Hello ladies and gentlemen! I hope everyone had a fun Christmas. I spent all day yesterday putting together a gigantic dollhouse for my girls and today it is back to the grind.
Earlier this month I wrote a few articles on what the pricing of R-22 is right now and what it will be in 2017. As expected the cost of R-22 is only going up and up. About twelve months ago the price was about $300 per thirty pound cylinder. As I write this the current price is about $700 for a thirty pound cylinder. That is a one-hundred and thirty-three percent increase. That is huge!
But wait, there’s more! Next year the price is expected to rise again. My prediction on the price this time next year is close to $900 per thirty pound cylinder. By the year 2020 ninety-nine percent of R-22 will be gone by federal law. (The federal government is slowly phasing out R-22 across the country.)
Question
If you still have an old R-22 unit then the question that I have for you is what are you waiting for? Now is the time to replace your old system with the newer more efficient R-410A. Just in case you’re not convinced to do it here are a few reasons why:
- If your old R-22 system has a leak in it you are responsible for repairing the leak and for refilling the refrigerant that leaked out. In some cases this could be as much as twelve pounds of refrigerant needed. This where the before mentioned price of $700 per thirty pound cylinder comes into play. That’s $23.33 a pound of refrigerant. $23.33 times twelve pounds equals out to $280.00. That $280 is without any markup on it and most of the time contractors mark up refrigerant awfully high. (It is one of their money makers.) Let’s say their is sixty percent mark up on that R-22 that you need. You’re looking at $466.67 just to refill your unit with refrigerant. If you had a R-410A machine you would be looking at $84 WITH the same sixty percent mark up. That is a substantial savings between the two refrigerants. Each year you wait the cost to refill will get greater and greater.
- Along with the cost of refilling your older unit you will also see a cost savings per month on the overall efficiency of a 410A unit. This is due to the system using a synthetic oil rather than a mineral oil. The synthetic oil more soluble with 410A than R-22. This means that the 410A system operates more efficiently saving you money and reducing overall wear on the machine.
- Along with the oils 410A is just overall more efficient than it’s R-22 counterpart. The 410A is more efficient because it absorbs and release more heat than R-22. Because it can release more heat than R-22 the 410A’s compressor runs cooler reducing the risk of burnout or failure due to overheating which translates into saving you money.
- First quarter of 2017 is the time to make the switch. If you are like me than first quarter is when you get your tax return. My wife and I have two children dependents and when tax time comes around we are handed five-thousand dollars from the government. (Yes, I know this was my money anyways.) We use this money to make large purchases either for the house or on a new car. Last year we used it to purchase a new 410A unit. What motivated me to buy was that there were companies advertising buy a new air conditioner and get the furnace free. The furnace and the air conditioner both came with a ten year parts and labor warranty as well. The deal seemed to good to pass up. I am absolutely positive that if you shop around in 2017’s first quarter you will see similar deals in your area.
Conclusion
If you get one thing from this article than it is: Make the switch to 410A NOW! The initial expense will hurt a bit in the beginning but once you bite the bullet and do it you’ll find that you’ll have a more comfortable climate, more efficient machine, savings per month, and savings on repairs if the worst happens and your unit breaks down.