[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 79 (Tuesday, April 23, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17887-17888]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-9949]



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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
[Case No. F-083]


Energy Conservation Program for Consumer Products: Decision and 
Order Granting a Waiver From the Furnace Test Procedure to Thermo 
Products Inc.

AGENCY: Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Department of 
Energy.

ACTION: Decision and order.

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SUMMARY: Notice is given of the Decision and Order (Case No. F-083) 
granting a Waiver to Thermo Products Inc. (Thermo) from the existing 
Department of Energy (DOE or Department) test procedure for furnaces. 
The Department is granting Thermo's Petition for Waiver regarding 
blower time delay in calculation of Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency 
(AFUE) for its CHA-upflow and CGA-downflow series of condensing gas 
furnaces.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Cyrus H. Nasseri, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy 
Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Mail Station EE-431, Forrestal 
Building, 1000 Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20585-0121 (202) 
586-9138
Eugene Margolis, Esq., U.S. Department of Energy, Office of General 
Counsel, Mail Station GC-72, Forrestal Building, 1000 Independence 
Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20585-0103, (202) 586-9507.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In accordance with 10 CFR 430.27(j), notice 
is hereby given of the issuance of the Decision and Order as set out 
below. In the Decision and Order, Thermo has been granted a Waiver for 
its CHA-upflow and CGA-downflow series of condensing gas furnaces 
permitting the company to use an alternate test method in determining 
AFUE.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on April 4, 1996.
Christine A. Ervin,
Assistant Secretary, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.

Decision and Order, Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency 
and Renewable Energy

    In the matter of: Thermo Products Inc. (Case No. F-083).

Background

    The Energy Conservation Program for Consumer Products (other than 
automobiles) was established pursuant to the Energy Policy and 
Conservation Act, Public Law 94-163, 89 Stat. 917, as amended (EPCA), 
which requires DOE to prescribe standardized test procedures to measure 
the energy consumption of certain consumer products, including 
furnaces. The intent of the test procedures is to provide a comparable 
measure of energy consumption that will assist consumers in making 
purchasing decisions. These test procedures appear at 10 CFR Part 430, 
Subpart B.
    The Department amended the prescribed test procedures by adding 10 
CFR 430.27 to create a waiver process. 45 FR 64108, September 26, 1980. 
Thereafter, DOE further amended its appliance test procedure waiver 
process to allow the Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and 
Renewable Energy (Assistant Secretary) to grant an Interim Waiver from 
test procedure requirements to manufacturers that have petitioned DOE 
for a waiver of such prescribed test procedures. 51 FR 42823, November 
26, 1986.
    The waiver process allows the Assistant Secretary to waive 
temporarily test procedures for a particular basic model when a 
petitioner shows that the basic model contains one or more design 
characteristics which prevent testing according to the prescribed test 
procedures or when the prescribed test procedures may evaluate the 
basic model in a manner so unrepresentative of its true energy 
consumption as to provide materially inaccurate comparative data. 
Waivers generally remain in effect until test procedure amendments 
become effective, resolving the problem that is the subject of the 
waiver.
    Thermo filed a ``Petition for Waiver,'' dated November 29, 1995, in 
accordance with section 430.27 of 10 CFR Part 430. The Department 
published in the Federal Register on January 30, 1996. Thermo's 
Petition and solicited comments, data and information respecting the 
Petition. 61 FR 3023, January 30, 1996. Thermo also filed an 
``Application for Interim Waiver'' under section 430.27(b)(2), which 
DOE granted on January 24, 1996. 61 FR 3023, January 30, 1996.
    No Comments were received concerning either the ``Petition for 
Waiver'' or the ``Application for Interim Waiver.'' The Department 
consulted with The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) concerning the Thermo 
Petition. The FTC did not have any objections to the issuance of the 
waiver to Thermo.

