## 55FR31099 Federal Register I Vol. 55, No. 147 / Tuesday, July 31, 1990 / Notices

Basin's jurisdictional customers and interested state regulatory agencies. Any person desiring to be heard or to protest said filing should file a motion to intervene or protest with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 825 North Capitol Street NE., Washington, DC 20426, in accordance with § § 385.214 and 385.211 of the Commission' s Rules and Regulations. All such motions or protests should be filed on or before August 1, 1990. Protests will be considered by the Commission in determining the. appropriate actionto be taken, but will not serve to make protestants parties to the proceeding. Any person wishing to become a party must file a r^otion to intervene. Copies of this filing are on file with the Commission and are available for public inspection in the public-reference room. Lois II Cashell, Secretary. (FR Doc. 90-17715 Filed 7-3u-90; 8:45 aml
BiLUNG CODE 6717-Oi44



## Office of Conservation and Renewable Energy

Energy Conservation Program for Consumer Products; Application for interim Waiver and Petition for Waiver of Furnace Test Procedures FromInter-City Products Corporatian (F023.)

AGENCY :' Conservation and Renewable Energy Office, Department of Energy. SUMMARY : Today's notice publishes a letter granting an Interim Waiver to Inter-City Products Corporation (Inter City Products) from the existing. Department of Energy (DOE) test procedures for furnaces regarding, blower time delay for its NUGV(-) line of condensing gas furnaces. Today's notice-, also publishes a "Petition for Waiver" from Inter-City • Products. Inter-City Product's-Petition for Waiver requests. DOE to grant relief from the DOE. test procedu res

. relating to the blower. time delay specification: Inter-City Products seeks, to test using a blower delay time of 30 seconds for NUGV(-) condensing gas furnaces instead of the specified 1.5 minute delay between burner on-time and blower onthne..DOE is soliciting comments, data, and, information respecting, the Petition for aiver. DATES : DOE will accept comments,, data,: and information not later than August 30,.199G ADDRESSES : Written comments and statements

.shall be sent to, Department of Energy, Office of Conservation and, .. Renewable Energy, Case No. F-023, Mail Stop CE-43, Forrestal Building, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC. 20585. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cyrus H. Nasseri, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Conservation andRenewable Energy, Mail Station CE43, Forrestal Building, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW., (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 20535, (202) 586-9507.
Background The Energy Conservation Program for Consumer Products (other than automobiles) was esablished pursuant to the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA), Public Law 94-1163, 89 Stat. 917, as amended by the National Energy Conservation Policy Act (N'ECPA), Public Law 95-619,92 Stat. 3266, 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 consumer in making purchasing decisions. These test procedures appear at 10 CFR part 430, subpart B. DOE has amended the prescribed test procedures by adding 10 CFR 430.27 on September 28, 1980, creating the waiver process.-45 FR 64108. DOE further amended the Departments' appliance test procedure waiver process to allow the Assistant Secretary for Conservation and Rene-weable 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, 1986. 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 

## 51693

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 a 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 will be granted, and/or the Assistant Secretary determined that it would be desirable for public policy reasons to grant immediate relief pending a determination on the petition for waiver. On May 1. 1990, Inter-City Products filed an Application for an Interim Waiver regarding blower time delay. Inter-City Products application seeks an interim waiver from the DOE test provisions that require a 1.5 minute ti.-re delay between the ignition of the burner and starting of the circulating air blower. Instead, Inter-City Products requests the allowance to test using a 30 second blower time delay when testing its NUGV(-) condensing gas furnaces. Inter-City Products states that the 30 second delay is indicative of how these furnaces actually operate. Such a delay results in an energy savings of approximately 1.0 percent.. Since current DOE test procedures do not address this variable blower time delay, Inter-City Products ask that the interim waiver be granted. Previous waivers for this type of timed blower delay control have been granted by the Department to the Coleman Company, 50 FR 2710, January 18, 1985, the Magic Chef Company, 50 FR 41553, October 11, 1985, the Rheem Manufacturing Company, 53 FR 48574, December 1, 1988, and 55 FR 3253, January 31,199G, the Trane company, 54 FR 19226, May 4, 1989, DMO Industries:55 FR 4004, February 6, 1990, HeilQuaker Corporation, 55 FR 13184, April 9, 1990, and Carrier Corporation, 55 FR 13182, April 9, 1990 . Thus, it appears likely that the Petition for Waiver will be granted for blower time delay. The Department finds that it would be desirable for public policy reasons to grant Inter-City Products Application for Interim Waiver. Specifically, in those instances where the likely success of the petition for waiver has been demonstrated based upon DOE having granted a waiver for a similar product design, it is in the product ' s interest to have the similar products tested and rated for energy consumption on a comparable basis.

## 31100 

## 55FR31099 Federal Register / Vol. 55, No. 147 / Tuesday, July 31, 1990 j Notices

Ptrsuant to paragraph (b) of 10 CFR 430.27, DOE is hereby publishing the "Petition for Waiver " in its entirety. The petition contains no confidential information

. DOE solicits comments, data
, and information respecting the petition. 

## In addition

, pursuant to paragraph (e) of § 430

. 27 of the Code of Federal Regulations

, the following letter granting the Application for Interim Waiver was issued to Inter

- City Products Corporation.
Issued in Washington

, DC, July 23,1990. J. Michael Davis, 

### Assistant Secretary Conservation and Renewable Energy.
Department of Energy Washington

, DC 20585 July 23

, 1990. 

