Questions to Ask HVAC-R Efficiency Vendors: A Due-Diligence Checklist

Key takeaways

• Ask every question in writing and keep the answers and documents.
• Separate compatibility evidence from performance evidence.
• Insist on a baseline before installation and IPMVP-style measurement with stated uncertainty.
• Get liability and warranty terms in the contract, not verbally.

Energy-efficiency vendors range from rigorous engineering firms to companies selling a bottle and a spreadsheet. The difference is rarely visible in a brochure. It shows up in how a vendor answers specific questions about what the product is, how it was tested, how savings will be measured and who carries the risk. This checklist is built for facility managers, energy managers and procurement teams evaluating any HVAC-R efficiency product or service, including refrigerant treatments. Use it as an RFP appendix or a meeting agenda.

How to use this checklist

Ask every question in writing and keep the answers. A strong vendor will answer most of them quickly and attach documents. Vague, unsupported or evasive answers are information too. At the end of the page is a simple scoring table.

How to read the answers

Not every weak answer disqualifies a vendor. A small company may not have a large library of independent field studies, and a new product may not yet have years of data. What matters is whether the answers are specific, consistent and backed by documents, and whether the vendor is willing to close the gaps by measuring on your equipment. Treat three kinds of answer differently:

• Documented: a report, a data sheet, a signed plan. Verify and file it.
• Stated but unsupported: a claim without a document. Ask for the document, or treat the claim as unproven until your own pilot tests it.
• Evasive: "proprietary," "trust us," or a change of subject. Weigh this heavily, especially on safety and compatibility questions.

Also note what a vendor volunteers. A vendor that raises measurement uncertainty, warranty checks and oil analysis before you ask is usually one that expects to be measured.

1. What exactly is the product?

1. Which category does it belong to? Sealant, lubricant additive, dye, surface treatment, controls, mechanical retrofit? See types of refrigerant additives.
2. Can you provide the Safety Data Sheet? Every chemical product should have one. Read the composition and propellant sections.
3. Does it seal leaks or contain a hydrocarbon propellant? If yes, ask about recovery and reclaim implications.
4. How does it work, in plain terms? The mechanism should be specific and consistent with known physics, not a list of benefits.
5. Is it a one-time application or recurring? What, if anything, has to be redone after a refrigerant recovery or compressor replacement?

2. What is the evidence?

6. Which independent laboratories tested it, and for what? Ask for full reports. Separate compatibility testing from performance testing: one shows the product is unlikely to cause harm, the other shows whether it saves energy.
7. Which refrigerants and lubricants did the testing cover? Including the A2L refrigerants in your newer equipment.
8. Do you have field results measured under IPMVP or ASHRAE Guideline 14? Ask for the measurement and verification (M&V) plan and report, not a summary slide. Our guide on how to read an M&V report explains what a credible one contains.
9. How were results normalized for weather and load? A before-and-after comparison of raw utility bills is not enough.
10. What was the uncertainty? Credible M&V reports state savings with a confidence interval. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory's 2006 chiller test, for example, reported −2.02 kW ± 10.93 kW at 90% confidence, which meant no measurable effect.
11. Have any independent tests found no effect? An honest vendor will acknowledge the full record for its category.

3. How will savings be measured on my equipment?

12. Will you agree to a baseline period before installation? DOE's FEMP M&V Guidelines note that after a measure is installed, "it is impossible to go back and re-evaluate its baseline because it no longer exists."
13. Which IPMVP option do you propose, and why? For a single chiller or rooftop unit, retrofit isolation (Option A or B) is usually appropriate; see IPMVP options explained.
14. What will be measured, at what interval, and for how long? FEMP's guidance calls for baseline data long enough to capture equipment performance across a full range of loads.
15. Who owns the data? You should receive raw data, not just conclusions.
16. What result would show the product did not work? Agree on this before installation.

4. Compatibility, warranty and liability

17. Will this affect my OEM warranty? Ask for the vendor's position, then ask your manufacturer. See OEM warranties and additives.
18. Will you support before-and-after oil analysis?
19. What happens if a manufacturer denies a warranty claim and attributes it to your product?
20. What insurance do you carry? Ask for certificates.
21. Can the refrigerant be recovered and reclaimed normally after treatment? Reclaimed refrigerant must meet AHRI Standard 700 purity under EPA rules.

