the system, per the manufacturer's specification
The weakest component sets the ceiling — often the low-side design pressure or a factory-installed accessory. A regulated nitrogen source is mandatory because full cylinder pressure exceeds 2,000 psi and will burst evaporator tubing instantly. EPA sets no nitrogen test pressure; the manufacturer does.

20. A technician must reach the required evacuation level and then:

  1. Open the system immediately
  2. Verify the vacuum holds with the recovery equipment isolated, confirming the level was actually achieved
  3. Recharge the system to test for leaks
  4. Purge with nitrogen before opening
Answer: B — Verify the vacuum holds with the recovery equipment isolated, confirming the level was actually achieved
A reading taken while the machine runs can reflect the machine, not the system. Isolating and watching whether the level holds is what proves the refrigerant is actually out. If pressure climbs, refrigerant is still boiling out of the oil or the system is drawing in through a leak.

21. Which of these appliances falls under Type II certification?

  1. A household refrigerator with a 2-pound charge
  2. A 500-ton centrifugal chiller using R-123
  3. A rooftop packaged unit using R-410A
  4. A window air conditioner
Answer: C — A rooftop packaged unit using R-410A
Type II covers high-pressure equipment — rooftop units, split systems, heat pumps, and commercial refrigeration. The refrigerator and window unit are Type I small appliances, and an R-123 centrifugal chiller is a low-pressure appliance requiring Type III.

22. Adding R-22 to a system that was designed for R-410A would:

  1. Work acceptably as long as the charge weight is correct
  2. Be permitted if the system is later reclaimed
  3. Improve efficiency at low ambient temperatures
  4. Be a violation of the rule and would damage the system, since refrigerants and their oils are not interchangeable
Answer: D — Be a violation of the rule and would damage the system, since refrigerants and their oils are not interchangeable
Mixing refrigerants makes the resulting charge unreclaimable and creates unpredictable pressures, and the oils are incompatible — R-410A systems use POE, not mineral oil. Substituting a refrigerant outside the manufacturer's and EPA's approved use for that equipment is both a technical failure and a compliance problem.

23. Non-condensables in a high-pressure system are best confirmed by:

  1. Comparing head pressure to the saturation pressure of the refrigerant at the temperature of the liquid in the condenser after the system has been off and equalized
  2. Listening to the compressor
  3. Measuring superheat only
  4. Weighing the charge
Answer: A — Comparing head pressure to the saturation pressure of the refrigerant at the temperature of the liquid in the condenser after the system has been off and equalized
With the system off and at ambient, pressure should match the refrigerant's saturation pressure at that temperature. A reading meaningfully above it means something in the system is not condensing — air. The fix is recovery, evacuation, and recharge, not simply bleeding the head pressure off, which would be venting.

24. Refrigerant recovered from a high-pressure appliance may be returned to that same system without reclamation if:

  1. It came from a burnout
  2. It remains with the same owner and is recycled or simply reused after service
  3. It has been mixed with a different refrigerant
  4. It is transferred to a new owner
Answer: B — It remains with the same owner and is recycled or simply reused after service
Refrigerant staying with the same owner may be recovered and returned without going to a reclaimer. Change of ownership requires reclamation to AHRI 700, mixed refrigerant is not reusable, and burnout refrigerant should not go back into a system regardless of ownership.

25. Before working on a rooftop unit, the most important electrical safety step is to:

  1. Turn the thermostat to off
  2. Wear cotton gloves
  3. Lock out and tag out the disconnect and verify with a meter that the circuit is de-energized
  4. Remove the condenser fan
Answer: C — Lock out and tag out the disconnect and verify with a meter that the circuit is de-energized
A thermostat is a control, not a disconnect — the unit can energize from a call for cooling, a time clock, or a building automation system. Lock out, tag out, and verify with a meter, and remember that capacitors hold a dangerous charge after power is removed.

