Heat pumps are an incredibly efficient way to heat and cool your home in Melbourne, FL. Instead of creating heat by burning a fuel source, as is the case with a gas-fired furnace, heat pumps simply move heat from one place to another. The heat pumps move heat using a refrigerant that is pumped through a series of coils. That refrigerant can be potentially harmful to the environment. But in recent years, there have been technological developments with the refrigerant that makes it more friendly to the environment. Here is some information about that new refrigerant.
How Heat Pumps Use Refrigerants
Refrigerant liquids are very sensitive to heat and have a low boiling point. It is this property that allows them to absorb and release heat very quickly. That property makes it ideal for systems that need to transport heat: like your car’s radiator and a heat pump. Your heat pump circulates the refrigerant between two sets of evaporator coils: one set inside your home and the other outside in the condensing unit.
Old Refrigerant
The old refrigerant that has been used in air conditioning units and heat pumps was called R22. The brand name for R22 was Freon, and it was commonly used for many years. However, due to its high ozone depletion potential, it was phased out in the United States and Canada. There are still systems in existence that use R22, however manufacturers are no longer allowed to produce systems that use R22.
The New Refrigerant
A new refrigerant, called R-410A, do not contain chlorine, as was the case with R22, and thus do not contribute to ozone depletion. This new type of refrigerant is used in most new heat pumps and can be serviced by your local Melbourne heating contractor.
If you have a heat pump at your Melbourne home and would like to get it serviced, contact the experts at Next Generation. Our trained technicians have experience working with all types and brands of heat pumps. Give us a call today.
