Happy World Ozone Preservation Day!
Since 1995 nations across the world celebrated a little holiday on September 16th, known as World Ozone Preservation Day. Quite the mouthful, huh? It’s a lesser known day, shadowed by it’s bigger, wider known cousin known as Earth Day but still very important. You’re probably wondering why you’re reading about World Ozone Preservation Day on a blog by a heating and cooling company, right?
One word: Refrigerant. Chlorofluorocarbons (CFC) and later hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFC) were used as refrigerant in air conditioning units and heat pumps for many years before it was realized that they were bad for the ozone. You may have heard your technician talking about R-22, also known as the refrigerant that is being phased out to transition to more eco-friendly refrigerants. With this phase out, R-22 is becoming harder to find, which means its price is increasing. As of January 1, 2010, new units could not be produced to use R-22. They had to use refrigerant that did not damage the ozone if it happened to leak. New units will use R-410A, which does not deplete the ozone, but unfortunately does still contribute to global warming. There is continuous research done to find some substitute that will not damage the environment at all (or at least minimally.)
If you have an older system, chances are it is still using R-22 (unless it’s possible to retrofit it, allowing your system to run on R-407C, yet another type of refrigerant) and your technician can charge it with this type of refrigerant. You shouldn’t need to have refrigerant added to your unit in the first place, unless you have a leak.
It’s a good idea to look in to a new furnace this season, both for the energy efficiency and to get rid of one more system in the world using ozone depleting refrigerant. You’ll save a lot of money in the long run, and helping save the world, too! Just remember, as of January 1, 2020, R-22 will not be manufactured anymore so if you happen to still be using it, you should probably think again.
The Beloman in Belleville would be happy to help you with this tough decision. Give us a call today at 618-BELOMAN or check us out at Beloman.com
