222 Fedend Register I Vol. 574 No. 102 1 Wednesday, May 27, 1992 f Notices

Office of Conservation and

Renewable Energy

[Case No. F-0411

Energy Conservation Program for

Consumer Products; Doc[sion and

Order Granting a Waiver From the

Furnace Test Procedure to

Consolidated Industries Corp.

AGENCY: Office of Conservation and

Renewable' Energy, Department of

Energy.

ACTION: Decision and Order.

SUMMARY: Notice Is given of the

Decision and Order [Case No. F-O41)

granting a Waiver to Consolidated

Industries Corp. (Consolidated

Industries), from the existing

Department of Energy [DOE) test

procedure for furnaces. The Department

is granting Consolidated Industries its

Petition for Waiver regarding blower

time delay in calculation of Annual Fuel

Utilization Efficiency (AFUE) for its

MAA series of gas furnaces.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Cyrus H. Nasseri. U.S. Department of

Energy. Office of Conservation and

Renewable Energy, Mail Station CE43, Forrestal Bailding, 1000

Independence Avenue, SW.,

Washington, DC 20585, (202) 506-8127.

Eugene f 4ar,5adis, Esq., U.S. Department

of Energy, Office of General Counsel.

Mail Station GC-41, Forrestal

Building. 1000 Independence Avenue.

SW., Washington, DC 20585, (202)

586-9507. .

SUPPtEMENTMIY INFORMATION: In

accordance with 10 CFR 430.27 (g), notice

is hereby given of the issuance of the

Decision and Order as set out below. In

the Decision and Order, Consolidated

Industries has been granted a Waiver

for its MAA series of gas furnaces,

permitting the company to use an

alternate test method in determining

AFUE.

;. Michael Davis,

Assistant Secretary, Conservation and

RenewableBwrgt.

In the Matter tr.. The Consolidated

Industries Corp. (Case No. F-841)

Background

The Energy Conservation Program for

Consumer Products (other than

CAS-RM-79-104 COMMENT 81
Federal Register /Vol. 57. No. 102 / Wednesday, May 27, 1992 / Notices 22221

automobiles) was established pursuant

to the Energy Policy and Conservation

Act (EPCAJ, Public Law 94-183, 89 Stat.

917, as amended by the National Energy

Conservation Policy Act (NECPA),

Public Law 95-619, 92 Stat. 3268, the

National Appliance Energy

Conservation Act of 1987 (NAECA),

Public Law 100-12, and the National

Appliance Energy Conservation

Amendments of 1988 (NAECA 1988),

Public Law 100-357, 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.

DOE amended the prescribed test

procedures by adding 10 CFR 430.27 to

create a waiver process. 45 FR 84108.

September 28, 19M Thereafter, DOE

further amended its appliance test

procedure waiver process to allow the

Assistant Secretary for Conservation

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,

1988.

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 final test

procedure amendments become

effective, resolving the problem that is

the subject of the waiver.

The Interim Waver provisions added

by the 1986 amendment allow the

Assistant Secretary to grant an Interim

Waiver when it is determined that the

applicant will experience economic

hardship if the Application for Interim

Waiver is denied, if it appears likely

that the Petition for Waiver will be

granted, and/or the Assistant Secretary

determines that it would be desirable for

public policy reasons to grant immediate

relief pending a determination on the

Petition for Wavier. An Interim Waiver

remains in effect for a period of 180 days

or until DOE issues its determination on

the Petition for Wavier, whichever is F-041), is hereby granted as set forth in

sooner, and may be extended for an paragraph (2) below, subject to the

additional 180 days, if necessary. provisions of paragraphs (3), (4), and (5).

