Kite Refrigeration

With the change of weather we are seeing a different population of birds in our area. For a while we saw migrating birds passing through. Now we are seeing the ones that stay around for the winter. Here are some photos that I have taken over the last while.

From 2011 Birds

From 2011 Birds

A juvenile male Wood Duck spent a month or so at Kokanee Park while putting on the adult plumage.

From 2011 Birds

I had flushed Wilson’s Snipes at the park a few times, but on this late afternoon where the light was beautiful, this Snipe was quite tolerant of my being near.

From Nelson Waterfront Nov 2011

This song sparrow put on quite the show for me, stretching and contorting itself. I like these photos of small birds hiding in the weeds.

From Nelson Waterfront Nov 2011

This Hooded Merganser was seen on the Nelson waterfront.

From Nelson Waterfront Nov 2011

A Horned Grebe caught some lunch.

R-22 and any HCFC blends such as MP-39 or HP80 have seen substantial price increases over the last while. This is due to the phasing out of HCFC refrigerants that started in 2010. Each year there are new surcharges, and the last increase this fall put the price above alternatives.

I will be starting to stock the alternative refrigerants in the new year and will be proposing a changeover strategy for your equipment. The best way is a gradual changeover, taking advantage of repairs to  reclaim the HCFC refrigerant and replace it with an alternative. That would minimize the cost and over time all your equipment will be updated.

The new alternatives promise to be much less troublesome than the R-12/R-502 changeovers from a decade ago. They don’t require changing the lubricants and have good performance characteristics.

Our plan is to select a range of alternatives that cover the three pressure characteristics and use them. There are literally dozens on the market right now.