A consistent description of the dd → 4 Heη and dd → ( 4 Heη) bound → X cross sections was recently proposed with a broad range of real (V 0 ) and imaginary (W 0 ), η-4 He optical potential parameters leading to a good agreement with the dd → 4 Heη data. Here we compare the predictions of the model below the η production threshold, with the WASA-at-COSY excitation functions for the dd → 3 HeN π reactions to put stronger constraints on (V 0 , W 0 ). The allowed parameter space (with |V 0 | < ∼ 60 MeV and |W 0 | < ∼ 7 MeV estimated at 90% CL ) excludes most optical model predictions of η− 4 He nuclei except for some loosely bound narrow states.