Arc Electric, Air Conditioning &
Heating Inc.

A Consumer Guide to the Alternative Refrigerant's 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.

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 our future systems. However, as with any new technology, there are some issues that make R-22 an excellent choice for today's homeowner. These issues are outlined in the "Take a Closer" Look section.

To us, good refrigerant choices come naturally. At York International, we've always had a natural feeling for creating the best environments. To help protect the outdoor climate, in 1987 we introduced the first industrial cooling system to use a CFC alternative refrigerant.

Today, all of our brands continue to offer you efficient and environmentally sound refrigerant choices for home and business.

We are the only Fortune 500 Company focused solely on heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration, which give us unique insight into the best choices.

We're finding solutions to refrigerant alternative and indoor air quality - to improve the indoors and outdoors for decades to come.

A Few Facts About R-22

• The EPA will allow the production of R-22 systems to the year 2010
• The EPA will allow continued use of R-22 to the year 2030
• R-22 has been scientifically shown to have a relatively low Global Warming Potential (GW=1700) and Ozone Depletion Potential (ODP=0.05)

Take A Closer Look

What R-22's proven track record means to your family. While R-410 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 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 date on long-term compressor performance.