Rhode Island General Laws 39-27-5. Efficiency standards
(a) Not later than June 1, 2006, the commission, in consultation with the state building commissioner and the chief of energy and community services, shall adopt regulations, in accordance with the provisions of chapter 35 of Title 42, establishing minimum efficiency standards for the types of new products set forth in §?39-27-4(a). The regulations shall provide for the following minimum efficiency standards:
(1) Automatic commercial icemakers shall meet the energy efficiency requirements shown in table A-7 of §?1605.3 of the California Code of Regulations, Title 20: Division 2, Chapter 4, Article 4: Appliance Efficiency Regulations as adopted on December 15, 2004.
(2) Commercial clothes washers shall meet the requirements shown in Table P-4 of §?1605.3 of the California Code of Regulations, Title 20: Division 2, Chapter 4, Article 4: Appliance Efficiency Regulations in effect on December 15, 2004.
(3) Commercial pre-rinse spray valves shall have a flow rate equal to or less than one and six-tenths gallons (1.6 gals.) per minute.
(4) Commercial refrigerators, freezers, and refrigerator-freezers shall meet the minimum efficiency requirements shown in Table A-6 of §?1605.3 of the California Code of Regulations, Title 20: Division 2, Chapter 4, Article 4: Appliance Efficiency Regulations as adopted on December 15, 2004, except that pulldown refrigerators with transparent doors shall meet a requirement five percent (5%) less stringent than shown in the California regulations.
(5) High-intensity discharge lamp ballasts shall not be designed and marketed to operate a mercury vapor lamp.
(6) Illuminated exit signs shall have an input power demand of five watts (5 W) or less per illuminated face.
(7) Large packaged air-conditioning equipment shall meet a minimum energy efficiency ratio of:
(i) Ten (10.0) for air conditioning without an integrated heating component or with electric resistance heating integrated into the unit;
(ii) Nine and eight tenths (9.8) for air conditioning with heating other than electric resistance integrated into the unit;
(iii) Nine and five tenths (9.5) for air conditioning with heating other than electric resistance integrated heating component or with electric resistance heating integrated into the unit;
(iv) Nine and three tenths (9.3) for air-conditioning heat pump equipment with heating other than electric resistance integrated into the unit. Large packaged air-conditioning heat pumps shall meet a minimum coefficient of performance in the heating mode of three and two tenths (3.2) (measured at a high temperature rating of forty-seven (47) degrees F db).
(8) Low-voltage dry-type distribution transformers shall meet the Class 1 efficiency levels for low-voltage distribution transformers specified in Table 4-2 of the “Guide for Determining Energy Efficiency for Distribution Transformers” published by the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA Standard TP-1-2002).
(9) Metal-halide lamp fixtures that operate in a vertical position and are designed to be operated with lamps rated greater than or equal to one hundred fifty watts (150 W) but less than or equal to five hundred watts (500 W) shall not contain a probe-start metal-halide lamp ballast.
(10) Single-voltage external AC to DC power supplies shall meet the tier-one energy-efficiency requirements shown in Table U-1 of §?1605.3 of the California Code of Regulations, Title 20: Division 2, Chapter 4, Article 4: Appliance Efficiency Regulations as adopted on December 15, 2004. This standard applies to single-voltage AC to DC power supplies that are sold individually and to those that are sold as a component of or in conjunction with another product. Single-voltage external AC to DC power supplies that are made available by a product manufacturer as service parts or spare parts for its products manufactured prior to January 1, 2008, shall be exempt from this provision.
(11) Torchieres shall not use more than one hundred ninety watts (190 W). A torchiere shall be deemed to use more than one hundred ninety watts (190 W) if any commercially available lamp or combination of lamps can be inserted in its socket(s) and cause the torchiere to draw more than one hundred ninety watts (190 W) when operated at full brightness.
(12) Traffic signal modules shall meet the product specification of the “Energy Star Program Requirements for Traffic Signals” developed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that took effect in February 2001 and shall be installed with compatible, electronically-connected signal-control interface devices and conflict-monitoring systems.
(13) Unit heaters shall be equipped with an intermittent ignition device and shall have either power venting or an automatic flue damper.
Terms Used In Rhode Island General Laws 39-27-5
- Ballast: means a device used with an electric discharge lamp to obtain necessary circuit conditions (voltage, current and waveform) for starting and operating the lamp. See Rhode Island General Laws 39-27-3
- Boiler: means a self-contained, low-pressure appliance for supplying steam or hot water primarily designed for space heating. See Rhode Island General Laws 39-27-3
- Chief of Energy and Community Services: means the head official of the Rhode Island state energy office. See Rhode Island General Laws 39-27-3
- Commission: means the Rhode Island public utilities commission. See Rhode Island General Laws 39-27-3
- Commissioner: means a member of the public utilities commission. See Rhode Island General Laws 39-1-2
- Division: means the division of public utilities and carriers. See Rhode Island General Laws 39-1-2
- Metal-halide lamp: means a high-intensity discharge lamp in which the major portion of the light is produced by radiation of metal halides and their products of dissociation, possibly in combination with metallic vapors. See Rhode Island General Laws 39-27-3
- Natural gas: means the combustible, gaseous mixture of low-molecular-weight, paraffin hydrocarbons, generated below the surface of the earth, containing mostly methane and ethane with small amounts of propane, butane, and hydrocarbons, and sometimes nitrogen, carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulfide, and helium. See Rhode Island General Laws 39-1-2
- Residential furnace: means a self-contained space heater designed to supply heated air through ducts of more than ten inches (10") length and 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 that:
(i) Is designed to be the principal heating source for the living space of one or more residences;
(ii) Is not contained within the same cabinet with a central air conditioner whose rated cooling capacity is above sixty-five thousand (65,000) Btu per hour; and
(iii) Has a heat input rate of less than two hundred twenty-five thousand (225,000) Btu per hour. See Rhode Island General Laws 39-27-3
- Torchiere: means a portable electric lighting fixture with a reflective bowl that directs light upward onto a ceiling so as to produce indirect illumination on the surfaces below. See Rhode Island General Laws 39-27-3
(b) Not later than June 1, 2007, the commission, in consultation with the state building commissioner and the chief of energy and community services, shall adopt regulations, in accordance with the provisions of chapter 35 of Title 42, establishing minimum efficiency standards for the types of new products set forth in §?39-27-4(b). The regulations shall provide for the following minimum efficiency standards.
