**[Summary of 2/1 Energy Star Residential Ceiling Fan
Meeting]{.underline}**

*Summary - The EPA's Energy Star program hosted a meeting in Washington
DC on February 1, 2001 to discuss its future plans for launching an
Energy Star specification for residential ceiling fans ("ceiling fans")
and to gain input from the ceiling fan community. During the meeting,
open discussions were held on the content of the draft Energy Star
specification, and the different test methods for measuring air
movement. There seemed to be genuine interest by the ceiling fan
industry in an Energy Star specification for their products and for
reaching consensus on an industry-wide test method. A list of action
steps, mostly centered on further investigation of the test method
presented by Hunter Fans, was generated and the group agreed to continue
working on these issues and to meet this spring to continue the
dialogue.*

Attendees: Attached is a spreadsheet of meeting attendees along with a
list of other interested parties.

**Ceiling Fan Market Snapshot and Energy Usage**

Meeting participants expressed some concerns about some of the figures
and conclusions of the recent NRDC/Ecos research. It was noted that the
annual ceiling fan sales are closer to 15 million as opposed to
Appliance Magazine's figure of 19 million. The average selling price of
ceiling fans is roughly \$60 to \$65. There is, however, a large sales
volume at price points as low as \$20, as well as smaller, but
significant sales of products priced at the upper end, \>\$100. The
three highest volume retailers for ceiling fans are Home Depot, Lowes
and Walmart. The private label market was stated to be as great as 75%
of all sales. It was also noted that many new homes being sold have 3 or
4 installed ceiling fans and that the typical home in Florida has 5
ceiling fans.

There was also some disagreement with the assumption that the average
ceiling fan motor uses 60 Watts. Manufacturers felt that a better
average power consumption value would be 35 W, because lower motor
speeds are more likely than higher ones. Some participants stated that
medium and high ceiling fan speed settings use 30 W and 70 W,
respectively.

In addition, some manufacturers expressed concern that recent articles
portrayed fans as large energy users, instead of contributors to energy
savings. This concern was addressed and there was group agreement that a
common messaging campaign is needed that incorporates : ceiling fans can
save you a lot of energy, provided you use them wisely. (i.e. during the
summer turn up your a/c thermostat when using ceiling fans, turn off the
fan when leaving the room, etc.)

**Energy Star Program Overview**

Andrew Fanara of the EPA, gave an overview of the Energy Star program
and the supporting activities that Energy Star, its contractors, and
partners can provide. Some key points that were clarified include:

-   Energy Star is a voluntary program. Compliance with the
    specification requirements is only required for labeled models.

-   In order to participate, an Energy Star manufacturing partner does
    not need to convert its entire product line to comply with Energy
    Star. In most Energy Star programs, participating manufacturers
    typically only select a few models to meet Energy Star in the early
    years of the program.

-   The EPA will likely issue its ceiling fan specification in mid to
    late 2001. The specification will include an effective date. The
    specification will be periodically updated in the future to reflect
    market and technology changes.

-   The EPA does not have a set efficiency goal for Energy Star products
    (x% more efficient than average, or performing in the top Y% of all
    models). The specifications are developed on a case by case basis.
    The goal is to identify and promote the more efficient models.
    Ideally, several manufacturers will have one or more models that
    qualify.

    Given the lead times involved in design, purchase, shipment and
    promotion of ceiling fans, the group recognized that the
    to--be-issued Energy Star specification for ceiling fans will not
    impact this coming summer. The near term target is to impact the
    summer 2002 cooling season and the related wholesale orders that
    lead up to it.

    **Lighting Discussion**

    An introduction to efficient lighting methods was provided.
    Representatives from King of Fans and Modern Fan Company gave
    updates on the products they are offering which contain compact
    fluorescent lamp (CFL) technologies. A prototype lighting kit
    developed by Lawrence Berkeley Laboratories using a central light
    source was also presented.

    There was extensive discussion about the two different methods for
    efficient ceiling fan lighting: dedicated pin-based CFLs, and
    screw-based CFLs. The benefits of the pin-based approach are lower
    overall consumer costs, longevity of the efficiency upgrade, and the
    fact that fan appearance/design can be more closely optimized to
    work with the light source. With screw based sockets, the consumer
    could revert back to using less expensive incandescent bulbs which
    use much more energy and cost the consumer more in the long run.

    The group also acknowledged the need for the lighting to be
    aesthetically and geometrically compatible with the globe and
    overall fan design. There was common agreement that lighting
    represents a larger energy savings opportunity than motor/blade
    design, though both have a role to play in energy savings

    The need for lighting solutions to be compatible with dimmable light
    kits was also raised. Most screw-based and pin-based CFLs on the
    market today are not dimmable, though dimmable versions of each are
    available.

    **Test Methods**

    Extensive discussion occurred around test methods for measuring air
    flow, expressed in cubic feet per minute, CFM. The group laid out
    some basic requirements for an acceptable test method:

-   Test method includes a specific set of standard test conditions

-   Results are reproducible (within +/- x %)

-   Test conditions represent "real life" conditions

-   Testing has a reasonable cost and turnaround time

-   Widespread access to laboratory/test equipment

-   Method must compensate for key environmental conditions - altitude,
    relative humidity, temperature, etc.

