It’s been a long and brutal summer here in Walker, LA, marked by high temperatures, catastrophic floods and enough weather-based mayhem to fill an entire decade. We hope that your air conditioner has weathered it all as well as you have. With temperatures falling, now is the time to discuss a government mandate that might affect your unit. If the air conditioner in your home uses R-22 refrigerant, you need to give your friendly service professionals a call immediately.
R-22
Air conditioners rely on specific types of refrigerant in specific amounts to do their jobs. Many units used R-22 refrigerant, which has been found to cause serve environmental damage. Accordingly, all new air conditioners need to use R-410 refrigerant or something similar: easier on the environment and safer to boot. Older air conditioners using R-22 are slowly being phased our, and with the manufacture of the refrigerant ceasing, it’s going to be harder and more expensive to keep those older systems running that it would be to simply replace them with a newer system.
SEER Rating
The other factor the government has insisted on is an increased level of efficiency in new air conditioners, represented by the SEER (Seasons Energy Efficiency Ratio) rating. The higher the rating, the more effectively the air conditioner uses its energy. Federal mandates demand that all new air conditioners have a SEER rating of at least 14 or higher. If you have an older air conditioner, chances are the SEER rating is much lower than this. Buying a new one with a higher rating will not only help the environment, but cut down on those monthly cooling bills (assuming you run the new AC about as often and at the same basic times as you ran your old one).
Call A Professional Heating and Air to install a new air conditioner in your home this fall!