1.

Evaporator Defrosting
The refrigeration evaporator is a container that provides room for the evaporating
refrigerant. The refrigerant receives heat by conduction through the walls of the
container. The efficiency of the evaporator depends on several related factors:
 its size
 the type of refrigerant in it, and its velocity and turbulence
 the amount of oil in the refrigerant
 the material from which the unit is constructed
 the difference in temperature between the evaporator and its surroundings
 exposure to surroundings
 the condition of the evaporator surface.
The evaporator surface needs to be kept clean. It should be free of scale, dirt, film or
similar matter. If it is clean, the evaporator transfers heat to the refrigerant rapidly and
easily. Otherwise, these elements act as insulation, which slows heat transfer.
Scale and other foreign matter collect over relatively long periods of time. They can be
removed at intervals if they become a problem. Yet another element, frost can
constantly affect evaporator efficiency if the coil temperature is 0°C or less.
Frost is frozen water vapor. Its snowy crystals form when water vapor strikes an
evaporator surface at 0°C or below. Frozen water becomes ice. Ice forms when frost
melts into water and the water freezes. If this occurs frequently, an evaporator soon
resembles a block of ice.

The colder the evaporator, the more water vapor will freeze out of the air. Always try to
keep the evaporator temperature as high as possible, while maintaining the desired
room or fixture temperature. This means keeping a minimum or low-temperature
difference (TD) between the entering air and the evaporator.
A low TD is about 4 to 5°C. Four conditions help achieve a low TD:

 a large evaporator surface

 a fully active evaporator
 a rapid circulation of air
 a clean, frost-free surface.

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These conditions for a given temperature promote slow frost buildup, high-suction
pressure, high capacity, and efficiency. Less water vapor is removed from the air as
frost. Humidity remains high. Foods lose less moisture and weight, and they keep their
best appearance.
However, this ideal situation may not always exist. An evaporator may have a small
surface area. It may not be fully active. Air circulation may be low or restricted. Heavy
frost may clog air passages and act as insulation. If these things occur, the temperature
difference between the entering air and the evaporator will be high. Likewise, the
temperature of the refrigerated space will be high. For almost any given refrigerator
temperature, these conditions have the following negative effects:
 lower suction pressure
 higher cost of producing the refrigeration effect
 reduced humidity in the space, with loss of moisture from the stored food
products.
There is a way to eliminate these conditions in an evaporator that operates at 0°C
or below. It is to provide some means of automatic, periodic, frost removal, or
"defrosting."

2. Defrosting Methods
A design and application engineer generally determines the heat transfer surface area of
the evaporator and the air velocities over this surface. The refrigeration service
technician controls the activity of the evaporator through the selection and adjustment of
the expansion valve. The service technician also controls the problem of coil frosting
through the application and adjustment of one of the available defrost methods.
There are many variations and refinements in defrost methods. To analyze the value
and application of these variations, you must understand the concepts of the basic
defrost methods. This chapter describes commonly used methods of defrosting
commercial evaporators. It also covers the factors that the technician must consider in
order to determine the method, or variation or combination of methods, most suitable for
a particular application.
There is no perfect or ideal method of evaporator defrosting. No one method applies to
any and all types of installations. This does not mean, however, that each installation
requires a different defrosting method. If characteristics and conditions are the same,
different systems can use similar defrosting methods and equipment. On the other
hand, there may be differences in equipment, in design temperatures, or in the products
being refrigerated. Numerous operating conditions can exist, which would require a
variation in the defrosting method.

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There are several methods of defrosting evaporators exposed to air. Most result in
the evaporator temperature rising above the melting point of water (0°C).
Exceptions to these methods will also be explored in this chapter. The five following
evaporator defrosting methods are commonly used:
 manual frost removal
 manual equipment shutdown defrost
 off-cycle defrost
 timed shutdowns defrost
 supplementary heat defrost.
3. Manual Frost Removal
Evaporators in old refrigeration systems were usually made of iron pipe. They were
connected to condensing units that operated continuously. Frost would accumulate until
it affected system capacity. The pipe coils were brushed with a stiff wire brush, or the
ice was removed with a chipping hammer or other edged tool. This was a slow and
expensive process. Actually, this inefficient method of defrosting is still found today in
some ice cream dispensing (dipping) cabinets. These cabinets have evaporator coils
fastened to the interior liner. They make the liner a secondary evaporator surface. Frost
that builds up on the liner must be scraped off. The equipment is not usually shut down
during this process. Needless to say, this method of removing frost left much to be
desired. It sparked research and development of other methods as industry technology
advanced.

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4. Manual Shutdown Defrost
Plate evaporators are designed to be exposed to surrounding air. You find them in
cafeterias where food products are displayed directly on cold plates. They are used in
packaging machinery applications.

