California proposes banning consumer sale of R134a refrigerant
Driveway mechanics may not be able to service their own air conditioning systems for much longer. The California Air Resources Board has proposed a ban on consumer sales of R134a refrigerant. Since the replacement of R12 (freon) in the early 1990s, R134a has been the primary refrigerant used in automotive air conditioning systems and until now people have been able to go to auto parts stores and buy cans of it to replenish their systems. If this passes, people will have to pay dealers or service shops up to $150 to have their systems serviced. A group called "Stay Cool California" has formed to fight the proposed ban. The group wants to educate consumers, hobbyists and auto enthusiasts on the proposed ban and rally people to contact their representatives to kill the proposal. A study by Frost and Sullivan showed that the ban would cost California consumers $167 million and have only a minimal impact on global warming. The group has launched a site at www.staycoolcalifornia.com.
[Source: TheAutoChannel]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Tim 5:05PM (2/27/2007)
Gee, I wonder who lobbied the California Air Resources Board for this one?
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Randy 2:39PM (2/28/2007)
This is terrible. I have an aging car which needs a bottle of 134a every once and a while. Its $12 at Kragen and $120 at the cheapest shop around. I'm just a college student...
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1985 Gripen 6:38PM (2/27/2007)
I remember reading recently that while the intention to move from R12 to R134a was to stop the depletion of the ozone layer, R134a contributes to global warming many orders of magnitude more than R12 ever did! So the move from R12 to R134a was like jumping out of the frying pan and into the fire!
I remember recently reading of a prototype automotive air conditioning system that uses carbon dioxide as refrigerant!
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fadetoblack51 10:28PM (3/10/2007)
We have had this ban in wisconsin since 1994, though it was repealed last summer it is back in effect now. CO2 refrigerants are already in use in Europe btw.
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