CHARLOTTE, N.C. (WBTV) – The HVAC Industry is transitioning to new, more environmentally safe refrigerants.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA, is mandating that all air conditioners and heat pumps manufactured after Jan. 1, 2025 use A2L refrigerants.

“It’s not chlorine-based like the old R22,” Travis Simmons, Sales Manager with Morris-Jenkins, said. “It’s not fluorine-based like the old 410A. It’s just better for the environment in the event that it ever springs a leak or anything like that.”

Simmons said people can still use their current unit until it needs to be replaced, and the refrigerants will not disappear overnight, although some changes may be noticed.

“Over the next few years as the 410A kind of phases out and we go towards this new refrigerant, repair costs and availability on parts may get a little bit tougher,” he said. “[It may be] a little more expensive to repair, may take you a little more time to find equipment and parts of that nature.”

He said the new units will operate the same way, but A2Ls are methane-based, which is more flammable.

“What that does for the industry, is that there are some new safety requirements,” he said. “We’ve purchased a lot of safety equipment, a lot of new materials, so that we can safely work on this equipment.”

For those buying a new unit next year, Simmons said residents do not need to be worried about flammability in the home.

“If your coil does spring a leak, it is going to be so dissipated in the air,” he said. “It’s not a safety factor for the homeowner. The only time it will ever become a safety issue is when we are out there with welding torches and things of that nature.”

The new HVAC units will hit the market in the next few months.

Also Read: Lincoln County woman contacts WBTV for help after washing machine floods townhome

Watch continuous news coverage here:

Copyright 2024 WBTV. All rights reserved.