Launching Ref LeakLog: turning a new EPA rule into a workflow small HVAC shops can actually follow

Hey IH 👋

On January 1, 2026, the EPA's leak repair rule (40 CFR Part 84, Subpart C) started applying to small refrigerant equipment. Overnight, any HVAC/R shop servicing a system with 15+ lbs of regulated refrigerant became responsible for leak-rate calculations on every top-off, repairs within 30 days of crossing a threshold, verification tests, follow-up inspections, chronic-leaker reporting, and three years of records — with penalties that can reach five figures per day per violation.

For a one-to-eight-truck shop, that's a filing cabinet of federal paperwork bolted onto every service call. Most existing tools are built and priced for enterprise refrigerant management, which leaves the small independent contractor doing this in spreadsheets — or not at all.

I built Ref LeakLog to make it manageable. A tech logs the pounds added at the unit; the software computes the leak rate on the spot using the methods the regulation specifies, opens the 30-day repair action automatically when a threshold is crossed, tracks the verification tests that close it out, generates the follow-up inspection schedule, watches chronic-leaker totals all year, and exports audit-ready PDFs. The compliance math is deterministic, pure code — no AI anywhere near the record of authority.

It's bootstrapped and priced for small shops: $29–$89/mo, 14-day free trial, no credit card. There's a full demo with no signup at refleaklog.app/demo — it runs on a fictional fleet through the real engine, so you can watch a leak rate cross a threshold and the repair clock start itself.

I'd love feedback — especially from anyone who's dealt with EPA 608 / Subpart C paperwork, or who's built vertical compliance SaaS for a trades audience. What would make this a no-brainer for a shop owner?

Thanks for reading 🙏