These plate-type evaporators operated at a high TD and below 0°C. They accumulate a
coating of frost over time. Generally, this equipment is simply turned off at the end of
the business day. Food on display is moved to other storage locations. The evaporators
then warm up to the surrounding (ambient) temperature and defrosting occurs. Figure 1
shows this cycle.

This frost removal method was satisfactory in some applications. But more
sophisticated, automatic refrigeration equipment was developed, which demanded
defrosting methods that were also automatic. Then came the refinement of the
forced-air, fin-tube evaporator for below-freezing applications. This development
made automatic defrosting an absolute necessity.
The refrigeration industry answered this challenge. It developed defrost
arrangements that used the forced-air evaporator and provided automatic frost
removal.

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5. Timed Shutdown Defrost
In many installations, the compressor can be shut down for an extended period of time.
This can be down once or perhaps several times in a 24-hour period. These are
installations in which the air temperature might be below 2°C but not lower that about
-5°C.
A switch actuated by a time clock can control this defrost method, as shown in Figure 2.
The defrost timer is set to stop the compressor at a selected time. It is set to start it again
after enough time for a complete defrost has elapsed.

Installations vary a great deal. You may have to experiment to get the right cut-out and
cut-in times. Recommendations of the equipment manufacturer may be helpful.
Conditions also may vary, such as seasonally, so you may have to readjust the defrost
time. This need for seasonal adjustment led to the development of the methods
described here.
The defrost system can be time-initiated, and either pressure- or temperature-terminated.
Both offer automatic adjustment to variable frost conditions. Each method responds to
varying conditions in such a way as to provide the minimum OFF time and temperature
rise needed for a complete defrost.
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6. Pressure-Terminated Timed Defrost
Figure 3 shows the time-pressure system. This method of defrosting is usually controlled
by a defrost timer combined with a low-pressure control. The timer stops the compressor
at a predetermined time. The evaporator starts to defrost. However, the time switch can
be closed again only by the action of the low-pressure control bellows, which is usually
set to a pressure corresponding to 6°C.

Defrosting is not done during each unit OFF cycle. Thus, the pressure and temperature
of the evaporator must rise higher than during an OFF-cycle defrost. The controls must
give additional time for all of the heavy frost accumulation to melt.

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7. Temperature-Terminated Timed Defrost
The time-temperature method is similar to the time-pressure method. The difference is
that a temperature control terminates the defrost period. In most current applications, the
temperature control may be adjustable or preset. It may respond to coil tube
temperature, coil fin temperature, air off the coil, or air return to the coil. It also may be
located at any point in the air circulation path. This extreme flexibility has led to
misunderstandings and there have been service adjustment errors. Therefore, it is very
important to obtain and to follow the recommendations of equipment manufacturers. Find
out where and how to measure the temperature to ensure a properly set defrost
termination temperature.
The thermostats usually used are "close-on-rise" types. They have fairly wide
differentials. The defrost timer has a small solenoid energized by the termination
thermostat circuit. The solenoid armature closes the defrost timer switch contacts to start
the condensing unit. At the same time, it opens the termination thermostat circuit. As the
system refrigerants, the thermostat responds to the decreasing temperature. At the
preset cut-out temperature, it opens its contacts. The termination circuit is thus reset. It
now stands by for the next defrost period.
Temperature-activated arrangements ensure a more positive termination of the defrost
period than pressure-activated arrangements, especially in installations where the
compressor is in a cold location and suction pressure is kept low by the vapor
condensing in the compressor. However, the time- temperature method does not protect
the compressor against damage caused by slugging (as a result of refrigerant
condensing in the crankcase). Such installations are to be avoided whenever possible. If
the compressor must be located where temperatures could drop below the refrigerated
space temperature, a compressor crankcase heater should be installed to prevent the
refrigerant from condensing in the crankcase.
8. Supplementary Heat Defrost
Some refrigerated products may have to be kept below about -2°C. In such cases,
evaporators must be defrosted as quickly as possible. You cannot depend on the heat in
the ambient air that is circulated over the evaporator surface. Such systems need
additional heat from another source. This is called supplementary heat.
There are many methods designed for quick defrost with minimal temperature change in
either product or ambient temperature. Heat sources include:

 Water
 brine sprays
 electric resistance
 high-side vapour
9. Water Defrost
Water can be directed defrosting medium. It may come from the mains, or it may be
pumped from a reservoir and then returned to it. If necessary, the water may be reheated
in the reservoir. As commonly used, the liquid-line valve, either the manual or the electric
solenoid type, is closed. The low side is pumped down so that the evaporator is free of
liquid refrigerant before defrosting starts. The compressor and the evaporator fans are
stopped. In some installations, louvers are shut to enclose the evaporator coil.

A valve is then opened, as shown in Figure 4. Water goes to a spray head above the
evaporator. The water washes over the
evaporator and melts the frost. It is then

caught in a drain pan and led away to the drain.

