Furnaces
Department of Energy
As defined in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), ”furnace” means a product which utilizes only single-phase electric current, or single-phase electric current or DC current in conjunction with natural gas, propane, or home heating oil, and which:
- Is designed to be the principal heating source for the living space of a residence;
- Is not contained within the same cabinet with a central air conditioner whose rated cooling capacity is above 65,000 Btu per hour;
- Is an electric central furnace, electric boiler, forced-air central furnace, gravity central furnace, or low-pressure steam or hot water boiler; and
- Has a heat input rate of less than 300,000 Btu per hour for electric boilers and low-pressure steam or hot water boilers and less than 225,000 Btu per hour for forced-air central furnaces, gravity central furnaces, and electric central furnaces.
10 CFR 430.2 Manufacturers have been required to comply with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) energy conservation standards for residential mobile home gas furnaces since 1990 and for all other residential furnaces since 1992.
Summary: On December 18, 2023,DOE published a Federal Register notice pertaining to energy conservation standards for consumer furnaces, specifically Non-Weatherized Gas Furnaces (NWGFs) and Mobile Home Gas Furnaces (MHGFs). In this final rule, DOE adopted amended standards for consumer furnaces.
- Standards for new consumer furnaces manufactured on or after after December 18, 2028:
- Non-Weatherized Gas Furnaces must meet 95.0% AFUE
- Mobile Home Gas Furnaces must meet 95.0% AFUE
- DOE did not adopt standby mode or off mode power consumption standards for NWGFs and MHGFs
Type of regulation: Energy Conservation Standard
Rulemaking Link: Rulemaking Webpage
Docket ID: EERE-2014-BT-STD-0031-4107
Updates:
- Posted: September 24, 2020—Notice of Supplemental Proposed Interpretive Rule; Request for Comment
- Posted: August 27, 2021—Notice of Proposed Interpretive Rule
- Posted: September 24, 2021—Notice of Proposed Interpretive Rule; Comment Extension
- Posted: December 29, 2021—Notification of Final Interpretive Rule
- Posted: January 28, 2022—Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
- Posted: August 30, 2022—Notice of Data Availability; Comment Extension
- Posted: November 29, 2022—Notice of Availability of Preliminary Technical Support Document, Request for Comment and Webinar
- Posted: December 18, 2023—Final Rule
AHRI comments submitted:
Posted: 2022-10-12—AHRI Comment response to the published Notice of proposed rulemaking and request for comment
Staff contact: Laura Petrillo-Groh
N/A
Residential furnaces 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 430.32.
References:
- Final Rule: Standards, Federal Register, 88 FR 87502 (December 18, 2023)
- Docket No. EERE-2014-BT-STD-0031 contains all notices, public comments, public meeting transcripts, and supporting documents.
Residential furnaces that are currently manufactured or distributed into commerce must follow the test procedure methods specified at 10 CFR 430.23 to be in compliance with DOE standards.
EPA ENERGY STAR
Current Product Specifications:
Furnaces Specification Version 4.1, effective February 1, 2013.
In Development:
Energy Star Furnaces Version 5 is currently under revision, as of April 16, 2024.
Applying for Energy Star:
To qualify a new product, contact an EPA-recognized Certification Body (CB) to have the product's performance certified. A list of EPA-recognized CBs, as well as an overview of EPA's third-party certification procedures, is available at Third-Party Certification. AHRI is an EPA-recognized CB. Email [email protected] for more information.