|
HVAC & Energy Library -
Commercial Information
|
Phasing Out of R-22
As of January 2010 the standard refrigerant used in most all residential HVAC systems, R-22 (freon), will no longer be allowed to be used when manufacturing new equipment. This government mandate came to be after recognizing how this refrigerant R-22 was harmful to our planet’s ozone layer due to its properties of chlorine. Another part of this EPA mandate will include the complete phase out of all manufacturing of the R-22 refrigerant with no production or importation beginning in 2020.
A new refrigerant which does not contain chlorine is currently being manufactured and installed in many new systems. This new refrigerant is called R-410a and also goes by other trade names such as Puron and Prozone.
The cost of the old R-22 is increasing as the new R-410a becomes more and more popular but should not be outrageous for a few years. This mean its time to replace your HVAC system that you should strongly consider going with R-410a as it will be available in years to come as R-22 phases out. What it really boils down to is that if you install a new R-22 air conditioning system in the year 2008 you will only be able to get the R-22 refrigerant for your system until the year 2020 and refrigerant repairs could become very costly as the demand for R-22 decreases and the cost increases.
|
|
Read more...
|