    The group then went over the various existing methods that are being
    used. These include:

-   NEMA - uses anemometer in open space, uses 3 inch centers, equipment
    is inexpensive, test is time consuming and results are not
    reproducible. Used by Hunter and possibly Air Cool.

-   British/IEC - similar to NEMA method but uses controlled air flow.
    Same limitations as NEMA method regarding time needed and
    reproducibility. Tends to yield lower CFM values than the NEMA
    method. Used extensively outside the United States. Used by Home
    Depot for its Hampton Bay line, Air Cool, King of Fans, Minka and
    CEI

-   Canadian Standards Association (CSA) - similar to IEC but uses hot
    wire velocity measurement and a different room design. Testing is
    slightly faster but is not widely used.

-   AMCA/HVI - method uses load cell to measure downward load. While
    inexpensive to purchase and run, it is sensitive to wobble and
    vibrations which impact the test results. The test does not give any
    credit for lateral air flow. Also requires room with very specific
    geometry requirements.

From this discussion it was concluded that the only existing method
worth discussing further was the IEC method due to its low cost and
international usage.

Hunter Fans then presented a new method it developed internally that is
essentially an improved version of the IEC method of calculation. The
benefits of this method are increased reproducibility and greatly
reduced testing time. This method uses solid state velocity sensors that
are mounted on a sensor arm and allows for simultaneous, multi-point
airflow velocity measurements.

Hunter reported that this method produced results that were typically
within 3% of each other. The results using this method were
approximately 40% lower than similar testing using NEMA and 20% lower
than IEC.

The group was very supportive of this method, which for a lack of a
better name was called the "Modified IEC" method. Attendees expressed
their appreciation of Hunter's work to date and their willingness to
freely share their methodology and test equipment design. The group also
agreed to jointly explore this method further.

Next steps include:

1.  Attendees send questions to Hunter regarding the test method, test
    conditions, etc.

2.  Hunter agreed to create a more complete draft test method and to
    circulate it to the group for their feedback.

3.  Hunter agreed to write up the requirements for the test chamber, and
    to generate a list of required equipment along with approximate
    purchase and installation cost.

4.  Hunter agreed to study the impact ceiling fan diameter had on
    results as well as the need for different tunnel diameters.

5.  NRDC volunteered to send out a solicitation to potential test labs
    to inquire about their interest and to obtain cost estimates to run
    the testing. Noah Horowitz will create a draft solicitation for
    revisions by the group. It will include a copy of the material from
    2 and 3 above.

6.  The manufacturers agreed to send samples of their ceiling fans to
    Hunter for testing using the IEC Modified test method. EPA will
    issue some guidance regarding sample collection (i.e. which of your
    fans to test).

7.  Ecos agreed to circulate meeting materials and contact lists to
    attendees and other interested parties that could not attend.

**Draft Specification Discussion**

The core of a draft Energy Star ceiling fan specification was presented
and discussed. A copy of this draft is attached and below is a summary
of the key issues that were raised.

**A. Lighting** - A brief discussion occurred regarding the two
different ways fan related lighting is sold. Most fans are sold with a)
the lighting attached or included in the ceiling fan package for
attachment, or b) a separately sold light kit that is attached to the
fan by the consumer. During the meeting we called the first approach
integral light kits, and the second approach separately sold light kits.

The Energy Star ceiling fan specification will cover ceiling fans with
and without integral light kits. For those ceiling fans sold with the
lighting components, the manufacturer has two options: a) to use pin
based lamp technology and to meet the requirements of the Energy Star
specification for fixtures, or b) use screw based sockets and include
the same number of Energy Star screw-based bulbs as there are sockets.
Self-standing light kits could receive the Energy Star label by meeting
the Energy Star fixture specification.

There was extensive concern about the cost of the screw-based approach.
The cost of the bulbs could exceed \$20 for fans with four sockets, and
inclusion of the bulbs would require packaging changes to ensure the
bulbs won't break during shipment. The pin-based approach would likely
drive the designs toward covered globes and require some product design
modifications.

Despite the hassle and cost issues that were raised, EPA reiterated the
importance of keeping lighting in the Energy Star ceiling fan
specification because in current fan designs lighting uses more energy
than the fan motors do.

**B. Airflow Efficiency** - Besides the extensive discussion relative to
test methods, the approach of a tiered approach was presented. The
metric of CFM/watt was acceptable. There was some discussion about
whether separate levels should be created for different fan diameters.

**C. Noise** - After some discussion, the group suggested at this time
to remove noise from the specification at this time but to reserve the
right to reinsert noise in future editions of the specification if
necessary.

**D. Controls and Warranty** - the general concepts were presented but
we ran out of time to gain manufacturer input on these topics.

**Next Steps**

1\. Continue work as described above on "Revised IEC" test method. The
most time sensitive step is for manufacturers to ship representative
samples of their products to Hunter for them to perform the testing. A
separate memo will be sent out on what models to select, when and where
to ship them, etc.

2\. Participants were encouraged to send feedback on the draft
specification directly to Chris Calwell at calwell@ecosconsulting.com by
February 15^th^.

3\. Energy Star staff agreed to update key retailers about their overall
plans and the progress made at this meeting.

4\. Noah Horowitz agreed to keep manufacturers updated on the planned
California study to measure actual fan motor and lighting hours of
operation.

5\. After sufficient progress has been made, the group agreed to
reconvene, most likely in Texas in the early spring.

Noah Horowitz

Senior Scientist

NRDC

2/8/01