Why has the public not heard about the R22 refrigerant deal?

[LadyEagle]

The A/C guy told me that the price of "freon" R-22 has gone up from $18 pound to $40 pound since February as the supply is dwindling and their company will not be able to install R-22 after about January, should our A/C's need it. The cost of R-22 is starting to skyrocket as demand exceeds supply (they don't make it anymore, just recover and recycle it). The old style A/C that uses R-22 are still being sold on the market, builders are still instaling them in new construction, but they will be obsolete as the new kind of A/C with the new kind of refrigerant is not compatible with the current A/C models.

This switch will eventually affect every home, business, and institution in the US, yet we consumers have heard nothing about it. Apparently, this is something to do with the Montreal agreement Clinton signed when he was in office, from what I could find out.

Here is some information from the EPA:

http://www.epa.gov/ozone/title6/phaseout/22phaseout.html

My advice to those who are considering replacing their central A/C units - go with the new model that uses R-410A.

Any heating & cooling experts out there to give advice? What's up with the media not letting the public know about this?

 

[donnA]

I've known about it for years. And that anything with the R22 would need to be replaced, because you can not use the new refrigerant in it. Also, you can switch over your car from one to the other, but the new stuff is supose to be corrosive to the lines on your car air conditioning.
I wouldn't know, mine doesn't work anyway.

 

[Aaron]

R22 will still be manufactured for 20 years. The only thing that has stopped by Jan 1 '10 is the manufacture of new equipment that utilizes R22.

It all has to do with the O3 depletion myth.

 

[Revmitchell]

The A/C guy told me that the price of "freon" R-22 has gone up from $18 pound to $40 pound since February as the supply is dwindling and their company will not be able to install R-22 after about January, should our A/C's need it. The cost of R-22 is starting to skyrocket as demand exceeds supply (they don't make it anymore, just recover and recycle it). The old style A/C that uses R-22 are still being sold on the market, builders are still instaling them in new construction, but they will be obsolete as the new kind of A/C with the new kind of refrigerant is not compatible with the current A/C models.

This switch will eventually affect every home, business, and institution in the US, yet we consumers have heard nothing about it. Apparently, this is something to do with the Montreal agreement Clinton signed when he was in office, from what I could find out.

Here is some information from the EPA:

http://www.epa.gov/ozone/title6/phaseout/22phaseout.html

My advice to those who are considering replacing their central A/C units - go with the new model that uses R-410A.

Any heating & cooling experts out there to give advice? What's up with the media not letting the public know about this?

I sold A/C for a time as a Bivo Pastor. Your information is incorrect. The new A/C equipment is not R-22 and cannot be manufactured any longer. R-22 is still available to service those older units. Part of the problem is people do not understand that A/C units are not meant to last 20 to 30 years. and in reality should be replaced every 10 to 12 years. After that the efficiency rating bottoms out and you end up paying twice the energy costs to run your A/C. Just because it runs does not mean it does not need to be replaced.

 

[rbell]

The government pulled this stunt with auto refrigerant. R-12 supposedly was "creating the ozone hole" (insert laughter here). It was replaced by R-134. The results?

• A black market for the (better) R-12...it went from $0.75/lb. in the late 80's to $60/lb. the last time I checked. (It's illegal to buy, but it can be obtained)
• An extra expense to consumers--for "evacuation/recovery" and "refits" of new refrigerant.
• For the first few years of R-134's use, A/C's in autos were below the standards of previous A/C's. (They are better now).

Typical government ineptitude.