On January 23, 2006 a government mandate stated that heat pump and air conditioning manufacturers (Carrier, Bryant, York, Lennox, etc.) would no longer make equipment less than 13 SEER. The regulation required that all products manufactured after that date meet the new standard. This 30% increase in minimum efficiency could result in energy savings of up to 23% compared to most central air conditioning systems rated at 10 SEER.

If your system is more than 10 years old and is rated at only 8 SEER, you can expect to see savings of approximately 55%. This mandate has followed other such governmental acts to protect our environment & natural resources. If your system is 10 years old it could have SEER rating as low as 8. Older “out-dated” equipment should be considered for replacement in order to take advantage of the cost savings of today’s high efficiency systems which are commonly rated between 13 & 16 SEER. You are not required to replace your existing unit if it is less than 13 SEER, but doing so could shave up to 23 percent off your energy bill while providing real environmental benefits through decreased energy consumption.

More SEER History:
On March 17, 2004, in WASHINGTON, D.C. The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) announced their acceptance of the air-conditioning industry of SEER 13 as the federal efficiency standard for residential central air conditioning systems to be effective in January 2006. At this time the current federal standard was SEER 10, which took effect in 1992.

The SEER 13 standard was first announced in 2001 towards the end of the Clinton administration, and was later reduced to SEER 12 in 2002 by the Bush Administration, and then restored again to SEER 13 in January 2004 by the 2nd Circuit of the U.S. Court of Appeals. Today the Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Institute ARI announced it was withdrawing its appeal of the SEER 13 standard which was filed in 2001 in the 4th Circuit of the U.S. Court of Appeals, making the SEER 13 standard now complete.

Under the current standard, energy use by new air conditioners will be reduced by 23% relative to the current 13 SEER standard. According to the ACEEE report, this will reduce the peak demand for electric power by 41,500 Megawatts by 2020. This is equivalent to 138 typical new power plants of 300 Mega Watts each. This is expected to save consumers approximately $5 billion over the years of 2006-2030. This standard was also implements to reduce air pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions, and saving 7.2 million metric tons of carbon in 2020. This could be equal to taking more than 3 million vehicles off the road.

Tags: SEER

As of January 2010 the standard refrigerant used in most all residential HVAC systems, R-22 (freon), will no longer be allowed to be used when manufacturing new equipment. This government mandate came to be after recognizing how this refrigerant R-22 was harmful to our planet’s ozone layer due to its properties of chlorine. Another part of this EPA mandate will include the complete phase out of all manufacturing of the R-22 refrigerant with no production or importation beginning in 2020.

A new refrigerant which does not contain chlorine is currently being manufactured and installed in many new systems. This new refrigerant is called R-410a and also goes by other trade names such as Puron and Prozone.

The cost of the old R-22 is increasing as the new R-410a becomes more and more popular but should not be outrageous for a few years. This mean its time to replace your HVAC system that you should strongly consider going with R-410a as it will be available in years to come as R-22 phases out. What it really boils down to is that if you install a new R-22 air conditioning system in the year 2008 you will only be able to get the R-22 refrigerant for your system until the year 2020 and refrigerant repairs could become very costly as the demand for R-22 decreases and the cost increases.

Background and Details:
The Montreal Protocol, an international environmental agreement, met in 1987 and established the first requirements of the worldwide phase-out of the ozone-depleting CFCs (chlorofluorocarbons). This included refrigerants such as R-22 and R-12. These requirements were later changed in 1996 to include to the phase out of CFC production in all developed nations.

Also, in 1992 an amendment to the Montreal Protocol established a schedule for the complete phase-out of all HCFCs (hydro-chlorofluorocarbons). HCFCs are substantially less damaging to the ozone layer than CFCs, but still contain ozone-destroying chlorine. The Montreal Protocol is now applied in the United States through Title VI of the Clean Air Act, which is implemented by EPA.

For over four decades the HCFC R-22 has been the refrigerant of choice for residential heat pump and air conditioning systems. R-22 when leaked into the atmosphere is reported to contribute to ozone depletion and the manufacture of R-22 results in a by-product that contributes to global warming. As the manufacturing of R-22 is phased out over the coming years to end production of HCFCs, manufacturers of residential air conditioning systems are now supplying equipment that uses the ozone-friendly refrigerant R-410a.

