Stricter EPA Refrigerant Regulations in 2025: What You Need to Know

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has introduced major updates to refrigerant management regulations, effective January 2025.

These changes include higher fines, stricter compliance rules, and a phasedown of high-GWP refrigerants under the AIM Act and Section 608 of the Clean Air Act.

Rising Penalties for Non-Compliance

The EPA has increased civil penalties for refrigerant violations:
✅ Up to $69,733 per day for initial violations
✅ $57,617 per day per violation thereafter
✅ 1.02% fine increase from 2024 to adjust for inflation

Stricter HFC Restrictions & Refrigerant Phaseout

To curb environmental damage, the EPA has lowered the threshold for regulated refrigeration assets:
🔹 New threshold: Equipment containing 15+ pounds of refrigerant (previously 50+ lbs)
🔹 Phasing out high-GWP refrigerants (e.g., R-410A) in favor of eco-friendly alternatives (R-32, R-454B)
🔹 January 1, 2025: Restrictions on high-GWP HFCs for air conditioning and refrigeration take effect

Old EPA Regulations vs New EPA Regulations: What has Changed?

Who’s Affected by the New Regulations?

These regulatory changes impact a wide range of industries that handle refrigerants, including:
🏬 Retailers & Grocery Stores: Supermarkets, convenience stores, and food retail businesses with refrigeration units
🏢 Commercial Buildings & Facility Managers: Large office spaces, malls, hotels, and hospitals with HVAC systems
🏭 Manufacturing & Cold Storage Warehouses: Businesses that store or transport perishable goods
🛠 HVAC Contractors & Technicians: Service providers responsible for installation, repair, and maintenance of refrigerant-based equipment

Why This Matters for Businesses

Retailers, facility managers, and HVAC service providers must comply with stricter monitoring, leak detection, and reporting mandates to avoid fines and operational risks. Outdated maintenance processes and manual inspections won’t cut it anymore.

To ensure compliance and operational efficiency, businesses must adopt software-driven refrigerant monitoring and automated compliance solutions.

Next, we’ll break down the AIM Act regulations and explore how advanced refrigerant tracking solutions can keep you ahead of the curve.

Brief background of HFCs and the AIM Act

HFCs are potent greenhouse gases present in various cooling applications like air conditioners and refrigerators.

Notably, refrigeration systems consume about half of the total energy required by a typical grocery store. Open refrigerated cases create heat, and managing humidity is tough. This affects how well the equipment works and how long fresh food lasts.

The impact of HFCs on global warming (GWP) is hundreds to thousands of times greater than carbon dioxide (CO2) per unit of mass.

To address this, the EPA introduced the AIM Act in December 2020.

This act mandates a significant reduction in HFC usage by phasing down certain HFCs by 85% of their historical baseline by 2037.

The EPA's proposed HFC Emissions Reduction and Reclamation Rule under the AIM Act extends these requirements to appliances using HFC refrigerants, including supermarket refrigeration systems.

This stricter regulation means more systems could be classified as "chronically leaky," potentially leading to hefty fines.

Read More:

1. Refrigerant Compliance Management Software
2. Refrigerant Leak Detection: Methods of Detection and Regulatory Requirements

EPA Section 608 Refrigerant Regulations: Key Updates for 2025

EPA Section 608 has some major updates for 2025 to help cut down on harmful refrigerants and tackle climate change. Here’s what you need to know:

1. Refrigerant System Updates
   • R-410A Phase-Out: Starting January 1, 2025, no new AC or heat pump systems can use R-410A.
   • Switch to Better Alternatives: It's time to switch to greener refrigerants like R-32, R-452B, and R-454B.
   • Install Deadline: You can still install R-410A systems until January 1, 2026, as long as the parts were made or imported before 2025.
2. Leak Management
   • Tighter Leak Repair Rules: If your equipment has 15+ pounds of HFC refrigerants with a high GWP, you’ll need to fix leaks faster.
   • Regular Inspections: Keep an eye on leaks and stay on top of maintenance to stay compliant.
   • Certified Technicians: Only certified pros can handle these refrigerants, so make sure your team is trained.

These changes are all about cutting down greenhouse gases and keeping the HVAC industry greener.

To stay on track, update your equipment, train your crew, and stay on top of leak management.

Summary of the EPA HVAC regulation updates - 2025

Here’s a clear summary of the 2025 EPA HVAC regulation updates in a consumable format.

Mandatory Automatic Leak Detection (ALD) Systems:

• Applicability: Owners or operators of industrial process refrigeration and commercial refrigeration appliances with a full charge of 1,500 pounds or more of refrigerants containing regulated substances or substitutes with a Global Warming Potential (GWP) greater than 53 must install and use ALD systems.
• Compliance Deadlines:
  • New Installations (On or After January 1, 2026): ALD systems must be installed upon or within 30 days of appliance installation.
  • Existing Installations (Between January 1, 2017, and January 1, 2026): ALD systems must be installed by January 1, 2027.
• Maintenance Requirements: ALD systems must be installed per manufacturer instructions and audited and calibrated annually.

