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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 167 / Wednesday, September 1, 2021 / Proposed Rules
khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with PROPOSALS3

throughout the proposed new Appendix J.
DOE recognizes that for the 30 percent of units with Extra-Hot Wash temperatures that do not exceed 140 F, DOEs proposal to change the Extra-Hot Wash definition may impact measured efficiency. Therefore, in this NOPR, DOE is proposing to include the amended Extra-Hot Wash temperature parameter only in the proposed new Appendix J and not in existing Appendix J2. The ongoing RCW and CCW energy conservation standards rulemakings would consider the impact of any modifications to the Extra-Hot Wash definition on measured efficiency.
DOE requests comment on its proposal to specify in the proposed new Appendix J that the Extra-Hot Wash/
Cold Rinse designation would apply to a wash temperature greater than or equal to 140 F. DOE requests any additional data on the wash temperature of cycles that meet the Appendix J2
definition of Extra-Hot Wash/Cold Rinse. DOE is also interested in data and information on any potential impact to testing costs that may occur by changing the Extra-Hot Wash temperature threshold, and the impacts on manufacturer burden associated with any changes to the Extra-Hot Wash/Cold Rinse definition.
c. Target Water Supply Temperature Section 2.2 of Appendix J2 specifies that the hot water supply temperature must be maintained between 130 F
54.4 C and 135 F 57.2 C, using 135 F as the target temperature. Based on experience working with third-party test laboratories, as well as its own testing experience, DOE recognizes that maintaining 135 F as the target temperature for the hot water supply may be difficult given that the target temperature of 135 F lies at the edge, rather than the midpoint, of the allowable temperature range of 130 F to 135 F. 85 FR 31065, 31069. On electronic temperature-mixing valves commonly used by test laboratories, the output water temperature is maintained within an approximately two-degree tolerance above or below a target temperature programmed by the user e.g., if the target temperature is set at 135 F, the controller may provide water temperatures ranging from 133 F to 137 F. Id. To ensure that the hot water inlet temperature remains within the allowable range of 130 F to 135 F, such a temperature controller would need to be set to around the midpoint of the range, which conflicts with the test procedure requirement to use 135 F as the target temperature. Id. An analogous difficulty exists for the cold water
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supply temperature. Section 2.2 of Appendix J2 specifies maintaining a cold water temperature between 55 F
and 60 F, using 60 F as the target.
In the May 2020 NOPR, DOE
requested comments on whether it should consider changes to the target temperature or allowable range of temperature specified for the hot and cold water inlets, and if so, what alternate specifications should be considered. Id.
UL commented that it supports the change to an equal sided tolerance for the hot and cold water inlet temperature requirements. UL, No. 9 at p. 1
AHAM also supported DOE updating the target water temperature to have a tolerance and nominal value rather than any temperature within the range specified as the target, i.e., X Y, with nominal X as the target. AHAM, No.
5 at p. 6
The CA IOUs supported a change in the water supply temperature tolerance to 2.5 F around the target temperature, claiming that it may create a more repeatable test procedure and decrease the number of failed test runs.
CA IOUs, No. 8 at p. 15
GEA supported a hot water target temperature adjustment to 132.5
2.5 F, stating that doing so would align the test procedure with engineering best practices. GEA, No. 13 at p. 2
DOE recognizes the widespread support for defining a temperature range centered around a target midpoint of the range. Although this would appear to reflect current test laboratory practice, DOE is concerned that specifying a cold water target temperature of 57.5 F in Appendix J2 and the proposed new Appendix J, or specifying a hot water target temperature of 132.5 F for Appendix J2 or 122.5 F for the proposed new Appendix J, could imply that the test procedure requires a precision of 0.5 F in temperature control, which could create undue test burden. Furthermore, DOE is concerned that defining a target temperature, whether as currently defined or defined as the midpoint of the range, could unintentionally imply that a test would be invalid if the water temperature remains within the allowable range, but not centered exactly around the target.
For these reasons, DOE is proposing to remove the target temperature associated with each water supply temperature range, and to instead define only the allowable temperature range.
Specifically, the cold water supply temperature range would be defined as 55 F to 60 F in both Appendix J2 and the proposed new Appendix J; the hot water supply temperature range in Appendix J2 would be defined as 130 F

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to 135 F; and the hot water supply temperature range in the proposed new Appendix J would be defined as 120 F
to 125 F. Defining allowable water supply temperature ranges instead of specific target temperatures at the upper end of the allowable ranges would reduce the difficulty of maintaining water supply temperatures within the desired ranges.
DOE requests comment on its proposal to remove the target temperatures and instead specify water supply temperature ranges as 55 F to 60 F for cold water in both Appendix J2 and the proposed new Appendix J, 130 F to 135 F for hot water in Appendix J2, and 120 F to 125 F for hot water in the proposed new Appendix J.
4. Wash Water Temperature Measurement In the August 2015 Final Rule, DOE
amended section 3.3 of Appendix J2, Extra-Hot Wash/Cold Rinse, to allow the use of non-reversible temperature indicator labels to confirm that a wash temperature greater than 135 F had been achieved. 80 FR 46729, 46753.
Since the publication of the August 2015 Final Rule, DOE has become aware that some third-party laboratories measure wash temperature using selfcontained temperature sensors in a waterproof capsule placed inside the clothes washer drum during testing. 85
FR 31065, 31069. In the May 2020 RFI, DOE requested comments on manufacturers or test laboratories experience with these or any other methods for determining the temperature during a wash cycle that may reduce manufacturer burden, including the reliability and accuracy of those methods. Id.
UL commented that it has not found any temperature labels that read exactly 135 F, but rather only labels that provide 10 F increments between 130 F and 140 F. UL, No 9 at p. 2 UL
added that if a label does not change at 140 F but does change at 130 F, there is no way of knowing if the water temperature reached 135 F without running an additional test run with a data logger. Id. UL also commented that if DOE requires temperature loggers for measuring the internal water temperature, DOE should prescribe a specific method, for increased lab-to-lab reproducibility. Id.
AHAM similarly commented that the non-reversible temperature indicator labels currently specified in the test procedure do not work well because the labels available on the market do not easily identify when 135 F is reached, as they typically provide 10 F

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