With R22 ban, do you need to replace your air conditioner?

William Pitts: I'm William Pitts; coming up on 12 News at six, one of our producers here at 12 News got a note saying it was becoming too expensive to repair his old air conditioning unit. That's because the EPA had banned the refrigerant that made it run. So we wanted to verify, how true is that? Is everyone going to have to buy a new air conditioning unit? And what does that mean if you don't? That's coming up tonight on 12 News at six.

Anchor 1: Another big story we're working on tonight is something that hits very close to home to all of us here in the desert.

Anchor 2: Yeah we're talking about your air conditioner and due to new regulations, do you need to buy a brand new AC?

Anchor 1: William Pitts is verifying this for us tonight. Will.

William Pitts: In the next few years the stuff that makes your old air conditioenr run is going to be phased out by the EPA, but what does that mean for you? Does that mean that you're going to have to buy an entirely new air conditoner?

Narrator: The culprit is called R-22 but you know it as freon. By 2020 the feds won't let anyone make it anymore. It depletes the ozone layer.

Mike Donnely: There's a lot of people scaring people that there's no R-22 or freon available and that you have to replace your unit. That's not necessarily the case.

Narrator: Not immediately anyway. The EPA is not going to come to your house in 2020 and say you need a new air conditioner. But Mike Donnely says no air conditioner lasts forever, and since R-22 is getting more expensive as we use up what's left, a leak could be astronomical to fix.

Mike Donnely: A lot of times that's when you decide that maybe it's better to invest in a new high efficiency unit with environmentally friendly refrigerant.

Bob Brown Service Experts: Usually it's a surprise. You know, they're not really looking for somebody to come in and say you need to replace your unit and spend umpteenth amount of dollars on getting something new.

Narrator: The guys at Bob Brown Heating and Cooling were tearing out an old R-22 unit in Sun City this morning, but leaving a second older one that still uses R-22. They say you don't have to buy a new air conditioner right now but you should at least plan to save up for one.

Bob Brown Service Experts: Knowing ahead of time, being able to plan for it and knowing it's going to happen regardless of whatever you do. It's best to go and get it done as soon as possible.

Narrator: You can convert an air conditioner to run on the new stuff, but it can easily cost more than a new unit. And eventually past the year 2020, we will run out of R-22, and you own't be able to put more in. Even if your old unit still does work.

William Pitts: So does this mean you're going to have to buy a new air conditioner unit? We can verify, yes, you will, eventually. Whether your air conditioner breaks down tomorrow or five years from now, you're going to have to buy a new one that uses the new refrigerant. William Pitts, 12 News.