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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 247 / Wednesday, December 29, 2021 / Rules and Regulations that in the case of ventless clothes dryers, a substantial subset of consumers e.g., high-rise apartment dwellers would be deprived of the benefits of a having clothes-drying appliance in their residence entirely unless DOE established a ventless clothes dryers product class. In contrast, DOE has determined that, even in difficult installation situations, consumers would not be deprived of heat or hot water absent product/
equipment classes set at a noncondensing level. Instead, the latter group of consumers facing difficult installation situations have options, including available technological solutions albeit sometimes costly, if they seek to continue using a gas-fired appliance or products that they can substitute i.e., electric appliances, such that they will continue receiving the benefits of heat and hot water.
Again, the heat and hot water provided would be indistinguishable to consumers regardless of the technology supplying them. As explained further in the paragraphs that follow, this understanding drives the different regulatory outcomes for residential clothes dryers, as compared to residential furnaces and commercial water heaters.
The clothes dryer situation was explained in detail in a direct final rule DFR published in the Federal Register on April 21, 2011. 76 FR 22454. In that rulemaking, DOE also referenced and relied on the details presented in the associated TSD accompanying that rulemaking. 76 FR 22454, 22485 April 21, 2011. In that TSD, DOE explained that ventless clothes dryers can be installed in locations where vented dryers would be precluded due to venting restrictions, and the Department went on to note how a clothes dryer is vented is not simply an issue of initial installation cost or a consumer choosing one product type over another i.e., if a ventless clothes dryer were not available, no clothes dryer would be available for certain locations.11 A
prime example that DOE considered was high-rise apartment buildings, some of which may be constructed without dedicated or otherwise accessible venting for a clothes dryer. Subsequent installation of additional venting in those situations would be infeasible in those situations, so if a traditional dryer were the only option, such consumers would be deprived of the benefit of 11 Technical Support Document: Energy Efficiency Program for Consumer Products and Commercial and Industrial Equipment: Residential Clothes Dryers and Room Air Conditioners, pp. 3
6 Available at: www.regulations.gov/
document?D=EERE-2007-BT-STD-00100053.

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having a clothes-drying capability in their homes. Thus, the ventless configuration goes to the heart of the function of the productit allows the dryer to operate where otherwise a consumer could not have a clothes dryerso absent the availability of a ventless clothes dryer, some consumers would not be able to have a clothes dryer at all. With that in mind, DOE
examined the design and operational parameters of ventless clothes dryer models to understand their energy efficiency potential and cost structure, in order to develop appropriate energy conservation standards pursuant to EPCA that would ensure preservation of the relevant performance-related feature i.e., ventless operation. In the TSD for the April 2011 DFR, DOE explained how ventless operation inherently limits the energy efficiency of those appliances, so in the end, the agency set separate classes on that basis.12
The present case of residential furnaces and commercial water heaters is quite different. Unlike consumers of ventless dryers, consumers facing the prospect of replacing a non-condensing residential furnace or commercial water heater with a condensing furnace or water heater do have options available to either modify existing venting or install a new venting system to accommodate a condensing furnace or water heater, or to install a feasible alternative to have heated air or water provided i.e., an electric appliance. In all cases, the consumer would not be precluded access to heated air or water, a result which is distinctly different from the one at issue in the ventless clothes dryers example. Given the ongoing availability of the consumer benefits of heat and hot water and for the reasons explained elsewhere in this document, DOE finds it reasonable to once again conclude that the technology used to supply heated air or water is not a performance-related feature under EPCA as would justify establishing separate product/equipment classes on that basis. In light of those available options, DOE finds it appropriate to address the matter of difficult furnace and water heater installations in the economic analysis of energy conservation standards rulemakings for those individual appliances.
12 DOE explained that due to the lack of a vent to expel moisture-laden exhaust air to the outdoors, ventless clothes dryers produce a wastewater stream that can be either collected in an integrated storage container or discharged down an available household drain. The Department acknowledged that the process of condensing the moisture out of the recirculated air results in higher energy consumption by a ventless dryer as compared to a conventional i.e., vented dryer. 76 FR 22454, 22470 April 21, 2011.

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With regard to compact clothes dryers, the compact delineation relates directly to the size and capacity of the producttwo attributes explicitly listed in the features provision. See 42 U.S.C. 6295o4 This difference in size and capacity is recognized by the consumer in operation of the product i.e., by limiting the amount of wet clothes which can be processed per cycle. Moreover, DOE determined that compact-size clothes dryers have inherently different energy consumption than standard-size clothes dryers. 76 FR
22454, 22485 April 21, 2011.
In establishing a separate product class for space-constrained central air conditioners, DOE recognized the space constraints faced by these products and that the efficiency of such products is limited by physical dimensions that are rigidly constrained by the intended application. 76 FR 37408, 37446 June 27, 2011. Space-constrained central air conditioners have an indoor or outdoor unit that is limited in size due to the location in which the unit operates. As a result, space-constrained central air conditioners lack the flexibility of other central air conditioners to increase the physical size of the unit, thereby limiting the ability of space-constrained units to achieve improved efficiency through use of a larger coil. Id. In establishing standards for spaceconstrained central air conditioners, DOE discussed the expense of modifying an exterior opening to accommodate a larger unit, but such discussion did not abrogate DOEs determination that space-constrained central air conditioners provide centralized air conditioning in locations with space constraints that would preclude the use of other types of central air conditioners. Id. In contrast, the subject non-condensing residential furnaces and commercial water heaters are not significantly different in overall footprint, size, or heating capacity from their condensing counterparts 13
although the composition of the venting used may be different, and the energy efficiency differences are a result of the technology used, a design parameter that is dictated by considerations other than size.
With regard to the equipment classes for PTACs, in its prior rulemaking, DOE
found that the size of the heat exchanger directly affects the energy efficiency of the equipment. 73 FR 58772, 58782
October 7, 2008. Like spaceconstrained central air conditioners, the 13 As provided in footnote 10 supra., DOE
surveyed the dimensions of representative commercial water heaters 100 gallon, 200,000 Btu/
hour and found the height and diameter dimensions comparable.

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