The valve in the water line shown in Figure 4 is a "stop and waste" valve. It allows water
in the line and the spray head connections to drain out. This keeps it from freezing during
normal refrigerating operation. The thermal contact between the water and the
evaporator is excellent. The temperature of ordinary tap water is sufficient for rapid
defrost. Figure 5 illustrates an automatic water defrost cycle, including the refrigerant
pump-down and the stopping of the compressor and the fans. Two solenoid valves are
used instead of the manual "stop and waste" valve.

With the water defrost method, you must be careful to ensure that all of the water and
drain lines in the refrigerated space are entirely drained of water after the defrost cycle. If
they are not, they will probably freeze during the normal refrigerating cycle. Damage may
result.
BRINE SPRAY DEFROST
In large installations, brine spray may be used in a manner similar to water defrost. The
brine is returned to a reservoir and recirculated. The brine may be reheated in the
reservoir. However, a large reservoir may have enough heat holdover without added heat,
as shown in Figure 6.
Water from the melted ice and frost mixing with
the brine weakens it. Use "concentrators" to
evaporate the excess water. This keeps the
freezing point of the brine below the evaporator
temperature. Carryover of the spray into the
refrigerator may be undesirable during defrosting.
If so, install duct baffles or louvers that can be
closed during defrosting.
This type of system is usually manually
operated. However, it can be arranged with
timers, electrically operated valves, etc., for
automatic defrost control.
10. Electric Defrost
Electric defrost is illustrated in Figure 7. It has been popular since it was introduced over a
quarter of a century ago. Heater manufacturers have solved problems and now produce
reliable and long-lived heaters. The method is clean and quiet. It can be built to handle
many types of evaporators. These range from small frozen-food chests to large multideck,
low-temperature display fixtures. Unit coolers have heaters built in or around their
evaporators. Part of the resistance is built into drain pans and the drain line. This prevents
refreezing and ensures adequate drainage.

Automatic control of the direct electric method is easily done with a timer. It can be
supplemented, if desired, by a thermostatic or pressure control. Some systems with
electric heaters use separate limit switches. They are thermostats that open the circuit to
the electric heaters if the evaporator gets too hot.
Generally, evaporator fans on unit coolers in freezer boxes are turned off during the
defrost period. Start- up after defrost is often delayed until the evaporator coils are below
0°C. In some unit coolers, baffles are closed to keep heat from getting into the refrigerated
spaces. Evaporator fans in open display fixtures usually continue to operate during defrost.
This allows warming of the flues and ducts of the air-circulating system.
The electric heaters may be of higher wattage than many common timers can handle. If
so, use heavy- duty contactors, actuated by the timer contacts, to open and close the
heater circuits.
11. Hot Gas Defrost
A better understanding of the vapour defrost (hot gas) method can be gained by briefly
reviewing what becomes of the heat in the air and the food in a refrigerated space. The
refrigerant in the evaporator is the only cooling medium. As a result, all of the heat load
must pass into the refrigerant and out through the suction line. There it picks up some
additional heat from the surrounding air. The refrigerant gas, now warmed somewhat,
goes to the compressor, where it is compressed and discharged into the condenser.
Work is done on the gas to compress it. Work is a form of energy. Since energy cannot
be created or destroyed, that work must be accounted for. The work energy is turned
into heat energy in the compressed gas. Therefore, it is added to the heat in the gas
(vapor) that came from the refrigerated space. The hot gas that leaves the compressor
contains heat from the refrigerated space, heat that was picked up in the suction line,
and the heat of compression. The heat picked up in the suction line is usually rather
small in normal-temperature installations. The heat of compression, however, may be
25% of the total heat of the compressor discharge gas.
The heat in the gas from the compressor raises its temperature. R-134a at the inlet to
the condenser may be 40°C to 50°C, depending on conditions. The function of the
condenser is to remove this heat from the hot discharge gas from the compressor. In this
process, the gas is changed back to a liquid at about room temperature for air-cooled
machines, and a little above the inlet water temperature for water-cooled machines.
Instead of letting the hot gas
flow into the condenser, some
system designs intercept and
divert it. It is sent through a
bypass line to the evaporator at
a point just beyond the
expansion valve. In other
words, the high-temperature
gas from the hot gas line is fed
into the evaporator. For many
installations, this gas has
enough heat to defrost the
evaporator entirely. This is
known as "hot gas" defrosting.
Figure 8 illustrates the manual
control method.
The hot gas system transfers heat from the discharge gas to the evaporator metal and to
frost on the evaporator exterior. First sensible heat is transferred, then latent heat. For a
short period of time, the evaporator being defrosted acts like a condenser, and the hot
has changes to liquid refrigerant. Figure 9 shows the automatic operation.

