48574 Federal Register / Vol. 53, No. 231 / Thursday, December 1, 1988 / Notices

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY.

Office of Conservation and

Renewable Energy

[Case No. F-0161

Energy Conservation Program for

Consumer Products; Decision and

Order Granting Waiver From Furnace

Test Procedures to Rheem

Manufacturing Co.

AGENCY: Department of Energy.

ACTION: Decision and order.

SUMMARY: Notice is given of the

Decision and Order (Case F-016)

granting Rheem Manufacturing

Company a waiver for its Models (-)

GEB and (-) GKA condensing warm air

furnaces from the existing DOE furnace

test procedures. -

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

Esher R. Kweller, U.S. Department of

Energy, Office of Conservation and

Renewable Energy, Mail Station CE132;Forrestal Building, 1000

Independence Avenue SW.,

Washington, DC 20585, (202) 586-9127

Eugene Margolis, Esq., U.S. Department

of Energy, Office of General Counsel,

Mail Station GC-12, Forrestal

Building, 1000 Independence Avenue

SW., Washington. DC 20585, (202)

586-9507

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION, In

accordance with 10 CFR 430.27(1), notice

is hereby given of the issuance of the

Decision and Order set out below. In the

Decision and Order. Rheem

Manufacturing Company has been

granted a waiver for its models (-) GEB

and (-) GKA condensing warm air

furnances, permitting the company to

use an alternate test method.

Issued in Washington, DC. November 23,

1968.

John It Berg.'

Acting Assistant Secretary. Conservation and

Renewable Energy.

Decision 'and Order

The Energy Conservation Program for

Consumer Products was established

pursuant to the Energy Policy and

Conservation Act, Pub. L. 94-163, 89

Stat. 917, as amended by the National

Energy Conservation Policy Act, Pub. L.

95-619, the National Appliance Energy

Conservation Act of 1987, Pub. L. 100-12,

92 Stat. 3266, and the National

Appliance Energy Conservation

Amendments of 1988, Pub. L.100-357,

which requires the Department of

Energy (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 purchase decisions. These

test procedures appear at 10 CFR Part

430, Subpart B.

The Department of Energy amended

the test procedure regulations by adding

§ 430.27 on September 26, 1980, creating

the waiver process. 45 FR 64108. DOE

further amended the Department's

appliance test procedure waiver process

to allow the Assistant Secretary for

Conservation and Renewable Energy to

grant an interim waiver from test

procedure requirements to -

manufacturers that have petitioned DOE

for a waiver of such prescribed product

test procedures. 51 FR 42823, November

26, 1986.

The waiver process allows the

Assistant Secretary of Conservation and

Renewable Energy 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 of

the basic model 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 characteristcs as to

provide materially inadequate

comparative data. 45 FR 64108

(September 26, 1980).

Pursuant to § 430.27(1), the

Department shall publish in the Federal

Register notice of each waiver granted.

and any limiting conditions of each

waiver.

CAS-RM-79-104 COMMENT 29
Federal Register / Vol. 53, No. 231 / Thursday, December 1, 1988 / Notices

Rheem Manufacturing Company

(Rheem), filed a "Petition for Waiver" in

accordance with $430.27 of 10 CFR Part

430. DOE published in the Federal

Register Rheem's petition and solicited

comments, data, and information

respecting the petition. 53 FR 25535 (July

7,4988). One comment was received,

from Teledyne Laars, which supported

granting the waiver to Rheem.

DOE consulted with the Federal Trade

Commission on October 7, 1988

concerning the Rheem Petition.

Assertions and Determinations

Rheem'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. Instead,

Rheem requests the allowance to test

using a 30 second blower time delay

when testing its (-) GEB and (--) GKA

condensing gas furnaces. Rheem states

achieved following the coot down test

and the required measurements -

performed, turn on the furnaces 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; (2) the furnaces are 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

would result 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 that live the 30 second delay blower at the. highest temperature. If the indicative of how the ( -) GEB and (-)

GKA models actually operate and since . fan. control is permitted to start the

blower, measure title delay, (t--),using such a delay results in an energy

savings of approximately 1.8 percent, a stop watch, Record the measured

h f

the waiver should be granted.

Since the blower controls

incorporated on the Rheem condensing

furnaces are designed to impose a 30

second blower delay in every instance

temperatures. During the eat-up test or

oil-fueled furnaces, maintain the draft in

the flue pipe within i- 0.01 in. of water

gauge of the manufacturers

recommended on-period draft."

of start up, and since the current test (ii) With the exception of the

provisions do not specifically address modification set forth in subparagraphs

this type of control, DOE agrees that a (ii above, Rheem Manufacturing

waiver should be granted to allow the 30 Company shall comply in all respects

second blower time delay when testing with the test procedures specified in

the Rheem (-) GEB and (-) GKA Appendix N of 10 CFR Part 430, Subpart

condensing furnaces. Accordingly, with B.

regard to testing the Rheem (-) GEB

and (-) GKA condensing furnaces, (3) The waiver shall remain in effect

today's Decision and Order exempts from the date of issuance of this order

Rheem from the existing provisions until. the Department of Energy

regarding blower controls and allows prescribes final test procedures

testing with the 30 second delay. appropriate to the (-) GEB and (-)

It is therefore ordered that: GKA models of condensing warm air

(1) The "Petition for Waiver" filed-by

Rheem Manufacturing Company (F-016),

is hereby granted as set forth in

paragraph (2) below, subject to the

provisions of paragraph (3) and (4).

(2) Notwithstanding any contrary

provisions of Appendix N of 10 CFR. Part

430, Subpart B, Rheem Manufacturing

Company shall be permitted to test its

(-) GEB and (-) GKA condensing gas

furnaces on the basis of the test

procedure specified in10 CFR Part 430,

with the modification set forth below-

(i) 3.0 Test procedure. Testing and

measurements shall be as specified in

section 9 of ANSI/ASItARE 103-1982

with the inclusion of the following

procedures in lieu of section 9.3.1 of

ANSI/ASHARE 103-1982.

Gas- and Oil-Fueled Central Furnaces.

After equilibrium conditions are

furnaces manufactured by Rheem

Manufacturing Company.

[4) This waiver is based upon the

presumed validity of statements.

allegations, and documentary materials

submitted by the applicant. This waiver

may be revoked or modified at any time

upon a determination that the factual

basis underlying the application is

incorrect.

Issued In Washington, DC, November N.

1983.

John R. Berg,

Acting Assistant Secretory, Conservation and

Renewable Energy.

(FR Doc. 88-27717 Filed 11-30-88: 3:45 ain

BILLING CODE 6450-O1-ME

48575

CAS-RM-79-104 COMMENT 29