26. The leak rate for a covered appliance is calculated on:

  1. A per-service-call basis
  2. The number of leaks found
  3. The total refrigerant purchased by the company
  4. An annualized basis, as a percentage of the appliance's full charge
Answer: D — An annualized basis, as a percentage of the appliance's full charge
The rule annualizes the amount added over the period between services and expresses it as a percentage of full charge, so a large system tolerates more absolute leakage than a small one before hitting the same threshold. Accurate full-charge documentation is therefore a compliance requirement, not just good practice.

27. A liquid-line filter-drier should be replaced whenever the system is opened because:

  1. A drier that has already adsorbed moisture will release it back into the system and cannot protect the new charge
  2. Driers expire after 12 months
  3. EPA requires a new drier after every recovery
  4. The old drier will restrict liquid flow immediately
Answer: A — A drier that has already adsorbed moisture will release it back into the system and cannot protect the new charge
Desiccant is a finite resource: once loaded, it can desorb moisture back into the refrigerant, especially as temperature rises. Replacing the drier on every system opening is manufacturer practice, not an EPA rule, and it is the cheapest insurance against acid formation there is.

28. Low suction pressure with high superheat on a TXV system most commonly indicates:

  1. An overcharge
  2. A restriction or an undercharge starving the evaporator
  3. A failed condenser fan
  4. Excess subcooling
Answer: B — A restriction or an undercharge starving the evaporator
Both symptoms point at not enough refrigerant reaching the evaporator, whether because the charge is low or because a drier, valve, or screen is restricting flow. Checking subcooling separates the two: low subcooling suggests undercharge, while high subcooling with a temperature drop across a component points to a restriction.

29. Recovery equipment used on a system containing R-410A must be:

  1. Fitted with a halide torch
  2. Any recovery machine, since all refrigerants recover the same way
  3. Rated for the pressures R-410A produces, with hoses and gauges rated to match
  4. Operated only above 90°F ambient
Answer: C — Rated for the pressures R-410A produces, with hoses and gauges rated to match
R-410A operates well above R-22 pressures, so machines, hoses, gauges, and recovery cylinders must all carry the higher rating. Using R-22-era equipment is a rupture hazard rather than a measurement inconvenience, and cylinders in particular are rated by service pressure.

30. A recovery cylinder is being filled and its pressure rises sharply while weight barely changes. The most likely explanation is:

  1. The recovery machine is running too slowly
  2. The scale is miscalibrated
  3. The system is fully recovered
  4. The cylinder contains non-condensables or a different refrigerant
Answer: D — The cylinder contains non-condensables or a different refrigerant
Pressure rising without corresponding weight means something in the cylinder is not condensing — air, or a refrigerant with different saturation properties. Stop and investigate: continuing risks tripping the high-pressure cutout and, worse, producing a mixed cylinder that cannot be reclaimed.
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FAQ
EPA 608 Type II Questions
How many questions are on the EPA 608 Type II exam?
The Type II section is 25 multiple-choice questions. 25 multiple-choice questions taken with Core, proctored and open-book, 70% to pass. Passing Core plus Type II is the practical minimum most HVAC employers expect.
What score do I need to pass EPA 608 Type II?
You need 70% — 18 of 25 questions — to pass. Each section is scored independently, so passing Core does not offset a failing Type II score, and you must pass both to be certified for type ii work.
Who needs EPA 608 Type II certification?
Most working HVAC technicians. Type II covers residential split systems, rooftop units, heat pumps, and commercial refrigeration. High-pressure and very high-pressure appliances — residential and commercial AC, heat pumps, and refrigeration.
Is this practice test the real EPA 608 exam?
No. This is free study material written from the published rule in 40 CFR Part 82, Subpart F — it does not reproduce exam content. The real exam is proctored and administered by an EPA-approved certifying organization, and it is open-book, so bring your study guide.
Does EPA 608 Type II certification expire?
No. Section 608 certification is issued for life under the current rule. There is no renewal requirement and no continuing education, though you must keep proof of certification at your place of business.
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