EPA 609 practice questions
Section 609 is the certification you need to service air conditioning on cars and trucks for pay. It is a different credential from Section 608, and if you landed here looking for the stationary one, start with 608 versus 609 instead.
Below are 58 original questions written against 40 CFR Part 82, Subpart B, the federal regulation that creates this certification. Every one has an explanation. Free, and there is nothing to sign up for.
Who needs it
The trigger is narrow and specific. Under 40 CFR 82.34(a), you must be certified if you repair or service a motor vehicle air conditioner for consideration in a way that involves the refrigerant. Two details in that sentence do most of the work:
- "For consideration" means being paid, and 82.32(g) counts payment in cash, credit, goods or services. Work you genuinely do for free is outside the rule.
- Topping off counts. 82.32(h) puts adding refrigerant, with no other work done, inside the definition of service involving refrigerant. A shop that only recharges systems is covered exactly like one that opens them.
What the exam covers
There is no federally published question pool for 609. What the regulation does publish, at 40 CFR 82.40(a)(2), is the list of subjects an approved program's test must cover. That list is the blueprint these questions are written against:
| Area | What it means in practice | Cite |
|---|---|---|
| Service and repair standards | Containment procedures, extraction equipment, recycle equipment and the purity standard, as set out in 82.36(a) and Appendices A to F | 82.40(a)(2)(i) |
| Refrigerant transitions | Which equipment standard applies to which refrigerant, and why a machine must be used only with the refrigerant it was built for | 82.40(a)(2)(ii) |
| Environmental consequences | Why release matters, and why venting is an improper use of equipment | 82.40(a)(2)(iii) |
| Section 609 requirements | Who must be certified, the restrictions on selling refrigerant, and what disposal facilities may do | 82.40(a)(2)(iv) |
An honest note about that blueprint. The second item still reads, in the current regulation, "anticipated future technological developments, such as the introduction of HFC-134a in new motor vehicle air conditioners." That wording is from 1992 and has never been updated, so the federal outline describes R-134a as a coming development while the fleet has already moved on to HFO-1234yf. We write to what the regulation actually says and flag where it has aged, rather than quietly filling the gap and calling it federal.
Practice drill
10 questions · 12 minutes · practice target 80%
Questions are sampled to mirror the official domain weighting. The timer starts when you begin; you can flag questions and return to them before submitting.
This drill does not feed the missed-question notebook, which tracks the 608 bank only.
Where these questions come from
Every question is original and written against the regulation itself, which is a government edict and therefore not something anyone owns. Nothing here is copied from a certifying organization's study manual or test bank.
One boundary is worth stating plainly, because it constrains what this page can cover. 40 CFR 82.31 incorporates three SAE standards by reference, J2843, J2851 and J3030, which govern equipment for HFO-1234yf and for contaminated refrigerant. Incorporation by reference does not put those documents in the public domain. We state the regulatory fact that a given class of equipment must meet a named SAE standard, because that fact is in the CFR, and we do not reproduce anything from inside the standards. If you need their contents you have to get them from SAE.
Getting certified
EPA does not run the test. Approved programs do, and 82.40 sets what they must satisfy: the test has to be graded by someone who gets no benefit from the outcome, the program has to verify your identity, and it has to issue you proof of certification carrying a unique number. Programs must also review their material against current technology and report to EPA every two years.
Certification does not expire. EPA reserved the right at 82.40(d) to require recertification in future and has not exercised it.
Related
- 608 versus 609: which certification do you need
- The full Section 608 exam simulation
- Section 608 study guides
HVAC Exam Lab is an independent study resource. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency or any EPA-approved certifying organization. All practice questions are original and written against the exam blueprint published in federal regulation (40 CFR Part 82, Subpart F, Appendix D). Section 608 certification exams are administered only by EPA-approved certifying organizations.