EPA: Ban ozone-depleting air conditioners by 2010

The air conditioning industry is getting a breath of fresh air as federal regulations phase out ozone-depleting units from homes and commercial buildings.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is slowly doing away with air conditioners that spout hydrocarbons, which deplete the ozone layer. The agency, as of 2010, is banning manufacturers from making units with a refrigerant known as R-22, commonly used to cool residential and commercial spaces. The substance, also known as chlorodifluoromethane, or difluoromonochloromethane, spews clouds of hydrocarbons into the air, hurting the ozone and contributing to global warming.

A new generation of more environmentally friendly AC units will be powered by gases such as R-410A, a mixture of difluoromethane and pentafluoroethane - which don't damage the ozone as severely.

Ronald Pento, president of RP Cooling Corp., a Hicksville commercial air conditioning contractor, said the shift will require not only a new substance, but new units.