I am sitting in a class today getting some continuing education for my Ohio master license. Today’s course is a review on R-410a (Puron), the new refrigerant replacing R-22 (Freon) in home air conditioners. It’s hard to believe, but my first class on R-410a was ten years ago. R-410a was introduced in response to evidence that Freon was destroying the Ozone Layer. While still a greenhouse gas, R-410a does not damage the Ozone Layer. We were one of the first companies in our area to have our employees trained and certified to use this new refrigerant. We installed our first R-410a heat pump in April 2000 and immediately began offering an R-410a option to our customers whenever possible. Since then, the ratio of R-410a systems that we install each year has increased to more than 95% over the past few years. In comparison, our industry as a whole used R-410a only 35% on the time in 2008. This is the last year the manufacturers are allowed to use Freon 22 in new systems. In 2010 all new air conditioners will be made with R-410a, and Freon production (to service existing units) will be cut dramatically. It will be interesting to watch the learning curve of inexperienced companies who are forced to use R-410a because their beloved Freon is no longer available. Because of the production cap on R-22 in 2010, the price for recharging existing systems will no doubt skyrocket. Fortunately, we purchased a large supply of R-22 at a great price several years ago. Because so many of our customers have been hurt by the recession, we have decided to maintain our old pricing for R-22 for as long as our supply holds out. That’s our commitment to fair pricing. Click here for our current price for recharge your A/C.
