For the past three years, central air conditioner and heat pump shipments have dipped in April and the trend appears to be continuing in 2008, according to The Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI). Furnace and water heater shipments for the year-to-date are down, compared with the same four-month period a year ago.

Central Air Conditioners and Air-Source Heat Pumps

Combined U.S. factory shipments of central air conditioners and air-source heat pumps for April totaled 524,296, down 6% compared with the same month a year ago. For the year-to-date, combined shipments totaled 1.8 million, a 7% drop compared with the same period last year.

Heat pump shipments for April totaled 149,287, down 9% from the same month a year ago. For the year-to-date, heat pump shipments totaled 584,618, a 5% drop compared with the same period last year.

Warm Air Furnaces

U.S. factory shipments of gas warm air furnaces in April totaled 136,561, a 19% drop compared with the same month a year ago. Oil warm air furnaces for the same month totaled 2,738, a 28% drop compared with April 2007 totals. For the year-to-date, gas furnace shipments totaled 664,714, a 17% drop compared with the same period last year. Oil furnace shipments for the year-to-date totaled 16,448, a 27% drop compared with the same period last year.

Room Heaters

A total of 4,225 vent-free room heaters were shipped in April 2008, a 45% increase compared with the same month last year. For the year-to-date, 16,654 units have been shipped, a 2% drop compared with the same four-month period last year.

For more information, visit: www.ahrinet.org.