ComStar Replaces Direct Liquid Overfeed Ice Rink System with RS-45 (R434a) Refrigerant at Lakeshore Sports Centre in Michigan

  MUSKEGON, MI - 10/20/2016 (PRESS RELEASE JET)

ComStar International Inc, the world’s most comprehensive manufacturer of environmentally safe, industrial strength chemical products, has successfully replaced another direct liquid overfeed ice rink refrigeration system with RS-45 (R434a) refrigerant.

Lakeshore Sports Centre is a 41-year-old sports complex with two full-size ice sheets cooled by a system with approximately 10,000 pounds of R22 refrigerant operating with mineral oil.  Due to a unfortunate leak in one of the ice sheets, Sean Rekeny, the Lakeshore manager, conferred with the rinks’ decision-makers and determined they needed a second option to restore function rather than merely add more R22 refrigerant. 

Since the United States Environmental Protection Agency declared that new production and import of most R22 will cease by 2020, conventional refrigerant costs have risen and also left ice rink managers facing depleted supplies. 

After weighing the options, the Lakeshore team decided to convert over to the RS-45 (R434a) drop-in R22 replacement refrigerant from ComStar. Worries of problems associated with installing a different refrigerant other than R22 proved to be unfounded.

Rekeny said, “Surprisingly, we have no detectable issues with oil return after a week of operating, which was our concern running mineral oil with a HFC blend. In fact, the only modifications we did were adjusting a few liquid valves. Nothing else was needed.”

ComStar, a 47-year-old U.S. company, manufactures the only R22 replacement refrigerant for use in flooded, liquid overfeed ice rink systems without changing components or oil. ComStar’s RS-45 (R434a) refrigerant is a true drop-in replacement for R22 and blends with any remaining R22, with low glide for high performance applications.

“As a father of two hockey-playing sons, I am very pleased that we at ComStar can offer ice rinks an affordable and sustainable alternative to R22 during the phase-out,” said Steve Mella, CEO of ComStar.

The compressor system, built in 1997, has two Vilter 440 reciprocating compressors with 75-horsepower belt-driven electric motors. Initially, a full charge of R22 was 5,000 pounds for each ice sheet. Lakeshore evacuated the R22, transferred it to the other sheet, and recharged the sheet with 4,000 pounds of RS-45. 

In similar conversions, ComStar offers buy back the R22 removed from the system, thereby offsetting the ice rinks’ cost of buying the RS-45 refrigerant. However, Lakeshore decided to transfer the small amount of R22 pulled from the first ice sheet into the second ice sheet which will continue to operate with R22 until next spring when they will change over the second ice sheet to RS-45.

“At the end of the day, we are very satisfied with the changeover and excited for the future,” said Rekeny, who deemed the project a great success.