Over the last few years, Clifton Beck, digital media manager at ESCO Institute, has visited several major HVAC manufacturers for a behind-the-scenes look at the refrigerant transition.  

“You gotta remember, our manufacturers had a very difficult choice because of the AIM Act and the technology transition rule — they had to look at the refrigerants and decide what was best for manufacturing rollout,” Beck said, speaking as part of a panel in a recent ACHR NEWS webinar called “How Contractors Can Navigate the R-454B Shortage.” 

On one hand there was R-32, an already existing refrigerant — but would require an extensive amount of re-engineering of existing products to transition from R-410A to R-32.  

“So, what I witnessed on the manufacturing level was that the manufacturers who went with R-32 had to do some pretty significant re-modifications to their production lines,” Beck said. “They began as early as July of 2024, and they started releasing new products on lines, one at a time, so that by the end of 2024, all of the lines had been converted over and were ready for the deployment. But, it was done over a significant amount of time, which did create a shortage of some of those earlier R-410A products, but there was a transition window.” 

On the other hand, there was R-454B, which very closely matched the performance of R-410A, making it a more straightforward option for manufacturers to implement. Many of their manufacturers that chose R-454B, Beck said, were able to continue producing R-410A until the very end of 2024, with minimal impact to the supply of equipment.  

“But what it did do was it introduced a lot of R-454B equipment into the market all at once, and put a bit of a demand on the supply gas side of it — not on the manufactured gas side,” Beck said. “So, the deployment of the two different generations of refrigerant, they did look very different from the inside. Each one had their own challenges, and that was the reason we saw slightly different deployments of both versions of equipment.” 

Joseph Giannetti, general manager of cooling, construction, and specialty at Worthington Enterprises, offered up this analogy: If a customer goes to a McDonald’s and orders 1,000 cheeseburgers, they aren’t going to get them in five minutes.  

“That doesn't mean there's a cheeseburger shortage nationally, it means my expectations didn't match the system's cycle time, and that's what played out,” Giannetti said. “So yes, the market experienced pressure, but not due to neglect, that's for sure. We're trying very hard. There's a combination of unexpected volume, some timing misalignment.” 

Cylinder availability was an early concern, but supply now appears to be catching up with demand. 

Giannetti noted that the issue has likely shifted downstream. He explained that in order to answer key questions — such as how many refrigerant cylinders are actually needed— it’s essential to understand how many air conditioning units are being installed and how many cylinders are required per installation.  

“But then it's the load-in, I think, that is the difficult part,” Giannetti said. “How many service vans are there? How many counters, how many distribution locations, and how many cylinders do I need? That's the only open question that we have. But I do believe, and I think others in the industry believe, that the pressure has moved downstream.” 

When Will It Get Better? 

Over the last several months, manufacturers have been working together to ensure that they are actually making progress in this transition.  

“We recognize that technicians/contractors are not feeling comfortable right now because they're going out with new installation of 454B equipment, and they're not able to find — in certain parts of the country — the gas,” said Graham Pratt, American senior business director at Chemours. “That said … the supply chain for Chemours and the refrigerant industry has been actively responding, and I feel that the situation is stabilizing.” 

In fact, Chemours, an R-454B manufacturer, has significantly ramped up its production and distribution to support the aftermarket.  

“We've expanded line fill capacity, we've added third-party operations, we've increased shift coverage to accelerate cylinder availability,” Pratt said. “So relief, in our opinion, has already begun by the truckloads, and we're already seeing steady improvement and expecting throughout the summer. Additionally, we are working with our OEM partners to send bulk product throughout the channel to broaden the distribution.”  

So, when will subject matter experts be able to comfortably predict that the refrigerant will catch up with the demand? Will it be weeks? Months? It’s hard to say.  

Pratt acknowledged that forecasting demand is challenging because orders keep coming in. He explained that contractors, understandably, feel they can’t proceed with installations unless they have access to R-454B. From the manufacturer’s perspective, the focus is on working through the current backlog by increasing the rate at which they break down bulk refrigerant into individual cylinders, redirecting product volume to other repackers in the industry, and working closely with distributors to fulfill open orders. 

Despite these efforts, demand continues to grow, partly because customers, uncertain about availability, are placing larger orders than they need — ordering 10 cylinders in hopes of receiving at least two. Customers over-ordering adds “noise” that makes true demand harder to measure, Pratt said. 

“But I feel comfortable that this is a very short-term issue,” Pratt said. “And I ask the industry to be patient as Chemours and other gas manufacturers really work through this issue.” 

What’s A Contractor To Do? 

The HVACR industry and its stakeholders have not been quiet about the effects they are feeling, or the ideas they have to manage the shortage. One common suggestion is to recover R-454B charge from a system and replace it with R-410A. But that creates its own set of challenges.   

“One of the things that we learned is that R-454B does actually have some glide to it, and getting the proper mixture in the proper way inside of that tank is going to be difficult, if not impossible, and there's no testing done after the fact to ensure that this really is the refrigerant that's needed for this particular system,” said Jason Obrzut, director of government and industry relations, ESCO Institute.  

There’s a certain liability with that as well, as contractors then become the ‘manufacturer’ of the refrigerant.  

“There's no brand name on that, so it's not recommended,” Obrzut said. “I'm not here to tell anybody what to do or what not to do, but I think we should leave the creating of refrigerants to the engineers and the professionals, rather than trying to experiment and become chemists ourselves.” 

ACCA’s latest poll showed that 48% of its members were feeling the effects of the refrigerant transition — and according to Barton James, president and CEO of ACCA, the work its members are doing accounts for more than half of the HVAC work in the country.  

So, what are contractors supposed to do? How can they prepare for the busy summer season with limited access to refrigerant? For starters, they can ensure they remain focused on the most important aspect of their jobs: their customers.  

“Do right by your customer,” James said. “This is where your repairing skills are more important than ever to get someone through [this challenging time].” 

It’s important to note that every contractor, though all feeling effects, might not be experiencing them in the same way. What’s uncomfortable for some can be completely unforgiving to others.  

Eddie McFarlane, chief learning and development officer at Sila Services, suggests contractors check out ACCA’s online R-454B resource hub, which gets updated whenever new information is released.  

The challenge, though, is deciding what to do to take care of customers today, versus adding to the problem by way of stocking up on refrigerant.  

First and foremost, he said, it’s essential for contractors to maintain close and frequent communication with their distributors, as strong relationships are especially important during times like these. He noted that some contractors still have R-410A inventory and are completing projects with what's left in their warehouses. Others are switching brands, but McFarlane cautioned against that, pointing out that demand forecasts were based on certain refrigerants like R-32 — and a mass shift could create similar shortages. 

“Contractors solve problems every day — we show up and we have a plan, and then something happens, and we have to adapt and overcome,” McFarlane said.  

That being said, McFarlane warned against taking shortcuts, like using mixed refrigerants or unofficial conversion kits, which could lead to liability issues if they deviate from manufacturer guidelines. While such decisions might seem like quick fixes, he said, they carry long-term consequences. Contractors also have commitments to their teams and customers, which adds to the pressure they’re feeling. 

McFarlane mentioned that access to 90-pound cylinders through nighttime down-packing is one possible option, though it requires ideal conditions.  

“But many technical people in the contracting world are asking if we go liquid to liquid,” McFarlane said. “Understand, partners are hesitant to put documentation out that may leave them liable for certain things. That's part of the other challenge. If we can get some best demonstrated practices — at least, that's what we're encouraging. We're asking every day for that.”