Consolidated Industries filed a (2) Nothwithstanding any contrary

"Petition for Waiver," dated November provisions of appendix N of 10 CFR part

4, 1991, in accordance with $ 430.27 of 10 430, subpart B, Consolidated Industries

CFR part 430. DOE published in the Corp., shall be permitted to test its MAA

Federal Register on January 9, 1992, series of gas furnaces on the basis of the

Consolidated Industries' petition and test procedure specified in 10 CFR part

solicited comments, data and 430, with modifications set forth below:

information respecting the petition. 57 (i) Section 3.0 of appendix N is deleted

FR 901. Consolidated Industries also and replaced with the following

filed an "Application for Interim paragraph:

Waiver" under 1430.27(g) which DOE 3.0 Test Procedure. Testing and

granted on December 3a 1991. 57 FR 901, measurements shall be as specified in

January 9, 1992. section 9 in ANSI/ASI-iRAE 103-82 with

No comments were received the exception of sections 9.2.2, 9 .3.1, and

concerning either the "Petition for 9.3.2, and the inclusion of the following

Wavier" or the "Interim Waiver." DOE additional procedures:

consulted with The Federal Trade (ii) Add a new paragraph 3.10 to

Commission (FTC) concerning the appendix N as follows:

Consolidated Industries Petition. The 3.10 Gas- and Oil-Fueled Central

FTC did not have any objections to the Furnaces

. The following paragraph is in

issuance of the waiver to Consolidated lieu of the requirement specified in

Industries.

section 9.3.1 of ANSI/ASHRAE 103-412.

Assertions and Determinations After equilibrium conditions are

Consolidated Industries'

Petition achieved following the cool-down test

seeks a waiver from the DOE test and the required measurements

provisions that require a 1.5-minute time performed , turn on the furnaces and

delay between the ignition of the burner measure the flue gas temperature, using and the starting of the circulating air the thermocouple grid described above,

blower. Consolidated Industries at 0.5 and 2.5 minutes after the main

requests the allowance to test using a burner(s) comes on. After the burner

30-second blower time delay when start-up, delay the blower start-up by 1.5

testing its MAA series of gas furnaces. minutes (t-), unless: (1) The furnace

Consolidated Industries states that since employs a single motor to drive the

the 30-second delay is indicative of how power burner and the indoor air

these models actually operate and since circulating blower, in which case the

such a delay results in an improvement burner and blower shall be started

in efficiency of approximately 0.8 together; or (2) the furnace is designed to

percent, the petition should be granted.

operate using an unvarying delay time

Under specific circumstances,

the that is other than 1.5 minutes, in which

DOE test procedure contain exceptions case the fan control shall be permitted

which allow testing with blower delay to start the blower, or (3) the delay time

times of less than the prescribed 1.5- results in the activation of a temperature

minute delay. Consolidated Industries safety device which shuts off the burner,

indicates that it is unable to take in which case the fan control shall be

advantage of any of these exceptions for permitted to start the blower. In the

its MAA series of gas furnaces.

latter case, if the fan control is

Since the blower controls adjustable, set it to start the blower at

incorporated on the Consolidated the highest temperature. If the fan

Industries furnaces are designed to control is permitted to start the blower,

impose a 30-second blower delay in measure time delay, (t-). using a

every instance of start up, and since the stopwatch. Record the measured

current provisions do not specifically temperatures. During the heat-up test for

address this type of control, DOE agrees oil-fueled furnaces, maintain the draft in

that a wavier should be granted to allow the flue pipe within ±0.01 inch of water

the 30-second blower time delay when column of the manufacturer's

testing the Consolidated Industries recommended on-period draft.

MAA series of gas furnaces, today's (iii) With the exception of the

Decision and Order exempts modifications set forth above. The

Consolidated Industries from the Consolidated Industries Corp. shall

existing provisions regarding blower comply in all respects with the test

controls and allows testing with the 30- procedures specified in appendix N of 10

second delay. CFR part 430, subpart B.

It is, therefore, ordered that. (3) The Waiver shall remain in effect

(1) The Petition for Waiver" filed by from the date of issuance of this Order

Consolidated Industries Corp. (Case No. until DOE prescribes final test

CAS-RM-79-104 COMMENT 81
22222 Federal Register / Vol. 57, No. 102 / Wednesday, May 27, 1992 / Notices

procedures appropriate to the MAA

series of gas furnaces manufactured by

Consolidated Industries Corp.

(4) The 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 (Insert Date of Issuance),

this Waiver supersedes the Interim

Waiver granted The Consolidated

Industries Corp. on December 30,1991.

57 FR 901, January 9, 1992 (Case No. F041).

1. Michael Davis,

Assistant Secretary.

(FR Doc. 92-12321 Filed 5-26-92; 8:45 am)

BILLING CODE 6460-01-N

CAS-RM-79-104 COMMENT 81