5. Installation and operations

22. Who installs it, and what are their certifications? Refrigerant work should be done by EPA Section 608-certified technicians, with A2L-rated tools on A2L systems.
23. Is downtime required? How long does installation take per unit?
24. Are any modifications made to the equipment?
25. What records will you provide? Product, quantity, date, technician, access point, readings.

6. Commercial terms

26. How is the savings estimate calculated? Ask to see the inputs: tons, run hours, kW per ton, your electricity rate and demand charges.
27. Are any savings "guaranteed"? If so, read exactly how the guarantee is measured and what remedy applies. A guarantee measured by the vendor's own method is weak protection.
28. Will you start with a pilot? A vendor confident in its product should welcome a measured 1–3 unit trial.
29. Does the project qualify for utility incentives? Ask the utility program about pre-approval and M&V requirements before you start; see custom utility rebates and M&V.

7. Questions to ask references

Ask each vendor for references at facilities similar to yours, then call them yourself. Useful questions:

• What equipment was treated, and how was performance measured?
• Did you establish a baseline before installation? Who analyzed the data?
• Were there any service issues afterward, such as clogged components, recovery problems or warranty questions?
• Was the installation completed as described, on schedule and without downtime?
• Would you be willing to share the measurement report?

A reference who saw lower bills but never measured anything is telling you about satisfaction, not savings.

Running the comparison

1. Shortlist two to four vendors whose category fits the problem you diagnosed. Treatments, controls and replacements solve different problems; see efficiency measures for existing buildings.
2. Send the same written questions to each, with a response deadline.
3. Score the answers with the table below, and have someone technical review the test reports.
4. Check warranty positions with your manufacturers for the units in scope.
5. Run a pilot with the strongest candidate, under an M&V plan you approve.
6. Decide on the data. Scale up, adjust or stop based on the measured result and its uncertainty.

Red flags

• Savings claims with no baseline, no normalization and no uncertainty.
• Refusal to share a Safety Data Sheet or full test reports.
• "Certified" or "approved" claims that do not name the organization, test or scope.
• Pressure to treat every unit at once, with no pilot.
• Blanket assurances about your warranty that your manufacturer has not confirmed.
• Results presented only as percentages, with no kW, tons or operating hours.

A simple scoring table

How CryogenX4 answers the core questions

We wrote this checklist to be applied to us as well. In brief, using the company's own published statements: CryogenX4 is a one-time nano-fluid treatment, not a sealant, installed while the system runs, with no downtime and no modifications, by trained, certified technicians; most installs take one day. The company describes the mechanism as lifting insulating oil film from coil surfaces back to the sump, conditioning the metal for heat transfer and improving oil lubricity. It states Intertek tested and certified compatibility with all refrigerants and refrigerant oils, and that its technology was tested under AHRI, ASHRAE, ASTM, API, ANSI and EPA standards. It reports savings of up to 30% and typical payback of 12 to 36 months, with results varying by equipment condition. For details, see how it works. For the measurement questions, our recommendation is the same one we give for any vendor: start with a pilot.

Next step

Copy the questions into your RFP or send them to each vendor you are considering. To see how a measured trial is structured, read our pilot program guide.

Frequently asked questions

What is the single most important question?

Will you agree to a measured baseline on my equipment before installation? Without a baseline, no savings claim can be verified afterward.

Should we accept a vendor's savings guarantee?

Only if you understand exactly how savings are measured and what remedy applies. A guarantee measured by the vendor's own unstated method offers little protection.

How many units should a first trial include?

Many facilities start with one to three representative units, which is enough to test the measurement method and the vendor's process without large exposure.

Can we use this checklist for non-chemical measures?

Yes. The evidence, measurement, warranty and liability questions apply equally to controls, VFDs and mechanical retrofits.

Sources

1. M&V Guidelines: Measurement and Verification for Performance-Based Contracts, Version 5.0 — U.S. DOE Federal Energy Management Program
2. International Performance Measurement and Verification Protocol (IPMVP) — Efficiency Valuation Organization
3. De-Scaling the Peak: The Impact of a Polarized Refrigerant Oil Additive on Chiller Performance at a U.S. Postal Service Processing & Distribution Center (2006 ACEEE Summer Study) — Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory / ACEEE
4. Stationary Refrigeration: Refrigerant Reclamation Requirements — U.S. EPA
5. Teaching A2Ls: A Guide for Refrigeration Instructors — ACHR News