### Mr. W.E

. Dalton, Vice President Engineering, Inter-City Products Corporation

, 1136 Heil-Quaker Boulevard, P.O. Box 3005, Lavergne, TN 37086-1985. Dear Mr. Dalton : This is in response to your May 1, 1990, Application for Interim Waiver and Petition for Waiver from the Department of Energy (DOE) test procedures for furnaces when testing Inter-City Products Corporation NUGV(-) condensing gas furnaces regarding blower time delay. Pursuant to the Energy Policy and Conservation Act, as amended

, DOE has prescribed test procedures to measure the energy consumption of certain major household appliances

, 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 in Code of Federal Regulations at 10 CFR part 430

, subpart B. DOE amended the test procedure regulations on September 26, 1980,(45 FR 64108) and November 28, 1988 , [ 51 FR 428231 by adding paragraph 430.27

. These provisions allow the Assistant Secretary for Conservation and Renewable Energy (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 characteristic which prevent testing of the basic model according to the prescribed test procedures or. may evaluate the basic model in a manner so unrepresentative of its true energy consumption characteristics as to provide materially inadequate comparative data. The 1986 amendments added provisions allowing the Assistant Secretary to grant an interim waiver for a particular basic model when a petitioner demonstrates the likely success of the petition for waiver

, it is determined that the applicant will experience economic hardship if the Application for Interim Waiver is denied 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. 

### Previous waivers for timed blower delay control have been granted to the Coleman Company

, 50 FR 2710

, January 18,1985, Magic Chef Company

, 50 FR 41553

, October 11,1985, Rheem Manufacturing Company

, 53 FR 48574, December 1, 1988

, and 55 FR 3253, January 31, 1990

, the Trane Company

, 54 FR 19226, May 4,1989

, DMO Industries

, 55 FR 4004
, February 6, 1990

, Heil-Quaker Corporation, 55 FR 13184
, April 9

, 1990

, the Carrier Corporation, 55 FR 13182

, April 9, 1990. 

### Inter

- City Products Application for Interim Waiver does not provide sufficient information to evaluate what

, if any, economic impact or competitive disadvantage Inter

- City Products will likely experience absent a favorable determination on the application for interim waiver

. Inter-City Products feels that its competitive position in the marketplace would be compromised if this Application for Interim Waiver is not granted

. However

, the Department finds that it would be desirable for public policy reasons to grant Inter

- City Products Application for Interim Waiver

. Specifically, in those instances where the likely success of the petition for waiver has been demonstrated based upon DOE having granted a waiver for a similar product design, it is in the public ' s interest to have the similar products tested and rated for energy consumption on a comparable basis. 

### Therefore

, Inter

- City Products Application for an Interim Waiver requesting a change from the DOE test procedures for its NUGV(-) condensing gas furnaces regarding blower time delay is granted. Inter-City Products shall be permitted to test its line of NUGV(-) condensing gas furnaces on the basis of the test procedures specified in 10 CFR part 430, with the modifications set forth below. ( i) Section 9.3.1 of ANSI /ASHRAE Standard 103-1982 is deleted and replaced with the following paragraph: Gas- and Oil

- Fueled Central Furnaces. After equilibrium conditions are achieved following the cool

- down 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) 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 circulation 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 heal

- up test for oilfueled furnaces

, maintain the draft in the flue pipe with ± 0.01 inch of water gauge of the manufacturer ' s recommended on-period draft. This interim waiver is based upon the presumed validity of statements and all 

### allegations submitted by the company. This interim waiver may be revoked or modified at any time upon a determination that the factual basis underlying the application is incorrect. The interim waiver shall remain in effect for a period of 180 days or until DOE acts on the Petition for Waiver

, whichever is sooner. If DOE has not acted by the expiration of that period

, it will exercise its statutory authority to extend the interim waiver for an additional 180-day period. Sincerely, J. Michael Davis, P.E. 

### Assisiant Secretary

, Conservation and Renewable Energy.
May 1, 1990. 

### Assistant Secretary

, Conservation and Renewable Energy, United States Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue SW

., Washington, DC 20585. Gentleman : Please consider this Petition for Waiver and Application for Interim Waiver pursuant to Title 10 CFR 430.27. Waiver is requested from the test procedures covering gas furnaces found at appendix N to subpart B of 10 CFR part 430. The current Heat-Up Test procedures requires a 1.5 minute time delay between burner and blower startup

. Inter-City Products ( formerly Heil -Quaker) is requesting to use 30 seconds instead of 1.5 minutes for condensing gas furnace model family NUGV(-). These models will employ an unvarying electronic timing control which will start the blower in approximately 30 seconds. This will reduce lost energy out 1h tlvent system and can improve energy savingsapproximately 1 percent. An Interim Waiver is requested

. Several other manufacturers of similar furnaces have been granted the waiver to use reduced blower start up times. Known manufacturers of similar furnaces as shown in Attachment A have been sent a copy of our petition. 

### Respectfully yours, Inter-City Products Corp., W.E. Dalton, Vice President Engineering. May 1, 1990.

Attachment A 

### List of known Manufacturers which we have sent a copy of our request for Petition for Waiver and Interim Waiver to: Amana Refrigeration, Inc.; Mr. Robert DeHann

, Amana, Iowa 52204 The Trane Company, Mr. L.E. Chaump, 6200 Troup Hwy., Tyler, Texas 75711 Evcon Industries

, Inc., Mr. Bob Hoffman, Heating and Air Conditioning Group, 3110 N. Mead

, P.O. Box 19014

, Wichita, Kansas 67204-9014 DMO Industries

, Mr. Peter Janes

, 1969 Leslie Street, Don Mills, Ontario, Canada M3B 2M3 Armstrong Air Conditioning

, Inc., Mr. Robert E. Johnson, 421 Monroe Street

, Bellevue, Ohio 44811 Bard Manufacturing Company, Mr. Richard 0. Bard

, P.O. Box 607

, Bryan, Ohio 43506