Water-Cooled Unitary Air Conditioners
Water-Cooled Unitary Air Conditioners
As defined in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), small, large, and very large commercial package air conditioners and heat pumps are air-cooled, water-cooled, evaporatively-cooled, or water source unitary air conditioners and heat pumps that are used for space conditioning of commercial and industrial buildings. 10 CFR 431.92. Manufacturers have been required to comply with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) energy conservation standards for small, large, and very large commercial package air conditioners and heat pumps since 1992.
Current Standard | Current Test Procedure |
Ongoing Rulemaking for Standards | Ongoing Rulemaking for Test Procedure |
Helpful Links
Recent and Ongoing Activities
DOE has published a Federal Register notice of final determination pertaining to standards for evaporatively-cooled commercial package air conditioners and water-cooled commercial package air conditioners (referred to as evaporatively-cooled commercial unitary air conditioners (ECUACs) and water-cooled commercial unitary air conditioners (WCUACs) in this document). The Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA), prescribes energy conservation standards for various consumer products and certain commercial and industrial equipment, including ECUACs and WCUACs. EPCA also requires (DOE) to periodically determine whether more stringent, amended standards would result in significant additional conservation of energy, be technologically feasible, and be economically justified. In this final determination, DOE has determined that more stringent standards for small (cooling capacity less than 135,000 Btu/h), large (cooling capacity greater than or equal to 135,000 and less than 240,000 Btu/h), and very large (cooling capacity greater than or equal to 240,000 and less than 760,000 Btu/h) ECUACs and WCUACs would not result in significant additional conservation of energy, and thus has determined that the standards for ECUACs and WCUACs do not need to be amended.
- The effective date of this final determination is July 14, 2021.
For the latest information on the planned timing of future DOE regulatory milestones, see the current Office of Management and Budget Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions. All planned dates are preliminary and subject to change.
Standards
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DOE undertook a rulemaking process that concluded with a final rule in May 2012 pertaining to energy conservation standards for water cooled unitary air conditioners.
The rulemaking docket EERE-2011-BT-STD-0029 for energy conservation standard and test procedures for certain commercial heating, air conditioners, and water heating equipment (including water-cooled unitary air conditioners) contains all notices, public comments, public meeting transcripts, and supporting documents pertaining to this rulemaking.
Public Meeting Information:
There is no public meeting scheduled at this time.
Submitting Public Comments
Test Procedure
DOE undertook a rulemaking process that concluded with a final rule in May 2012 pertaining to test procedures for water-cooled commercial packaged air conditioners.
The rulemaking docket EERE-2011-BT-STD-0029 for energy conservation standard and test procedures for certain commercial heating, air conditioners, and water heating equipment (including water-cooled unitary air conditioners) contains all notices, public comments, public meeting transcripts, and supporting documents pertaining to this rulemaking.
Public Meeting Information
There is no public meeting scheduled at this time.
Submitting Public Comments
Current Standard
Water-cooled unitary air-conditioners manufactured and distributed in commerce, as defined by 42 U.S.C. 6291(16), must meet the energy conservation standards specified in the Code of Federal Regulations at 10 CFR 431.97.
To determine that water-cooled unitary air-conditioners that are currently manufactured or distributed into commerce are in compliance with DOE standards, manufacturers must follow the test procedure methods specified at 10 CFR 431.96.
Helpful Links
Compliance
DOE has established regulations on certification, compliance, and enforcement in the CFR at 10 CFR Part 429. These regulations cover statistical sampling plans, certified ratings, certification reports, record retention, and enforcement. More information on these regulations is available here.
Waivers
For information on current test procedure wavers, see DOE’s Waivers webpage.
For information about obtaining test procedure waivers, see 10 CFR part 431, subpart V.
Exceptions
DOE's Office of Hearings and Appeals has not authorized exception relief for water-cooled unitary air-conditioners.
For information about obtaining exception relief, see 10 CFR part 1003.
Guidance and Frequently Asked Questions
For information on further guidance and answers to Frequently Asked Questions on all covered products, see DOE’s Further Guidance database.
State Exemptions to Federal Pre-emption
DOE has not exempted any state from this energy conservation standard. States may petition DOE to exempt a state regulation from preemption by the Federal energy conservation standard. States may also petition DOE to withdraw such exemptions. For details, see 10 CFR part 431, subpart W.
For more information related to this product, please email:
ApplianceStandardsQuestions@ee.doe.gov
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