TROUBLE AHEAD FOR ALL TYPES OF A/C

1. Problems With New Non-CFC Equipment. The CFC phaseout is occurring so quickly that manufacturers have not had sufficient time to improve the quality and reliability of the cooling equipment--for autos, homes, and businesses-- designed to use the new non-CFC refrigerants. In effect, a multi-billion dollar field test of experimental equipment is being conducted at public expense. Already, some of the new systems have developed problems. Only time will tell how well this new generation of cooling equipment stands up to actual use.
2. Refrigerant Cross-Contamination. There are about 20 new refrigerants competing to replace the small number of CFCs that dominated the market prior to the phaseout. Again, because the CFC phaseout is occurring so quickly, industry has not had the chance to learn which substitutes are best for each application, leading to a confusing proliferation. Charging a system with the wrong refrigerant, which can cause serious damage, is occurring more frequently than ever. In addition, the law now requires servicemen to recover refrigerants during repairs, anti store them for later use (in the past, servicemen usually vented refrigerant to the atmosphere, but this is now illegal). Although each refrigerant is supposed to be kept separate during this procedure, unintentional mixing of refrigerants is common. Subsequent use of these unwanted refrigerant mixtures can shorten the life of equipment. Refrigerant cross-contamination has already been detected in most types of equipment, and the problem will likely worsen before any solutions are found.
3. Additional Phaseout Requirements. The ozone depletion issue has spawned its own bureaucracy, and, like all bureaucracies, this one wants to stay in business as long as possible. But now that it has achieved its primary objective--the rapid phaseout of CFCs--it needs new reasons to justify its continued existence. Not surprisingly, they are finding environmental problems with other refrigerants. HFC-134a, the most common substitute, is being targeted as a contributor to global warming, and some have called for its eventual phaseout. If this happens, those who had to replace CFC equipment with an HFC-134a system may have to go through another costly change. In addition, hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), a class of compounds similar to CFCs that are commonly used in residential air-conditioners and other applications, may also be in jeopardy. As the law now stands, HCFCs will be available for at least 15 more years; thus the impact on HCFC equipment is not as immediate as that for CFC systems. However, earlier research indicating that HCFCs have a very minor role in ozone depletion is now being called into question, and efforts are under way to accelerate the HCFC phaseout. If this is achieved, the owners of the nation's 43 million residential air-conditioners will be severely affected.