An ASSE 6030 Verifier is to Certify a newly added medical air line in a existing wing of the hospital. Again only medical air is to be installed and tested. He or She reviews the existing medical air compressor system and the dew-point is 32 deg f at 52 psig at both the systems dew point monitor and the 1/4" sample port with their on site testing monitor (yes all is good and no alarms at both master alarm panels). Part of their testing is the pipeline purity test.

The reading at the sample location (the last outlet) in the existing wing, on the newly installed medical air line system is 33 deg f at 52 psig.

QUESTION:

Pass or Fail per NFPA 99 2012 Edition

Lets start again the medical air system is existing.  

The Pipeline Purify Testing, is allow to be performed with the source gas.

The source gas is NFPA 99 Code compliant with a pressure dew point of 32 F at 50 to 55 psig. Now do I get down to 10 deg f ?

The question is based on a NEW MEDICAL AIR LINE, so testing is required.  

All,

The hydrocarbon test is clearly a differential test and the water concentration is a ceiling test.  The code excerpts are below.  Do you think they writers forgot to put in the words "Difference between the two tests""?

5.1.12.3.8.4 The difference between the two tests shall in no case exceed 5 ppm of total non-methane hydrocarbons.

5.1.12.3.8.5 The difference between the two tests shall in no case exceed 5 ppm halogenated hydrocarbons.

5.1.12.3.8.6 The moisture concentration of the outlet test shall not exceed 500 ppm or an equivalent pressure dew point of -12°C (10°F) at a gauge pressure of 345 kPa (50 psi). 

To answer your original question Al, if you are to use the ANY gas for testing the ppm value must be below 500 ppm to pass.  Some would say the code hasn't evolved to catch up to the addition on the "Source Gas as a Test Gas" which was added in 2002.  I think its just fine as it is.  Do you really want an variance on water testing?  You could be approving condensed water in the piping system by adding an additional 500ppm to the (approx) 1700ppm allowable limit.  

One other note:  My original response to your questions was that the verifier failed.  I still stand by that.  You cannot conduct a "final tie in" before doing the initial testing.  In your scenario a plumber tied into and existing system before doing the required testing.

I agree that the code allows for the "gas of system designation" to be used as a test gas.  In the real world that means something like a new facility.  Say a new ER.  You could turn on the source gas and just get to testing.  

Im very confident that a verifier who allows the plumber to tie into an existing system before that verifiers initial test is asking for trouble and clearly violating the code.  I see it all too often where a new customer has tied on his new piping to the existing hospital when I show up they will always say " Thats how So and So verifier" always has me do it.

Id be interested to hear if were the only ones still doing "Nitrogen Work"

Nick

Any one notice the Piping Purity test 5.1.12.3.8 occurs prior to the Final Tie-in test 5.1.12.3.9?

Based on this observation with the gross assumption the code sections are intended to be performed in the order they appear in the code then the Piping Purity Test shall be performed only with Nitrogen and the Final Tie-in Test is exclusively a test performed by an ASSE 6030 verifier and not the ASSE 6010 Installer.

So, why are we talking about an existing source gas dew point relative the dew point requirement in the 5.1.12.3.8 test when the code limits our testing to the new addition only? Isn't Nitrogen the only gas because the new pipe is NOT supposed to be installed until AFTER the Piping Purity and Piping Particulate tests performed on the Installers pipe? If I have missed a point in the prior discussions please point them out to me.