EPA rules causing air conditioning repairs to skyrocket.

The Environmental Protection Agency determined that a Freon known as R-22 is depleting the ozone and now the EPA is phasing out of it. Tommy Hall the service manager for Fails Heating and Air Conditioning Dothan AL said that's causing the price to sky rocket. He said some places are charging up to $75 a pound to replace that Freon.

"If a customer lost all the refrigerant in their unit and you had to replace it. That's $500 or $600 just in refrigerant. That's not including the repair to the unit so you could be looking at $1,200 just on a repair."

R-22 Freon commonly found 

in older A.C. units and Hall said it's used in about 70 percent of Dothan homes. He said the customer only has two options in this case repair or replacement. All new units are coming equipped with another alternative to the R-22 Freon. It's known as 410-A and it's supposed to be better for the environment and it's about a third of the cost.

The EPA restricted the amount of R-22 Freon back in 2010. The agency will stop all production and import of the Freon by 2020.

http://dothanfirst.com/fulltext?nxd_id=286382#sthash.ZpoEN3Lk.dpuf