56FR27958

2`x58 ' Federal Regihtdr' / Vdl. SS,'•No:'117 / Tudsday, Jodie 18,'1991 / :Ndtides

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Office of Conservation and

Renewable Energy

(Case No. F-027]

Energy Conservation Program for

Consumer Products; Decision and

Order Granting Waiver From Furnace

Test Procedures to Amana

Refrigeration, Inc.

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-027)

grranting Amana Refrigeration, Inc.

(Amana), a waiver for its model GUD

condensing gas furnace from existing

Department of Energy (DOE) test

procedures regarding blower time delay

for determining the model's energy

efficiency.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Cyrus K Nasseri, U.S. Department of

Energy, Office of Conservation and

Renewable Energy, Mail Station CF,

43, Forrestal Building, 1000

Independence Avenue, SW.,

Washington. DC 20585, (202) 586-8127.

Eugene Margolis, Esq., US. Department

of Energy, Office of General Counsel.

Mail Station CC-41, Forrestal

Building, 1000 Independence Avenue.

SW., Washington. DC 20585, (202)

586-9507.

SUPPLEMENTARY 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, Amana has

been granted a waiver for its model

GUD condensing gas furnace, permitting

the company to use an alternate test

method in determining the Annual Fuel

Utilization Efficiency (AFUE).

Issued in Washington. DC. May 29, 1991.

J. Michaei .Davis.

Assistant Secretory. Conservation and

Renewable Energy.

Decision and Order

In the matter of. Amana Refrigeration. Inc.

(Case No. F-027).

Background

The Energy Conservation Program for

Consumer Products (other than automobiles)

established pursuant to the Energy Policy and

Conservation Act (EPCA). Public Law 94-163.

89 Stat. 917, as amended by the National

Energy Conservation Policy Act (NEECA).

Public Law 95-619, 92 Stat. 3266. the National

Appliance Energy Conservation Act of 1967

(NAECA), Public Law 100-12, and the

National Appliance Energy Conservation

Amendments of 1988 (NAECA 1988). Public

Law 100-357. requires DOE to prescribe

standardize 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 64108, September 26,

1980. 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 Waiver 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

CAS-RM-79-104 COMMENT 56
56FR27958

Federal Register / Vol. -56, No. -117 / Tuesday , June 18,-1991 / Notices

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 Waiver. An Interim Waiver

remains in effect for a period of 180 days or

until DOE issues its determination on the

Petition for Waiver, whichever is sooner, and

may be extended for an additional 180 days,

if necessary.

Amana filed a "Petition for Waiver" dated

May 15.1990, in accordance with § 430.27 of

10 CFR part 430. DOE published in the

Federal Register on January 9. 19%, Amana's

petition and solicited comments, data and

information respecting the petition. 58 FR 853.

Amana also filed an "Application for Interim

Waiver" under § 430.27(g) which DOE

granted on January 2,1991. 58 FR 853, January

9.1991.

No comments were received concerning

either the "Petition for Waiver" or the

"Interim Waiver". DOE consulted with

Federal Trade Commission (FTC), concerning

the Amana petition. The FTC did not have

any objections to the issuance of a waiver to

Amana.

Assertions and Determinations

Amana'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.

Amana requests the allowance to test using a

30-second blower time delay when testing its

GUD series condensing gas furnaces. Amana

states that since the 30-second delay is

indicative of how this model actually

operates and since such a delay results in an

improvement in efficiency of approximately

1.7 percent, the waiver should be granted.

Under specific circumstances, the DOE test

procedures contain exceptions which allow

testing with blower delay times of less than

the prescribed 1.5-minute delay. Amana

indicates that it is unable to take advantage

of any of these exceptions for the CUD series

condensing gas furnaces.

Since the blower controls incorporated on

the Amana furnace are designed to impose a

30-second blower delay in every instance of

start up. and since the current provisions do

not specifically address this type of control.

DOE agrees that a waiver should be granted

to allow the 30-second blower time delay

when testing the Amana GUD condensing gas

furnace. Accordingly, with regard to testing

the GUD condensing gas furnace. today's

Decision and Order exempts Amana from the

existing provisions regarding blower controls

and allows testing with the 30-second delay.

It is therefore, ordered that. (1) The

"Petition for Waiver" filed by the Amana

Refrigeration, Inc., (Case No. F-027) is hereby

granted as set forth in paragraph (2) below,

subject to the provisions of paragraphs (3), (4)

and (5).

(2) Not withstanding any contrary

provisions of appendix N of 10 CFR part 430,

subpart B, the Amana Refrigeration. Inc. shall

be permitted to test its GUD condensing gas

furnace 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

eplaced with the following paragraph:

3.0 Test procedure. Testing and

measurements shall be as specified in section

9 of ANSI/ASHRAE 103-82 with the

exception of sections 9.1Z 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 103-82. After equilibrium

conditions are achieved following the cooldown 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) come

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, (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

stop watch. Record the measured

temperatures. During the heat-up test for oilfueled furnaces, maintain the draft in the flue

pipe within 10.01 in. of water gauge of the

manufacturer's recommended on-period

draft.

(iii) With the exception of the modification

set forth above, Amana Refrigeration, 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 GUD condensing gas furnace

manufactured by Amana Refrigeration, 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 May 29,1991, this Waiver

supersedes the Interim Waiver Granted

Amana Refrigeration. Inc. on January 2, 1991.

58 FR 853, January 9,1991, (Case No. F-027).

Issued In Washington. DC, May 29.1991.

1. Michael Davis, P.E.,

Assistant Secretary. Conservation and

Renewable Energy.

[FR Doc. 91-14463 Filed 6-17-91: 8:45 am]

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