HFC Phasedown Including R-410A is Now Underway
The U.S. has officially entered the first stage of the new HFC refrigerant phasedown that aims to reduce hydrofluorocarbon production and consumption by 85% over the next fifteen years. On January 1, 2022, production of HFCs including the widely-popular R-410A was reduced by 10%. While it’s unlikely that this reduction will have much of an effect on the HVAC industry, a much larger impact will surely be felt in 2024 when production is slated to be reduced to 60% of the EPA’s baseline.
HFC refrigerants were good, reliable alternatives for R-22 and other HCFCs that were phased out as of 2020 due to their high ozone depletion potential (ODP). While HFCs don’t pose a danger to the ozone layer, they are greenhouse gases that have high global warming potential (GWP). This current phasedown, as mandated by the AIM Act, is expected to avoid up to 0.5° Celsius (32.9°F) of global warming by the year 2100.
In addition to phasedown schedule set forth, multiple petitions that seek further HFC restrictions are currently under review by the EPA, including one that proposes a ban on the use of R-410A in new residential and commercial air conditioning equipment beginning on Jan. 1, 2025. The EPA has two years to address these petitions, but the HVAC industry must prepare for the possibility that they will be accepted.
Most of us can agree that the phasedown of R-22 and other HCFCs that ended in 2020 went relatively smoothly, but the transition from HFCs to new low-GWP refrigerants will be a different story. The top contenders for replacing R-410A currently under consideration are mildly flammable (A2L), and most building codes do not allow installation of comfort cooling equipment containing A2L refrigerants. The next international building code update is due in 2024, however, and industry experts are hopeful that it will include the use of A2L refrigerants. What all of this means is that if the EPA does go through with the proposed ban on production of new R-410A equipment in 2025, HVAC technicians will have little time to gain training and experience in the new technology.
A2L training is currently offered by several organizations such as ACCA and ESCO Group, and HVAC contractors should start considering whether start training their technicians now to prepare for the eventual transition, or watch and wait to see how EPA guidelines progress and more information comes out regarding which A2L refrigerants will emerge as the industry frontrunners.
About E.P. Homiek
E.P. Homiek Sheet Metal Fabrication & HVAC Supply, with two convenient locations in Lakewood, NJ and Union, NJ, provides one- to two-day turnaround on all residential and light commercial ductwork, as well as one- to two-hour emergency fabrication service, rapid delivery, and competitive prices. HVAC parts, supplies, and equipment lines include Goodman, Honeywell, Bryant, Bradford White, Crown Boiler, Daikin, Weil-McLain, Sea Breeze, Generac, Fantech, ZM, A.O. Smith, Hart & Cooley, Malco, Mueller, and many more.
