The EPA periodically updates energy efficiency requirements for ENERGY STAR products. The agency does this if new technologies have led to additional opportunity for consumers to save with energy efficient equipment. Currently, ENERGY STAR furnace requirements for energy efficiency are being revised. The Final draft of the new requirements for furnaces is expected in April 2011. The new requirements are expected take effect at the end of this year.
The EPA has proposed raising AFUE requirements, but only for states where the majority of people live in colder climates. That means that an ENERGY STAR furnace in Minnesota will be more efficient than an ENERGY STAR furnace in Texas. Units that only qualify in warmer states will have a specific ENERGY STAR label. When units start qualifying for the new specification, you will start to see the new ENERGY STAR furnace label on some units. The label could be on units as soon as March 2011.
The EPA also is currently developing a Climate Control specification, which would replace the former ENERGY STAR programmable thermostat specification. EPA is working on the requirements now, and should finish around the end of 2011. Look for ENERGY STAR labeled controls starting in the spring and summer of 2012. To earn the ENERGY STAR label, units will be tested by a group of users conducting routine tasks like setting the time and the temperature. Under this new specification, Climate Controls will also be able to communicate with something outside the HVAC system, like the Internet or a smart meter.
The EPA is working towards making the whole HVAC system work better together, rather than making each component more efficient. Well-installed and maintained HVAC systems can save consumers hundreds of dollars a year. Furnaces, central ACs, and heat pumps can aid system efficiency too, by including self-diagnostics that warn owners of the need for maintenance, repair, or replacement. A few product lines currently offer some of these features and it is expected to increase in the near future. With equipment generally being more efficient, EPA expects to require different efficiency standards in different states for other HVAC equipment as well, based on climate.
