Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency, Energy Efficiency and Renewable EnergyU.S. Department of Energy

1000 Independence Avenue, SW

Washington, DC 20585Dear Secretary Danielson:Pursuant to 10 CFR 430.27, Sub-Zero respectfully requests expedited attention to this Petition

for both an interim and final waiver to modify the DOE test procedure (10 CFR 430 Subpart B

Appendix A) for Sub-Zero hybrid refrigerated storage-wine storage products. Without thiswaiver, we are unable to certify models as compliant with new DOE minimum efficiency

standards effective in 2014. This request is similar to past petitions for waivers that have been

granted by DOE to Sanyo (77FR49443) and PAPRSA (78FR35894).

The Department’s regulations provide that the Assistant Secretary will grant a Petition upon

“determination that the basic model for which the waiver was requested contains a designcharacteristic which either prevents testing of the basic model according to the prescribed test

procedures, or the prescribed test procedures may evaluate the basic model in a manner sounrepresentative of its true energy consumption characteristics as to provide materially

inaccurate comparative data.” Sub-Zero requests that the Assistant Secretary grant this petitionon both grounds.In granting the Sanyo petition, DOE acknowledged that wine storage compartments cannot be

tested at the prescribed temperature of 38 °F (now 39 °F in the revised Refrigerator Test

Procedure), because the minimum wine compartment temperature is higher. Sanyo submitted an

alternate test procedure to account for the energy consumption of its wine storage/beveragecenter models. That alternate procedure would test the wine storage compartment at 55 °F,

instead ofthe prescribed 38 °F. To justify the use of this standardized temperature for testing;

Sanyo stated in its petition that it designed these models to provide an average wine

compartment temperature of 55 to 57 °F, which it determined is a commonly recommended

temperature for wine storage. This temperature is presumed to be representative of expected

consumer use. DOE also noted that the test procedures for wine products adopted by the

Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers (AHAM), California Energy Commission

(CEC), and Natural Resources Canada all use the standardized temperature of 55 °F for wine

storage compartments; consistent with Sanyo’s petition. Furthermore, DOE prescribed that

Sanyo also use the proposed K factor (correction factor) value of 0.85 when calculating energy

consumption.

9UBZERO WOLF
over 65 years. Sub-Zero developed the niche market for customized built-in residential

refrigeration and manufactures all our products in the United States, with factories in Wisconsin

and Arizona. While technically not a “small business” using DOE’s definition, Sub-Zero is a

small producer of refrigeration products striving to compete in an age of large, multi-national

manufacturers and is one of the few remaining U.S. companies that produce all of its products

here in the U.S. The company’s future viability is clearly threatened by this situation and we

sincerely ask DOE to grant immediate relief.

Issues with the DOE Test Procedure

Sub-Zero is requesting a waiver to the test procedures for its hybrid models that consist of acombination of one or more refrigerated storage compartments and a wine storage compartment.

While DOE considers such hybrid models as covered products, there is no current DOE testprocedure appropriate to these hybrid models. Therefore, the current testing requirements do notmeasure energy usage in a manner that truly represents the energy-consumption characteristics of

these products. Further, it is not even possible to test these models under the existing testingprocedures. DOE fully recognizes these issues associated with testing hybrid wine products andhas initiated a rulemaking to address these products in the future. Therefore Sub-Zero requeststhis waiver until such time as DOE’s rulemaking is complete.As explained in the Sanyo petition, wine connoisseurs recommend an average of 55-57 °F for the

long term storage of wine, and Sub-Zero has also designed the wine storage compartments of its

products with this ideal average temperature in mind. Since various wines have different ideal

drinking temperatures, products are designed such that the wine storage compartment can

achieve a range of temperatures above 39 °F. DOE’s test procedures (10 CFR 430 Subpart B

Appendix A) specify that energy consumption be determined at a compartment temperature of

39 °F and therefore cannot apply to a product that is designed to be incapable of achieving this

temperature. Further, as described in the Sanyo petition, hybrid models will typically have dooropening usage aligned with household freezers and wine storage products. Thus, the K factor

(correction factor) of .85 from CAN/CSA 3 00-08 6.3.1.2 and AHAM/ANSI HRF-1 should be

used to determine energy consumption.Proposed Modified Test ProcedureAs in the two previously granted petitions, the wine storage compartment shall be tested at 55 °F.

Sub Zero shall use the K factor (correction factor) value of 0.85 when calculating the energy

consumption of the models listed below.

SUBZERO WOLF
EWine = ET1 + [(ET2ET1) X (55 °FTW1)/(TW2TW1)] *0.85Energy consumption ofthe refrigerated compartment:ERefrigerated Compartment = ET1 + {(ET2ET1) X (39 °FTRC1)/(TRC2TRC1)].

Affected ModelsThe basic models of Sub-Zero hybrid refrigerated storage-wine storage products affected are:

IW-30R

In conclusion, this is a critical issue for our company and we request that DOE expedite the

handling of this petition for an interim and final waiver. Sub-Zero would be pleased to discussthis waiver petition with DOE and provide any additional information that the Department mightrequire. We will also notify all manufacturers known to us ofsimilar domestically marketedproducts of this waiver petition.

Sincerely,

Paul V. Sikir

Vice President of Design EngineeringVia email: AS Waiver Reguests@ee.doe.gov

SUBZERO WOLF