Assertions and Determinations

    Thermo's Petition seeks a waiver from the DOE test provisions that 
require a 1.5-minute time delay between the ignition of the burner and 
the starting of the circulating air blower. Thermo requests the 
allowance to test using a 45-second blower time delay when testing its 
CHA-upflow and CGA-downflow series of condensing gas furnaces. Thermo 
states that since the 45-second delay is indicative of how these models 
actually operate, and since such a delay results in an increase in AFUE 
improvement of up to 2.0 percent, the Petition should be granted.
    Under specific circumstances, the DOE test procedure contains 
exceptions which allow testing with blower delay times of less than the 
prescribed 1.5-minute delay. Thermo indicates that it is unable to take 
advantage of any of these exceptions for its CHA-upflow and CGA-
downflow series of condensing gas furnaces.
    Since the blower controls incorporated on the Thermo furnaces are 
designed to impose a 45-second blower delay in every instance of start 
up, and since the current test procedure

[[Page 17888]]

provisions do not specifically address this type of control, DOE agrees 
that a waiver should be granted to allow the 45-second blower time 
delay when testing the Thermo CHA-upflow and CGA-downflow series of 
condensing gas furnaces. Accordingly, with regard to testing the CHA-
upflow and CGA-downflow series of condensing gas furnaces, today's 
Decision and Order exempts Thermo from the existing test procedure 
provisions regarding blower control and allows testing with the 45-
second delay.
    It is, therefore, ordered that:
    (1) The ``Petition for Waiver'' filed by Thermo Products Inc. (Case 
No. F-083) is hereby granted as set forth in paragraph (2) below, 
subject to the provisions of paragraph (3), (4), and (5).
    (2) Notwithstanding any contrary provisions of Appendix N of 10 CFR 
Part 430, Subpart B, Thermo Products Inc., shall be permitted to test 
its CHA-upflow and CGA-downflow series of condensing gas furnaces on 
the basis of the test procedure specified in 10 CFR Part 430, with 
modifications set forth below.
    (I) Section 3.0 of Appendix N is deleted and replaced with the 
following paragraph:
    3.0  Test Procedure. Testing and measurements shall be as specified 
in section 9 in ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 103-82 with the exception of 
section 9.2.2, 9.3.1, and 9.3.2, and the inclusion of the following 
additional procedures:
    (ii) Add a new paragraph 3.10 to Appendix N as follows:
    3.10  Gas- and Oil-Fueled Central Furnaces. The following paragraph 
is in lieu of the requirement specified in section 9.3.1. of ANSI/
ASHRAE Standard 103-82. After equilibrium conditions are achieved 
following the cool-down test and the required measurements performed, 
turn on the furnace and measure the flue gas temperature, using the 
thermocouple grid described above, at 0.5 and 2.5 minutes after the 
main burner(s) comes on. After the burner start-up, delay the blower 
start-up by 1.5 minutes (t-), unless: (1) the furnace employs a single 
motor to drive the power burner and the indoor air circulating blower, 
in which case the burner and blower shall be started together; or (2) 
the furnace is designed to operate using an unvarying delay time that 
is other than 1.5 minutes, in which case the fan control shall be 
permitted to start the blower; or (3) the delay time results in the 
activation of a temperature safety device which shuts off the burner, 
in which case the fan control shall be permitted to start the blower. 
In the latter case, if the fan control is adjustable, set it to start 
the blower at the highest temperature. If the fan control is permitted 
to start the blower, measure time delay, (t-), using a stopwatch. 
Record the measured temperatures. During the heat-up test for oil-
fueled furnaces, maintain the draft in the flue pipe within 
0.01 inch of water column of the manufacturer's recommended 
on-period draft.
    (iii) With the exception of the modifications set forth above, 
Thermo Products Inc. shall comply in all respects with the test 
procedures specified in Appendix N of 10 CFR Part 430, Subpart B.
    (3) The Waiver shall remain in effect from the date of issuance of 
this Order until DOE prescribes final test procedures appropriate to 
the CHA-upflow and CGA-downflow series of condensing gas furnaces 
manufactured by Thermo Products Inc.
    (4) This Waiver is based upon the presumed validity of statements, 
allegations, and documentary materials submitted by the petitioner. 
This Waiver may be revoked or modified at any time upon a determination 
that the factual basis underlying the Petition is incorrect.
    (5) Effective April 14, 1996, this Waiver supersedes the Interim 
Waiver granted Thermo Products Inc. on January 24, 1996. 61 FR 3023, 
January 30, 1996 (Case No. F-083).

    Issued In Washington, DC, on April 4, 1996.
Christine A. Ervin,
Assistant Secretary, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.
[FR Doc. 96-9949 Filed 4-22-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-M