Are air-conditioning maintenance fees rising every year? Climate change and refrigerant transition are driving up your summer bills

If you feel that air-conditioning has become more and more expensive in the past few years and the quotes for air-conditioning repairs have become more and more scary, you are absolutely right. This is not an illusion, but an "air-conditioning cost revolution" driven by climate change and environmental protection regulations.

In 2026, a surprising phenomenon occurred in the air conditioning repair market in Florida, USA: the price of R-454B, an environmentally friendly refrigerant, skyrocketed from about US$10 per pound to more than US$70. At the same time, the price of new air conditioning systems has increased by 30 to 40 percent through the summer of 2025, with a system that originally cost $8,000 now going for about $11,000. Tim Hawk, an air conditioning technician in Florida, lamented: "We have never seen a refrigerant that is 'soon to be obsolete' and the price has soared so fast."

Why has refrigerant become so expensive?

All this stems from global actions to combat climate change. Conventional refrigerant R-410A has a global warming potential 2,088 times greater than carbon dioxide. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is gradually reducing the production and consumption of HFCs, targeting an 85% reduction by 2036. This policy has led to tight supply and rising prices of R-410A. Although the substitute R-454B is more climate-friendly (the warming potential is 78% lower than R-410A), its price remains high due to high technical barriers and limited production capacity.

This is not just an American problem. Although Taiwan is not directly regulated by the US Environmental Protection Agency, the global refrigerant market is linked. When refrigerant prices rise and supply becomes tight in the international market, Taiwan's import costs and maintenance quotes will follow sooner or later. In other words, if the air conditioner you have in your home for five or eight years needs to be repaired or refrigerant replenished in the future, the cost will only become more and more expensive.

Extreme high temperatures make the problem worse

The rising prices of refrigerants are already a headache, but climate change has also made the working environment of air conditioners even worse. The British Guardian reported that during the British heat wave in 2022, supermarkets' refrigeration systems failed on a large scale, forcing fresh food to be emptied from the shelves. In June 2026, the UK experienced another heat wave, and maintenance engineers in Wiltshire reported that "the number of repair calls for household refrigerators was slow."

The same stress occurs on the air conditioning system. A U.S. study found that up to 42% of homeowners experience cooling system failure when temperatures rise outside of normal ranges. To make matters worse, emergency repairs during holidays or heat waves can cost two to three times more than usual. The CEO of a heating and cooling air conditioning company in the United States pointed out that capacitor failure accounts for about 60% of their repair cases, and the repair cost falls between US$200 and US$400.

Taiwan’s air-conditioning repair market is also changing

Back in Taiwan, the situation in 2026 is also not optimistic. With the onset of extreme high temperatures, the demand for air-conditioning decoration has surged, but the air-conditioning industry is facing a serious shortage of workers. The masters work overtime so much that they have to wait at least a month for an appointment to install the machine. When supply exceeds demand, repair prices naturally rise. In early July 2026, the air-conditioning failure incident at the Far Eastern Plaza in Banqiao was a warning sign—the air-conditioning systems in large places like department stores can no longer hold up. How long can the air-conditioning in ordinary homes last?

Consumers’ coping strategies

What should consumers do under the triple attack of rising refrigerant prices, extreme high temperatures, and lack of work for maintenance?

• Maintain it before it breaks: Preventive maintenance costs far less than emergency repairs. Before summer comes, ask a technician to check the refrigerant pressure and clean the condenser to avoid the dilemma of not being able to call the technician during a heat wave.
• Evaluate the economic benefits of "repair" and "replacement": A practical judgment principle is "air conditioner age × maintenance cost". If the multiplier exceeds $5,000, a replacement may be more cost-effective than a repair. In Taiwan, this number can be converted into Taiwan dollars for reference.
• Consider upgrading to a first-class energy-efficiency model: Although the price of a new machine is higher, the long-term savings in electricity bills and lower maintenance frequency may make the total ownership cost lower. The Taoyuan City Government has provided replacement subsidies, so you can make more use of them.
• Prepare a basic cooling environment: Make sure there are no debris blocking the outdoor unit and avoid direct sunlight. These small actions can extend the life of the air conditioner.

Climate change is redefining the "owning cost of home appliances." Instead of passively enduring higher and higher maintenance bills, it is better to take the initiative and use correct maintenance and smart consumption decisions to protect your wallet.