On a small appliance with a completely plugged capillary tube, what is the minimum number of access valves needed for refrigerant evacuation?

In the context of evacuating refrigerant from a small appliance that has a completely plugged capillary tube, only one access valve is necessary. This is because the system can be evacuated through a single access point. The access valve allows a technician to connect a vacuum pump or refrigerant recovery machine directly to the system to remove refrigerant.

When a capillary tube is completely plugged, the system is effectively non-serviceable through the traditional suction or liquid ports found on larger systems. Thus, opening a single valve permits the technician to effectively create a pathway for the evacuation process, allowing the refrigerant to be removed in a controlled manner.

Utilizing more than one access valve is typically unnecessary in this scenario and would complicate the evacuation process for no added benefit. Therefore, having just one access valve suffices for achieving the required evacuation of refrigerant from the appliance.