What you should know about your home’s air conditioner, the EPA and the ARRA
Posted 21-Jan-2010
It’s not unusual for us Mississippians to be teased into premature spring fever in February, when warmer days can bring on a little greening and a few early blooms. February’s hints of spring will remind us that Mississippi winters, even a cold one as we’ve had this year, are short and its summers are long. Air conditioning season is right around the corner.
This spring and summer, however, new Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations will make replacement of an air conditioner that breaks down a little more complicated than “business as usual.” The EPA has begun the phase-out of the refrigerant R-22 that was the lifeblood of most air conditioning systems manufactured before the last few years. Because R-22 contains hydrochlorofluorocarbons that damage the earth’s protective ozone layer, EPA regulations now permit installation of only new equipment that uses chlorine-free R-410A refrigerant.
So, what do EPA regulations on refrigerants have to do with you? Well, if your home’s air conditioning system is brand new or manufactured in the last couple of years, probably nothing. But if you have an older home with a vintage model that you know is running on borrowed time, then you’ll likely be affected by the R-22 phase-out and new R-410A standard.
Until now, when a system broke down, an outdoor condenser/compressor could be replaced in a matter of hours, minimizing the time your home was without air conditioning. Today’s condensing/compressor units that use R-410A are not compatible with the indoor components built for R-22 refrigerant. Both inside and outdoor components will have to be switched out under the new EPA regulations. Not only will it be more expensive to restore an air conditioning system that has failed, but it also will take longer because both inside and outdoor components must be replaced. An AC breakdown could mean days instead of hours of the heat and humidity we all know too well.
Of course, replacing the entire system instead of just the condenser/compressor also will cost considerably more. The good news in all of this is that 2010 is this the second year for a sizable federal income tax credit that the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) provides for upgrading your home to high-efficiency air conditioning. “Going green” may not be No. 1 on your to-do list, but the fact of the matter is, converting to air conditioning that meets the new environmental and operating-efficiency energy standards can help you pay for the additional costs of a new system. ARRA offers a credit of 30 percent of the cost of an approved high-efficiency system—up to $1,500—on your 2010 income taxes.
The manufacturing community also is offering incentives for homeowners to upgrade their older air conditioning equipment. A number of offers are available to encourage replacement now, during the off-season, well before spring or summer. Lennox®, for example, is offering a $1,000 rebate on qualifying air conditioning systems purchased before February 26, 2010.
Contact a knowledgeable heating and cooling contractor for guidance on the R-410A air conditioning systems that qualify for the ARRA federal tax credit and will keep you comfortable this summer and for many more to come.
Raymond Nalty is president and owner of Environment Masters, a heating and cooling company founded in Jackson in 1957 by his father.
