How Does Air Conditioning Refrigerant Phaseout Affect Me?

You might not think much about how your air conditioner works, but it requires refrigerant to keep your home fresh. This refrigerant is bound by environmental laws, since it contains chemicals.

Depending on when your air conditioner was added to your home, it may need R-22, R-410A or R-32 refrigerant. We’ll discuss the differences and which air conditioner refrigerants are being phased out in Athol, plus how these phaseouts impact you.

What’s R-22 and Why Is It No Longer Being Made?

If your air conditioner was put in before 2010, it possibly contains Freon®. You can learn if your air conditioner contains it by contacting us at 208-561-1226. You can also inspect the name plate on your air conditioner condenser, which is located outside your house. This sticker will have information on what kind of refrigerant your AC needs.

Freon, which is also called R-22, contains chlorine. Scientists consider R-22 to be harmful to the earth’s ozone layer and one that results in global warming. The Environmental Protection Agency, which manages refrigerants in the United States, outlawed its production and import in January 2020.

I Have a R-22 Air Conditioner. Should I Replace It?

It differs. If your air conditioning is operating as designed, you can continue to keep it. With routine air conditioner maintenance, you can expect your air conditioning to operate around 15–20 years. However, the Department of Energy notes that substituting a 10-year-old air conditioner could save you 20–40% on summertime cooling bills!

If you don’t replace your air conditioner, it might lead to a problem if you require air conditioning repair later on, specifically for refrigerant. Repairs could be pricier, since only reduced amounts of recycled and reclaimed R-22 is on hand.

With the discontinuation of R-22, most new air conditioners now have Puron®. Also called R-410A, this refrigerant was created to keep the ozone layer in good shape. Because it calls for an incompatible pressure level, it doesn’t match air conditioners that need R-22 for cooling.

However, Puron still has the possibility to create global warming. As a result, it might also sometime be phased out. Although it hasn’t been disclosed yet for residential air conditioners, it’s likely sometime this decade.

What Refrigerant Will Take the Place of R-410A?

In preparation of the end, some companies have begun using R-32 in new air conditioners. This refrigerant rates low for global warming likelihood—about one-third less than R-410A. And it also reduces energy expenditure by approximately 10%, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s Fourth Assessment Report. That’s savings that may be sent on to you through your energy costs.

Alpine Summit Heating & Cooling Can Help with All Your Air Conditioning Needs

In brief, the modifications to air conditioner refrigerant probably won’t impact you a whole lot until you have to have repairs. But as we discussed earlier, refrigerant-related repairs might be more costly since there are the low levels on hand.

Aside from that, your air conditioner usually malfunctions at the worst time, often on the warmest day when we’re receiving lots of other requests for AC repair.

If your air conditioner uses a phased out refrigerant or is aging, we suggest installing a modern, energy-efficient air conditioner. This provides a trouble-free summer and could even decrease your cooling bills, especially if you get an ENERGY STAR®-rated system. Plus, Alpine Summit Heating & Cooling has many financing solutions to make your new air conditioner work with your budget. Contact us at 208-561-1226 to get started right away with a free estimate.