However, this liquid refrigerant must move through the system. The only place it has to
go is into the suction line—and from there to the compressor. But some refrigeration
compressors are made to pump vapor only. Pumping the liquid formed in a hot gas
defrost system could seriously damage these types of compressors. In fact, they could
be completely ruined.
The concept of using the "free" heat in compressed gas from the compressor was
attractive to the designers who set out to solve the problem of returning liquid refrigerant
to the compressor. A few of the methods devised have stood the test of time. They are
now found in hundreds of successful installations. Basically, a method was needed to
change the liquid refrigerant, which was flowing from the defrosting evaporator, back to
a gas before it reached the compressor.
One method uses an orifice at the inlet of the hot gas bypass to the evaporator. It limits
flow so that the liquid can be warmed enough in the suction line to become vapor
again.
Another method provided an accumulator located at the outlet of the evaporator. Here
the liquid collects and is slowly boiled into vapor by the action of the compressor.
Other systems use equipment called "re-evaporators," as shown in Figure 10 Three
variations of the re- evaporators follow:

 Warm room air is forced through a finned coil by a fan. The coil becomes part of
the suction line.
 A tank of fluid is heated by means of electric heaters. During defrost, the heat
is given up to a loop of suction line, which also passes through the tank.
 A variety of combined methods make use of re-evaporators to change the liquid
refrigerant back to a gas before it reaches the compressor.

Using hot gas to defrost the evaporator cured one problem but introduced another. Suction
pressure rose as the hot gas entered the evaporator. It could reach a point that caused
compressor motors to overload and shut down-even on overload devices. This has been
overcome by using a suction pressure throttling valve. It is set to permit a maximum
suction pressure and motor load.
Hot gas defrost systems work well but have limitations. At the beginning of the defrost
period, the gas contains all the heat from the refrigerated space and the suction line, as
well as the heat of compression. It imparts some of its heat to the evaporator. Most of this
goes into the ice and frost and causes them to melt. This heat, therefore, is lost in the water
down the drain. Some heat is again picked up in the suction line and from the heat of
compression. As defrosting continues, however, the hot gas becomes cooler — it is losing
its heat to the evaporator. It is kept partly supplied by the heat of compression, but at a
reduced rate, and by some heat from the suction line. But the total heat available for
defrosting slowly diminishes. This limits the defrosting action of the hot gas method. An
evaporator may have collected a lot of ice. If so, the amount of heat in the hot gas may not
last long enough for a complete defrost.
Hot gas defrosting is most effective at the beginning of the defrost period. Therefore, it
is desirable, if possible, to defrost often (more than once a day). This takes advantage
of several initial supplies of heat in the hot gas. Also, with less time between defrosts,
less ice forms on the evaporator.
With any hot gas system, take care to avoid pressure drop and cooling of the gas due to
long runs of the hot gas and the bypass lines. A long run, however, may be necessary,
so it must be of ample size, and perhaps insulated against heat loss.
Hot Gas Defrost

Saturated Gas Defrost

12. Reverse-Cycle Gas Defrost
In the hot gas defrost method just described, a bypass line runs from the compressor
discharge to a point just beyond the expansion valve. This method is the so-called
"three-pipe" system and is subject to the limitations noted previously for avoiding
pressure drop and cooling of the hot gas. The reverse-cycle gas defrost system can
also provide a defrost. The reverse-cycle method overcomes the main problem with the
three-pipe system, which is the limited heat available for defrost.

Reverse-cycle defrost is as old as mechanical refrigeration itself. A system of valves is

arranged so that the evaporator acts as the condenser and the condenser acts as the
evaporator. In early ammonia warehouse installations, various sections of the many
evaporators could be manually reversed by the plant operator. This gave very satisfactory
results. Now, electrically operated four-way valves can provide the reversing action. They
also can be operated with a time clock, so that defrost is automatic at desired intervals.
Figures 11 and 12 show normal and defrost cycles.
As supermarkets grew in size, distances from evaporators to condensing units increased.
Three-pipe hot gas systems fell into disfavor because of their tendency to run out of heat.
A true reverse-cycle gas defrost system was developed. It operated successfully. It
allowed open, low-temperature fixtures in food stores the advantage of a quick defrost with
a vapor. However, these systems required a specially built condensing unit to handle the
product of the gas defrost liquid refrigerant.
In time, central refrigeration systems for supermarkets evolved. This equipment meets all
or most of the refrigeration needs of a complete food store. Various fixtures are arranged
and piped much like the early warehouses previously mentioned. The arrangement made
reverse-cycle gas defrost very practical. One or more evaporators are defrosted while
others continue to refrigerate. This provides a continuous supply of heat to the defrosting
coils.
Basically, the refrigerant condensed by the defrosting evaporator is fed to the refrigerating
evaporators. They provide the necessary "re-evaporator" action, which prevents liquid
return to the compressor.