Leak Repair Provisions (40 CFR Part 82, Subpart F):

• Scope: Applies to appliances with a full charge of 50 or more pounds of class I or class II refrigerants.
• Leak Rate Thresholds: Owners or operators must take corrective action when an appliance exceeds the applicable leak rate.
• Recordkeeping: Meticulous documentation of leak rate calculations, repair efforts, and verification tests is required.

Zero-Tolerance Stance on Leak Thresholds:

The EPA enforces strict compliance with federal leak thresholds. Precision in leak rate calculations and diligent record-keeping are essential to avoid penalties.

Smart tech solutions for proactive refrigerant leak detection and tracking

According to the 2023 Thomson Reuters Risk & Compliance Survey Report, 65% of corporate risk and compliance professionals believe that leveraging technology to streamline manual processes would decrease the complexity and costs associated with risk and compliance.

If you want to stay ahead of the game, then Facilio’s Connected refrigeration solution for refrigerant leak detection and compliance is a good place to get started.

With regulations getting tougher, businesses need a hassle-free way to keep up without blowing their budget. Facilio’s refrigeration optimization platform gives you the tools to catch leaks early, stay compliant, and save money.

• Save up to 20% on Energy: Facilio helps retail stores fine-tune their refrigeration, cutting energy costs.
• Get ROI in 6 Months: Automate inspections and get real-time leak alerts for faster returns.
• Cloud-Based Monitoring: Monitor systems across locations, stay on top of EU and US regulations, and catch leaks instantly.
• Proactive Compliance: Track leaks, avoid fines, and reduce downtime with automated inspections and custom reports.
• Smarter Decisions: Get all your data in one place and make informed moves on leak detection and compliance.

Facilio keeps things simple, saves money, and keeps your business green and compliant.

Let's understand how.

Features

IoT remote monitoring

Continuously remotely monitor refrigerant levels, pressures, and temperatures in real-time. You can also define rules criteria with complex relationships like sensor faults, performance, or energy consumption, and the software will set up monitoring stops to notify you at each point where there’s an anomaly.

Portfolio-wide automation

Automated preventive maintenance inspections and rounds allow field teams to enter service records classified based on quantity at different sites across your portfolio. Additionally, the platform provides accurate insights into the overall state of refrigerant leaks over time. Learn more Best Preventive Maintenance Software

Derisk liabilities through organized data management

Auto-streamline refrigerant records and compliance data. You can digitize custom reports for routine audit reporting and regulatory stakeholders while integrating asset lifecycle and maintenance SLAs for comprehensive oversight.

Generate digitized ESG reports

Facilio unifies HVACR data and reports from different sources into one neat package that's ready for audits. The software can generate accurate ESG reports, allowing you to see how far you’ve come with your compliance efforts.

Connected data telemetry

Data from refrigerant-based assets is continuously and efficiently transmitted and processed to support informed decision-making and improve overall system performance.

Benefits of Facilio’s Connected Refrigeration Solution

• Centralize compliance operations

You can access standardized compliance report documentation for audits and inspections and implement consistent compliance protocols and procedures across multiple sites, all from one platform.

• Expiration date monitoring

Facilio tracks expiration dates for certifications and insurance, providing timely alerts to prevent lapses and maintain compliance.

• Workflow setup for compliance

Establish workflows within Facilio to prevent dispatching non-compliant providers, ensuring adherence to regulatory standards.

• Certification and insurance validation

Verify the validity of certifications and insurance for all providers working at your site locations.

• Record-keeping risk reduction

Reduce record-keeping risks by ensuring that all necessary paperwork from service providers is automatically collected and maintained.

Facilio Connected Refrigeration – The Tech That Has Your Back 24/7

With regulations tightening, facility managers need to stay ahead of the game. Here’s what you should focus on:

• Leak Detection & Repair: For systems with over 1,500 pounds of refrigerant, ALD systems are a must to catch leaks early.
• Reclamation: Minimize HFC emissions by reclaiming and reusing refrigerants wherever possible.
• Recordkeeping & Reporting: As the AIM Act brings stricter regulations, it’s crucial to adopt innovative FM technology to track and report activities effectively.

Facilio’s connected refrigeration solution is built to support facility managers in tackling these challenges head-on.

Just ask King Kullen, a leading retailer that saw up to 20% energy savings and reduced compliance risks by using Facilio’s real-time leak detection and smart monitoring. They achieved ROI in under 6 months, demonstrating how Facilio not only helps you stay compliant but also optimizes operations and saves money.

When it comes to managing refrigerant leaks, compliance, and risk, Facilio is the tech that does it all.

Ready to make compliance easy and your systems smarter?