The R-22 Phase Out Schedule:
Since the terms established by the Montreal Protocol meetings the United States has through the EPA has agreed to the following dates which effect the manufacturing and service of residential heat pump and air conditioning systems:

January 1, 2004: The amount of all HCFCs that can be produced nationwide would be reduced by 35% by 2004. To do this goal, the U.S. stopped production of HCFC-141b, the most ozone-damaging of this class of chemicals, on January 1, 2003.

January 1, 2010: After 2010, while chemical manufacturers may still produce R-22 service companies to repair existing air conditioning equipment, manufactures will no longer be allowed to supply new equipment with this refrigerant.

January 1, 2020: Chemical manufactures will no longer be allowed to create new supplies of R-22. The only supplies of the R-22 refrigerant will be from sources which have been recovered and recycled. We can expect the cost of R-22 to hit the roof at this point in time.

How This Will Effect You:
The Clean Air Act does not allow for any refrigerants to be vented into the atmosphere while installation, service, or removal of old equipment. R-22 must be recovered and recycled (for reuse in the same system), reclaimed (reprocessed to the same purity levels as new R-22), or destroyed. After 2020, when servicing systems containing R-22 will rely strictly on recycled refrigerants. Expect the cost of R-22 to soon rise beyond the cost of R410a and then in a few short years make the cost of R-22 repairs reason to replace your system with one which uses R-410a. At this point it would be wise to strongly consider replacing your equipment with that of R-410a when faced with any major repair needs.

Tags: R-22

Research has shown that R-410A is the best long-term replacement for chlorine-containing R-22 in residential and light commercial air conditioning systems. The air conditioning industry is fully committed to adopting R-410A as the refrigerant of choice in both scroll and reciprocating applications. In fact, new energy-efficiency regulations in 2006 compelled manufacturers to implement many new energy-efficient product lines incorporating R-410A. And, since R-410A systems are available now, demand for R-410A products will likely outpace demand for R-22 equipment in most new applications before the January 1, 2010 deadline.

R-410A has quickly become the refrigerant of choice for use in air conditioning applications because the refrigerant delivers higher efficiency and better Total Equivalent Warming Impact (TEWI) than other choices. TEWI is the best measure of global warming, considering not only the direct global warming impact, but also the sizable indirect Global Warming Potential (GWP) resulting from carbon dioxide, produced by fossil-fuel energy consumption.

Several characteristics of R-410A are different than R-22. R-410A operates at a higher pressure, but it is also more energy efficient, allows for fewer coils and less tubing, and has a reduced refrigerant charge and better cyclic performance – all of which contribute to its affordability. The next generation of Copeland Scroll ZPK5 compressors is optimized for R-410A and delivers breakthroughs in efficiency, reliability and sound. Additionally, Emerson is developing a new high-efficiency R-410A reciprocating compressor for residential air conditioning systems. The Copeland brand CP8 reciprocating compressor will be available for applications in the 1 ½- to three-ton capacity range.

The next generation of R-410A refrigerants and compressors has been established for air conditioning applications, to meet the 2010 regulation change; however, Emerson Climate Technologies will continue to work closely with refrigerant and system manufacturers, industry organizations and government agencies to ensure that state-of-the-art compressor technology is available to help reduce the overall environmental impact of our customers’ air conditioning applications.

Comparison of the Montreal Protocol and the United States Phaseout Schedules

Montreal Protocol
United States

Year to be Implemented
% Reduction in Consumption, Using the Cap as a Baseline
Implementation of HCFC Phase-out through Clean Air Act Regulations

2010
65.0%
No production and no importing of HCFC-22, except for use in equipment manufactured before 1/1/2010 (so no production or importing for NEW equipment that uses these refrigerants)

2015
90.0%
No production and no importing of HCFC-22, except for use as refrigerants in equipment manufactured before 1/1/2020

2020
99.5%
No production and no importing of HCFC-22

2030
100.0%
No production and no importing of any HCFCs

HCFC-22 is also referred to as R-22 or by one of its trade names, Freon® 22. It is a popular refrigerant that is commonly used in a variety of refrigeration and air conditioning equipment, including:

Residential Uses
Commercial and Industrial Uses

Window air conditioning units

Dehumidifiers

Central air conditioners

Air-to-air heat pumps

Ground-source heat pumps

Ductless air conditioners

Chest or upright freezers
Packaged air conditioners and heat pumps

Chillers

Retail food refrigeration

Cold-storage warehouses

Industrial-process refrigeration

Transport refrigeration

Tags: air conditioning systems, R-22, R-410A