[Corvettaholic]

Why is freon considered to be a good refrigerant? Why not use something else like propane? I'm just wondering what qualities of a particular gas or molecule make it a good refrigerant as opposed to something else. Gonna build me a fridge and use it to cool off solar panels.

[ATMyller]

Good refrigerant gas has high heat capasity, heat conductivity and compressibilty factor, but also a low boiling point.
Freon is used mainly because it's nontoxic and it's not very flammable, so any leak wouldn't pose any health hazard. Freon also has a downsize: It forms radicals when exposed to UV-radiation, making it a threat to the ozone layer.

[Corvettaholic]

Have any suggestions for a chemistry novice for refrigerants? Something I can fab up easily or get at walmart? Google searches keep telling me to use propane, but compressing an explosive gas scares me...