R-454B shortage crisis: what’s being done, and when will it end?
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ACCA brought together manufacturers, suppliers, and industry leaders for an emergency session of Codes and Coffee to discuss the refrigerant shortage hitting many contractors nationwide. The panel included:
- Nick Arch, Vice President and General Manager, Residential HVAC Solutions, Carrier
- Chris Forth, Vice President of Regulatory, Codes and Environmental Affairs, Ducted Systems division, JCI
- Jim VerShaw, Chief Engineer, Residential HVAC and Supply, Trane Technologies
- Graham Pratt, Americas Senior Business Director for Thermal and Specialized Solutions, Chemours
- Kirk Reimer, Vice President of Sales, Hudson Technologies
- Joe Giannetti, General Manager of Cooling, Construction, and Specialty Businesses, Building Products, Worthington Enterprises
- Scott Swan, Business Manager, Refrigerants, Arkema
- Jessica Wood, Vice President of Asset Strategy for Sustainability and Decarbonization, Honeywell
- Eddie McFarlane, ACCA Board Chair
- Wes Davis, Director of Technical Services, ACCA
- David Bixby, Codes and Standards Manager, ACCA
ACCA members: Watch the full webinar recording at the ACCA R-454B Refrigerant Shortage Resource Center.
Here’s what contractors need to know:
What happened?
McFarlane ruled out conspiracy theories first; nobody’s hoarding refrigerant on purpose. But several things hit at the same time that have amplified the R-454B supply and distribution issues.
Unlike the R-22 to R-410A switch ─ R-410A was around for 10 years before the transition ─ this one happened fast. When January hit, contractors had to pick their approach quickly. Many figured if they couldn’t get R-410A equipment, they’d just switch to R-454B right away.
That created a forecasting challenge. The old 30-pound cylinders everyone used to have had to be completely redesigned for higher pressures and safety features. One entire batch failed testing and couldn’t be used. The R-1234yf component was being made, but was not getting to where it needed to go.
“It’s not any one thing, not a perfect storm, but it feels very much like that,” said McFarlane.
When forecasting meets reality: a 10x miscalculation
Worthington saw trouble coming and tried to get ahead of it. Giannetti said they were already ramping up cylinder production and hitting record supply levels. But the AIM Act legislation prompted a forecasting issue.
Worthington’s team looked at industry forecasts late last year and thought the numbers seemed too low, so they ramped up production anyway. Turns out they were right to be worried, but even their aggressive preparation wasn’t enough.
The numbers were staggering. Giannetti explained: “If everyone looks at what their forecasts were at the beginning of the year, we probably 10x’ed them, 5x’ed them.”
Pratt echoed that sentiment, sharing that Chemours saw the same explosion in demand over just five months. Arch explained part of the timing issue ─ contractors burned through their R-410A inventory in late 2024 and early 2025, then everyone switched to R-454B at once instead of gradually.
That created a demand spike that nobody’s systems were built to handle.
Manufacturers pivot: extra charge and emergency shifts
The panelists went around explaining what their organizations are doing to fix the shortage.
Worthington – Giannetti acknowledged contractors are under pressure, but Worthington’s at record cylinder supply levels and still ramping up with hopes of the situation improving soon.
Carrier – Arch said Carrier has been building R-454B equipment consistently all year. Manufacturing isn’t the problem; it’s getting cylinders to distributors for field work. They switched from 15-foot to 30-foot line sets as standard on all units to help.
Chemours – Pratt explained that Chemours is hiring more people and increasing down-packing capacity to get product to distributors faster. He noted Chemours is one of several suppliers working on this.
Honeywell – Wood explained that Honeywell responded to the January demand spike by boosting hiring by 30% and increasing blending and down-packing by 44%. The company is committed to doubling capacity by year-end and working with manufacturers to pack more refrigerant into units before shipping.
JCI – Forth broke down why this caught everyone off guard: manufacturers forecast for factory needs, not field demand. Now they’re redirecting factory refrigerant to aftermarket applications. Different companies are taking different approaches.
