R-22 Runs Out

Which is exactly why I won't let a "service technician" near my 36 year old R-22 central AC unit. I clean the A-coil annually and keep the outside unit free of leaves, etc. I oil the indoor and outdoor blower motor bearings bearings but as long as this thing cranks out frigid, cold air, no manifold guages are going near it. No sense in breaking into a system that appears to be perfectly sealed. The newer ozone-friendly refrigerants never work as well as the old ones in an existing system.

I'm prepared to be flamed by the efficiency experts but to me, throwing away a perfectly working system is not "green" nor is it cost effective. This is an old GE unit made when durability and quality actually meant something.

R-410A is favorable for energy efficiency, but its operating pressures are higher than most common refrigerants. This limits the possibility of retrofits; you can't (usually) just recover R-22 and replace it with R-410A. However, new equipment designed for the higher pressure can benefit from more compact compressors and tubing, and less energy per refrigeration effect.

This limitation slows the rate of R-410A adoption.

This was informative!

There is alot of other refrigerants that can take do the same thing or better than r-22. One of the main points of this happening to r-22 is the safety of the ozone as i was told. 410a and other ozone friendly refrigerants have been topping the seer rating charts and are quite impressive with all the research i've done. I recently had my entire houses a/c system replaced with a new 410a high seer rating amana system. I am quite please with the results, I'm looking forward to seeing the savings this summer and if your looking for a great HVAC company in the Dallas,TX area.

( http://www.anumber1air.com )

-Joey