A Consumer’s Guide To The Alternative Refrigerants For Your New Central Air Conditioning System

Chances are, you’ve heard about the new alternative refrigerants being used in today’s air conditioning and refrigeration systems. These new products have fewer CFCs (chlorofluorocarbons) and are designed to have less impact on the earth’s ozone layer and global warming.

Terminology: R-22 is known as Freon or R410 is known as Puron

R-22 Refrigerant. The Popular And Economical Choice For Today.
R-22 has been the established choice for residential air conditioners and heat pumps. It is a proven performer that meets today’s environmental needs.

R-410A. Refrigerant Technology For The Future.
R-410A is a new generation refrigerant that will be an important part of future systems. However, as with any new technology, there are some issues that make R-22 an excellent choice for today’s homeowner.

What R-22’s Proven Track Record Means For Your Family.
While R-410A will certainly be the choice for the future, R-22 systems deliver a combination of benefits that make it an option for most homeowners in today’s market. These include:

Cost

• R-410A refrigerant costs almost five times as much as R-22.
  
• Because they involve new technology, R-410A units are more expensive now than units using R-22. Of course, once that new technology is proven, the price difference will become less.
  
• Special equipment and training may make service costs on R-410A units more expensive.

Risks

• R-410A systems are a new, unknown commodity, so the industry is still developing guidelines for system reliability and life expectancy.
  
• R-410A units use compressors that operate at up to 50% greater pressure than R-22 systems. While these compressors are engineered to accommodate the increased pressure, there is at present no data on long term compressor performance.

• R-410A systems are a new, they do not have the many years of testing in customers homes. You would be one of the first with the new product.
  
• R-410A has no data for long term use in any of the consumer report type magazines.

Let’s Address A Few Misconceptions About R-22 Systems.

Unfortunately, with all of the new information available, it’s easy to lose track of which regulation applies to which refrigerant. Here are a few key things to remember:

Availability

R-22 will be available for home air conditioning units until the year 2030, well past the typical life expectance of any system installed today.

Efficiency

A 12-SEER R-22 system is exactly the same efficiency as a 12-SEER R-410A system. The type of refrigerant used has no bearing on the cooling performance of an air conditioning unit.