Bill Mandates Dishwasher, Clothes Washer Water Efficiency

The recently passed Energy Independence and Security Act, H.R. 6, breaks new ground by establishing for the first time minimum national water efficiency standards for residential clothes washers and dish-
washers.

The result of negotiations between appliance manufacturers and efficiency advocates, the standards set water use for standard-sized dishwashers manufactured after Jan. 1, 2010 at 6.5 gallons per cycle and compact dishwashers at 4.5 gallons per cycle. Residential clothes washers manufactured after Jan. 1, 2011, must meet a maximum water factor of 9.5.

Further, the new law leaves the door open for even stronger efficiency standards for clothes washers and dishwashers by directing the Department of Energy to undertake new rule making to consider such standards. If approved by the Secretary, the standards would take effect in 2015 and 2018 respectively. This is first time a law required the department to consider any new standards for clothes washers and dishwashers.

With the new standards in place, clothes washers are expected to rack up a significant proportion of the new law’s water savings. Consider: Seventy percent of today’s sales that are top-loaders have an average water factor of about 11.5. Beginning in 2011, the water factor will be reduced to 9.5. The resulting potential water savings is substantial. It is anticipated that each year’s production of clothes washers with the mandated 9.5 water factor will save over a 40 million gallons per day. If stretched out over four years, the water savings would be about 175 mgd.

A potential exists for further savings. Water conservation advocates say it is possible that DOE rulemaking, to be completed by December 2011 and take effect in January 2015, will mandate a water factor of 8.0 or less. They consider this very good news since a 8.0 water factor would boost water savings by over 75 mgd per year to nearly 650 mgd by the end of 2020 — or about 1.5 percent of recent U.S. total annual public water supply withdrawals.

Also to the liking of water efficiency advocates is a provision in the bill that gives the Secretary of Energy the authority to adopt new or revised efficiency standards on an expedited basis if multi-stakeholder groups, including manufacturers, states, and efficiency advocates propose such standards. Some are heartened by the provision they believe will expedite DOE’s rulemaking process and overcome the agency’s reluctance to view water efficiency as a rulemaking priority.

The bill also includes a provision directing energy managers of federal facilities to complete comprehensive energy -and-water-use evaluations of all federal facilities every four years. Within two years of the evaluations, all energy-and-water-saving measures found to be life-cycle cost-effective are to be implemented. Further, permanent authority is granted to federal agencies to enter into new energy-and water-saving performance contracts for federal facilities. Up to now sunset provisions had required congressional action to periodically extend such authority. Federal agencies now have greater freedom to improve energy and water efficiency.

Chandler’s $100 Rebate Promotes Water-Efficient Washers

Chandler residents now have an added incentive to purchase a high-efficiency washing machine. Not only will they experience a do-good glow of satisfaction from adopting new water-saving ways, but they also will be eligible for a $100 rebate.

The City Council approved the rebate plan to begin April 1. The water-saving payoff was considered substantial enough to justify the rebate, with estimates that a high-efficiency washer will save about 7,000 gallons of water a year. The water-saving front-loading washers use as little as 12 gallons per load; conventional models typically require 39 gallons.

Another factor not to be overlooked when Chandler residents consider the rebate offer is that the City Council had recently raised water rates.

Cathy Rymer, water conservation coordinator, says, “The Council approved the program for basically two years. Next year after we have at least eight or nine months worth of data we will go back to Council and brief them on how the program is going.”

She says, “It is really hard to know how popular this is going to be but in our budget we estimated that 500 rebates would be issued each year. That is our target.”

Rymer says that a rebate applicant must be a Chandler water utility customer and be replacing an existing washer with a more efficient machine. Regarding the latter qualification Rymer says “We really do not have any control over that. It is one area we are on the honor system, but in any case they will be saving water using the efficient washer.”

She says, “We are asking they purchase a washing machine with a water factor of 6 or less. Not all the machines on the CEE or the Energy Star lists qualify. We needed to help some of the sales people understand that.”

The final step is an on-site inspection to ensure the purchased washer is in fact being installed at that location and that the model number matches the number on the receipt.

Water efficient washers range generally from $600 all the way to $2,000 for a more deluxe model; the models that are more lavish in their water use generally cost from $350 to $500.

Other features of the high efficient machine that will appeal to the savvy consumer is that they save time and electricity by extracting more moisture, thus resulting in less time in the dryer, and they have larger load capacities.

Chandler is the first Valley city to offer such rebates, although the mountain communities of Flagstaff and Payson offer them.

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