(1) Bottle-type water dispensers designed for dispensing both hot and cold water shall not have standby energy consumption greater than one and two-tenths kilowatt-hours (1.2 KWh) per day.
(2) Commercial hot food holding cabinets shall have a maximum idle energy rate of forty watts (40 W) per cubic foot of interior volume.
(3)(i) Residential furnaces and residential boilers shall comply with the following Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency (AFUE) and electricity ratio values:
| Product Type | Minimum AFUE | Maximum electricity ratio |
|---|---|---|
| Natural gas and propane-fired furnaces | 90% | 2.0% |
| Oil-fired furnaces>94,000 | ||
| Btu/hour in capacity | 83% | 2.0% |
| Oil-fired furnaces>94,000 | ||
| Btu/hour in capacity | 83% | 2.3% |
| Natural gas and oil, and propane-fired hot water residential boilers | 84% | Not applicable |
| Natural gas, oil, and propane-fired steam residential boilers | 82% | Not applicable |
(ii) The chief of energy and community services shall adopt rules to provide for exemptions from compliance with the foregoing residential furnace or residential boiler AFUE standards at any building, site, or location where complying with the standards would be in conflict with any local zoning ordinance, fire code, building or plumbing code, or other rule regarding installation and venting of residential furnaces or residential boilers.
(iii) The provisions of subsection (b) shall be effective upon determination by the chief of energy and community services that the same or substantial corresponding standards have been enacted in two (2) New England states.
(4)(i) State-regulated incandescent reflector lamps shall meet the minimum average lamp efficacy requirements for federally-regulated incandescent reflector lamps contained in 42 U.S.C. § 6295(i)(1)(B).
(ii) The following types of incandescent reflector lamps are exempt from these requirements:
(A) Lamps, rated at fifty watts (50 W) or less of the following types: BR30, BR40, ER30, and ER40;
(B) Lamps, rated at sixty-five watts (65 W) of the following types: BR30, BR40, and ER40; and
(C) R20 lamps of forty-five watts (45 W) or less.
(5)(i) Walk-in refrigerators and walk-in freezers with the applicable motor types shown in the table below shall include the required components shown.
| MOTOR Type | Required Components |
|---|---|
| All | Interior lights: light sources with an efficacy of forty-five (45) lumens per watt or more, including ballast losses (if any). This efficacy standard does not apply to LED light sources until January 1, 2010. |
| All | Automatic door closers that firmly close all reach-in doors. |
| All | Automatic door closers that firmly close all walk-in doors no wider than 3.9 feet and no higher than 6.9 feet that have been closed to within one inch of full closure. |
| All | Wall, ceiling, and door insulation at least R-28 for refrigerators and at least R-34 for freezers |
| All | Floor insulation at least R-28 for freezers (no requirements for refrigerators) |
| Condenser fan motors of under one horsepower | Electronically commutated motors, Permanently split capacitor-type motors Polyphase motors of one half (½) horsepower or more |
| Single-phase evaporator fan motors of under one horsepower and less than four hundred sixty (460) volts | Electronically commutated motors |
(ii) In addition to the requirements in subsection (b)(5)(i), walk-in refrigerators and walk-in freezers with transparent reach-in doors shall meet the following requirements: transparent reach-in doors shall be of triple-pane glass with either heat-reflective treated glass or gas fill; if the appliance has an anti-sweat heater without anti-sweat controls, then: the appliance shall have a total door rail, glass, and frame heater power draw of no more than forty watts (40 W) if it is a freezer or seventeen watts (17 W) if it is a refrigerator per foot of door frame width; and if the appliance has an anti-sweat heater with anti-sweat heat controls, and the total door rail, glass, and frame heater power draw is more than forty watts (40 W) if it is a freezer or seventeen watts (17 W) if it is a refrigerator per foot of door frame width, then: the anti-sweat heat controls shall reduce the energy use of the anti-sweat heater in an amount corresponding to the relative humidity in the air outside the door or to the condensation on the inner-glass pane.
History of Section.
P.L. 2005, ch. 136, § 1; P.L. 2005, ch. 146, § 1; P.L. 2006, ch. 177, § 1; P.L. 2006, ch. 288, § 1; P.L. 2020, ch. 79, art. 1, § 22.