Trane – Meanwhile, Trane started putting extra charge in vertical discharge units in early May. VerShaw said to look for the bright orange sticker next to the nameplate ─ those units won’t need additional refrigerant for most installations.
Hudson Technologies – Reimer shared that Hudson Technologies works with chemical producers daily to fill supply chains and they’re starting to see more product hit the market. They’re also working on 90-pound cylinders as a short-term fix ─ it’s a 125-pound cylinder with 90 pounds of gas, so not perfect, but it’s an alternative to disposables.
Arkema – Swan also announced that Arkema is entering the R-454B market as of mid-May, adding another supplier to help in the medium term. The challenge everyone faces is that flammable refrigerants require completely different electrical systems and safety equipment for down-packing that the industry never needed before.
Everyone stressed this is temporary, but they’re maintaining production increases until contractors can get what they need.
Mid-July relief target, but no guarantees
Arch laid out a possible timeline. Looking at equipment flow and refrigerant availability through distribution, he projected a steadier state by the end of July. But he set expectations: “I won’t say that everyone’s going to have what they feel they need in totality, but I think availability and visibility to that refrigerant we would expect.”
Other manufacturers agreed on the timeframe. Forth noted that every OEM announced something to help solve this crisis, and they’re maintaining increased production until contractors can get what they need.
What “steady state” means is that contractors should be able to plan jobs and source refrigerant by mid-summer. The availability crisis may be over at that point, but it won’t be exactly like before the shortage hit.
Creative solutions and their consequences
McFarlane brought up the elephant in the room. Survey results showed 50% of contractors are doing “something other” to complete jobs, and he asked the panel directly about the workarounds they’re seeing.
He had seen everything from conversion kits to mixing refrigerants to dumping R-410A and topping off with R-454B. “Contractors solve problems every day,” McFarlane said. “Many people will be making decisions today to get themselves out of the woods.”
VerShaw, Wood, and Forth quickly warned about the consequences of these work arounds. Equipment installed with the wrong refrigerant today will create headaches later ── warranty problems, performance issues, and reliability failures that contractors will have to deal with for years. Wood raised a specific safety concern about topping off systems. R-454B has a “high glide,” meaning it loses its composition when you move it around. The refrigerant separates quickly and goes out of spec fast. She said Honeywell can’t recommend topping off for safety reasons, and by the time contractors finish moving this product around, it won’t be the same refrigerant they started with.
The manufacturers can’t recommend anything outside their installation guidelines, but they understand contractors need to keep customers comfortable. McFarlane acknowledged the reality: some contractors are knowingly kicking problems down the road, while others just need to get through today.
Avoiding the panic buying trap
McFarlane asked the question everyone was thinking: what happens when contractors start hoarding?
Pratt was blunt about the problem. They’re seeing demand spike from almost zero to 5-10 times higher in just five months. When everyone starts ordering way more than they normally would, it’s impossible to tell what’s real demand versus panic buying.
This affects how much capacity they’re willing to add. Pratt said they’re hiring people and bringing on resources, but they don’t want to let them go if demand crashes. They need to know if this will last two months or two years.
Companies are allocating refrigerant based on equipment sales through your regular distributors. The panic buying just makes the whole crisis drag on longer for everyone.
Lessons for the next transition
Relief is expected to arrive soon, but the real takeaway is about having a voice in future transitions. The industry learned hard lessons about communication and collaboration. McFarlane’s message to contractors frustrated with the R-454B shortage was clear: “Join ACCA and make the difference.” The goal is to make sure contractors have input on the next transition instead of getting caught off guard again.
Industry experts answer audience-submitted FAQs
ACCA sent the most frequently asked attendee questions to the Codes and Coffee panelists for their responses. Click here to read their answers, and remember to check back; we will add responses as they become available.
ACCA members can access the full webinar recording here.
Posted In: Equipment Safety, Refrigerants, Supply Chain
