Within any air-conditioning system there is a quantity of refrigerant that runs through the system. Studies have shown that the refrigerant R22, used in older air-conditioning equipment, damages the ozone layer and legislation (EC Reg. 2037/2000) has been enacted that restricts the use of R22 in the future.
Key dates to be aware of:
- From the 1st January 2010 the use of virgin R22 shall be prohibited in the maintenance and servicing of existing air-conditioning equipment.
- Only reclaimed or recycled R22 refrigerant may be used to service equipment from the 31st December 2009.
- Systems operating on R22 will be classed as not serviceable from 31st December 2014.
The demand for R22 will naturally increase after the December 2009 deadline and this will in turn increase the cost as availability will become an issue due to the end of production of new R22. Industry analysts predict that the price of R22 will quadruple year on year and that we will run out of R22 before 2013.
Given that most R22 based systems are more than two thirds of the way through their working life many companies are taking the opportunity to comply with the new regulations earlier than planned. Modern equipment use refrigerants such as R410A (with an ozone depletion potential = 0) that are proven to be more energy efficient than their R22 equivalents.
DAL has a broad product range of modern, efficient and cost effective alternatives to R22 based units that are no longer acceptable due to their damage of the ozone layer. These older units are also known for their poor reliability and low levels of energy efficiency. Indaver Ireland are the specialist partner of DAL who carefully and safely dispose of the gas once it is removed. Indaver are a fully licenced hazardous waste management company and supply full disposal certs including traceability and disposal information.
R-22 FAQs click here. We have answers to some of the most common questions that our customers ask us.
