The benefits of R32 refrigerant and why you should upgrade your air conditioning

There are lots of changes taking place in the world of air conditioning, particularly with regards to refrigerants – all for good reason!

You’ve probably heard of the ‘greenhouse effect’ and of course global warming, and it’s for these reasons that there are new, stringent guidelines on using refrigerants that minimise carbon emissions.

R410A refrigerant (a hydrofluorocarbon or HFC) has been used in the UK since 2006 due to its high efficiency and it was also used to replace R22, a refrigerant which was banned from use in 2015 due to its potential damaging effects on the ozone layer. 

However, since new F-Gas Regulations were issued in early 2015, R410A has been identified as contributing to the greenhouse effect as it has high Global Warming Potential (GWP) of 2,088. Bearing in mind that that carbon has a GWP of just 1, you can see that 2,088 is high.

R32 and its benefits

Air conditioning manufacturers have been working tirelessly to produce new equipment that is both highly efficient and uses far more environmentally friendly refrigerants. 

R32 has a much lower GWP of 675 and offers many benefits including:

It can be used to replace your current refrigerant
It can be reused and recycled
Cost of use for your current equipment will be lower
It will improve your equipment performance
It is relatively inexpensive to produce  
You will use less refrigerant therefore you will pay less
R32 is the refrigerant of choice for manufacturers
It is compliant with all current legislation
It helps to protect the environment

Phase down not phase out

Unlike R22, which was phased out and ultimately banned, high GWP refrigerants such as R410A are being phased down and replaced with far more efficient and environmentally friendly refrigerants such as R32.   Therefore, at this time, it is recommended that if you have any air conditioning equipment, you check with your service engineer first to ascertain what refrigerant your system is using.

If your system has not yet been upgraded with a low GWP refrigerant, Loop Air Conditioning can provide you with a no-obligation quotation outlining your options and the benefits that are open to you.

For more information please don’t hesitate to contact us at any time – we’re here to help you.

To find out more about F gases covered by the 2014 EU F gas regulation, including HFCs Click Here.