International. The company Bitzer warned users, through a statement, against imitation oils. In Vietnam and Korea, counterfeiters, in part, disguised their imitations with the logo and name of the refrigeration compressor specialist. These fakes can lead to a compressor breakdown, in contrast to the use of refrigeration oils.
Bitzer explained that the pirates of the products not only sell counterfeit compressors, but also bring low-quality oils to the market. In Asia, for example, counterfeiters partly disguised their imitations with the company's name and logo, posing great risks.
Bitzer recently discovered several fake oils in Vietnam: a local company has illegally declared and sold containers with low-quality oil as original Bitzer products. According to the label, high-quality oils B320SH, BSE32, BSE170 and B100 must be in the containers. However, they contained substandard oils whose chemical formulation differs greatly from the high quality of the originals.
Bitzer has investigated the counterfeiting and expressly warns customers of the possible risks associated with its use. The characteristics of viscosity, moisture content and chemical formulation are very different from the original products.
The brand added that using the fake product can lead to insufficient lubrication of compressors, chemical reaction, destruction of elastomers and therefore extensive damage. In imitation oil of type BSE170, the moisture content significantly exceeded the permissible values. It was three times higher than the permissible value. The high moisture content in polyester oils such as BSE170 is particularly critical because it leads to hydrolysis with the result of acid formation in the cooling circuit.
This, in turn, causes copper coating and therefore damage to critical moving parts such as roller bearings, as well as possible engine wear. This can therefore lead to very high costs for the exchange of compressors and measures for system dehydration and acid capture.
