As temperatures rise, so will the cost of an AC unit
A new refrigerant for AC units will make them less harmful to the environment, but more expensive
Star Vickery never used to need an air conditioning unit to stay cool in her home in Halifax. But summers are getting warmer, she says, and since she now works from home, it's become a must.
But cooling your home can be costly. The unit cost Vickery and her husband over $800, plus ongoing electricity costs.
"We can't live like this anymore. We need to have some comfort," Vickery told the Cost of Living.
"It's not an inconsequential expenditure. I mean, that's a lot of money."
And that price is going up. The cost of air conditioning units is expected to rise because of regulatory changes, in keeping with the Montreal Protocol of 1987, an international treaty designed to limit the amount of harmful chemicals going into the atmosphere. Signatories include Canada, the U.S. and the EU.
In 2025, units will use a different kind of refrigerant, R-454B, which releases fewer greenhouse gases than R-410A. But it comes at a cost as manufacturers respond to the shift, according to Jeff Johnson.
"Every manufacturer has to redevelop their whole product model and design all new products with all new refrigerant," said Johnson, who works at the HVAC company Arpi's Industries in Calgary.
The need for AC
Johnson is fairly busy in the summer: According to the most recent Statistics Canada data released in 2023, about 64 per cent of Canadians have air conditioning.
And the way we've built our houses may factor into why there's such a need for air conditioning units, he says.
Homes have been designed to be energy efficient, and to keep the heat in during those cold winter months. But that also makes for a hot house in the summer.
Johnson says new units will cost 10 to 20 per cent more than their current counterparts, though there is no hard number on what the actual cost increase will be.
But what's so harmful about current AC units? The refrigerant is harmful for the environment, and it's impossible to completely prevent R-410A from getting into the atmosphere during installation, maintenance or malfunction.
The International Energy Agency states that there are about two billion AC units globally, and estimates this could nearly triple to over 5.5 billion by 2050.
According to a report from the website Our World in Data, air conditioning used around seven per cent of the world's electricity in 2022, and accounted for three pre cent of its carbon emissions.
"As you take off your gauges on the air conditioner, a little bit of refrigerant is always released. Kind of like when you're at the gas station, you take the pump off, you know, a little bit drips out onto the ground," said Johnson.
The new units reduce those emissions. And Warren Mabee, director of the Queen's Institute for Energy and Environmental Policy in Kingston, Ont., says this is good news for the environment.
"They are not as bad for the ozone layer. They are not as intense, in terms of greenhouse gas emissions," said Mabee.
And, he says, don't expect this to be the last time consumers have to foot the bill because of climate-related policies.
"For everything from food to housing to ... clothing, you may not see it on the bill, but it's being built in there."
He uses the example of food: With supply-chain issues, some food is harder to get, and trucking companies that transport it have to pay the carbon tax, a financial incentive for people and businesses to burn less fossil fuels. Some of those expenses are passed on to consumers.
Buy now
Mabee says it's important that people have access to more environmentally friendly air conditioners, because the need isn't going away.
"There was the heat dome a few years ago that really brought elevated temperatures for a long period. We're getting to the point where everybody does need to have access to these air conditioners," said Mabee, referencing an extreme heat wave affecting Western Canada in 2021.
Vickery agrees. While her AC unit, which she calls Big Bertha, was expensive, it was also a necessity.
"Although it's a big expenditure, with global warming, we don't see things changing. So it's an investment, isn't it?" said Vickery.
"I don't like to use an air conditioner. I mean, I don't like to use the electricity. I don't think it's particularly good for the environment — me pumping hot air out of my apartment. But you have to live comfortably and be able to think."
In 2025, AC units with the old refrigerant can be sold as long as the stock exists, up until 2026. So Johnson says if you want to dodge the price hike, get a new AC unit early.
"And consider a heat pump, as well."
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Produced by Jennifer Keene
