Is your AC 12 years old or older, and you’re wondering if it will make it through another season?  Then, January 1, 2020, is a date that lives in infamy.  Why?  Older air conditioners require R-22 refrigerant.  As of 2020, its manufacture or import is no longer permitted.  If your AC needs a booster shot, costs have gone through the roof.

Here’s what happened.

Regulators required air conditioners built and installed after January 1, 2010 to use a new chlorine-free refrigerant called R-410 A.  R-22 is still available for older models, but supply is increasingly limited.  Replacement cost has sky-rocketed to $175 per pound.  If your AC needed 5 pounds, do the math.

Low refrigerant could be the cause if your older unit is struggling.  Small leaks may be the culprit.  In this case, age does matter, and some customers opt to upgrade to a new unit.  A new unit is unlikely to need refrigerant. But if it does, the cost is $80 per pound, less than half of the R-22 brew.

Mechanical Extremes has developed a measured, step-by-step approach to low refrigerant.  That includes circulating dye into the system to detect leaks.  Also offered are several cost-effective solutions based on your circumstances.  One of them may be to replace equipment rather than repair.  Mechanical Extremes provides free estimates.

In less than 60 seconds, Harold Wilkes explains.