Note: Prior to December 19, 2016, representations with respect to the energy use or efficiency of air-cooled small, large, and very large commercial package air conditioning and heating equipment, including compliance certifications, must be based on testing conducted in accordance with either Table 1 to §431.96 as it now appears or Table 1 to §431.96 as it appeared in subpart F of this part, in the 10 CFR parts 200 through 499 edition revised as of January 1, 2015. After December 19, 2016, representations with respect to energy use or efficiency of air-cooled small, large, and very large commercial package air conditioning and heating equipment, including compliance certifications, must be based on testing conducted in accordance with Table 1 to §431.96 as it now appears.

(1) Cooling mode test method. The test method for cooling mode consists of the methods and conditions in AHRI 340/360-2007 sections 3, 4, and 6 (omitting section 6.3) (incorporated by reference; see §431.95), and in ANSI/ASHRAE 37-2009 (incorporated by reference; see §431.95). In case of a conflict between AHRI 340/360-2007 or ANSI/ASHRAE 37-2009 and the CFR, the CFR provisions control.

(2) Heating mode test method. The test method for heating mode consists of the methods and conditions in AHRI 340/360-2007 sections 3, 4, and 6 (omitting section 6.3) (incorporated by reference; see §431.95), and in ANSI/ASHRAE 37-2009 (incorporated by reference; see §431.95). In case of a conflict between AHRI 340/360-2007 or ANSI/ASHRAE 37-2009 and the CFR, the CFR provisions control.

(3) Minimum external static pressure. Use the certified cooling capacity for the basic model to choose the minimum external static pressure found in table 5 of section 6 of AHRI 340/360-2007 (incorporated by reference; see §431.95) for testing.

(4) Optional break-in period. Manufacturers may optionally specify a “break-in” period, not to exceed 20 hours, to operate the equipment under test prior to conducting the test method in appendix A of this part. A manufacturer who elects to use an optional compressor break-in period in its certification testing must record this information (including the duration) as part of the information in the supplemental testing instructions under 10 CFR 429.43.

(5) Additional provisions for equipment set-up. The only additional specifications that may be used in setting up a unit for test are those set forth in the installation and operation manual shipped with the unit. Each unit should be set up for test in accordance with the manufacturer installation and operation manuals. Paragraphs (5)(i) through (ii) of this section provide specifications for addressing key information typically found in the installation and operation manuals.

(i) If a manufacturer specifies a range of superheat, sub-cooling, and/or refrigerant pressure in its installation and operation manual for a given basic model, any value(s) within that range may be used to determine refrigerant charge or mass of refrigerant, unless the manufacturer clearly specifies a rating value in its installation and operation manual, in which case the specified rating value shall be used.

(ii) The airflow rate used for testing must be that set forth in the installation and operation manuals being shipped to the customer with the basic model and clearly identified as that used to generate the DOE performance ratings. If a certified airflow value for testing is not clearly identified, a value of 400 standard cubic feet per minute (scfm) per ton shall be used.

(6) Indoor airflow testing and adjustment.

(i) When testing full-capacity cooling operation at the required external static pressure condition, the full-load indoor airflow rate must be within ± 3 percent of the certified-rated airflow at full-capacity cooling operation. If the indoor airflow rate at the required minimum external pressure is outside the ± 3-percent tolerance, the unit and/or test setup must be adjusted such that both the airflow and ESP are within the required tolerances. This process may include, but is not limited to, adjusting any adjustable motor sheaves, adjusting variable drive settings, or adjusting the code tester fan.

(ii) When testing other than full-capacity cooling operation using the full-load indoor airflow rate (e.g., full-load heating), the full-load indoor airflow rate must be within ± 3 percent of the certified-rated full-load cooling airflow (without regard to the resulting external static pressure), unless the unit is designed to operate at a different airflow for cooling and heating mode. If necessary, a test facility setup may be made in order to maintain airflow within the required tolerance; however, no adjustments to the unit under test may be made.

(7) Condenser head pressure controls. Condenser head pressure controls, if typically shipped with units of the basic model by the manufacturer or available as an option to the basic model, must be active during testing.

(8) Standard CFM. In the referenced sections of AHRI 340/360-2007 (incorporated by reference; see §431.95), all instances of CFM refer to standard CFM (SCFM). Likewise, all references to airflow or air quantity refer to standard airflow and standard air quantity.

(9) Capacity rating at part-load. When testing to determine EER for the part-load rating points (i.e. 75-percent load, 50-percent load, and 25-percent load), if the measured capacity expressed as a percent of full-load capacity for a given part-load test is within three percent above or below the target part-load percentage, the EER calculated for the test may be used without any interpolation to determine IEER.

(10) Condenser air inlet temperature for part-load testing. When testing to determine EER for the part-load rating points (i.e. 75-percent load, 50-percent load, and 25-percent load), the condenser air inlet temperature shall be calculated (using the equation in Table 6 of AHRI 340/360-2007; incorporated by reference; see §431.95) for the target percent load rather than for the percent load measured in the test. Table 1 of this appendix shows the condenser air inlet temperature corresponding with each target percent load, as calculated using the equation in Table 6 of AHRI 340/360-2007.

[80 FR 79670, Dec. 23, 2015]