November 20^th, 2012

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NEW FEDERAL LAW MANDATES PURCHASE OF COSTLY REPLACEMENT HEATING EQUIPMENT AFTER MAY 1^ST

Hanover, Minnesota

            New Federal energy requirements mean that, after May 1^st 2013, anyone in the state replacing their furnace with a new installation must replace it with a furnace that has an efficiency of at least 90%. This will mean great additional expense for a lot of homeowners, as not only are these furnaces thousands of dollars more expensive than the current standard 80% efficient models, but the way these furnaces vent may require some extensive work in older homes, townhouse and condos, risking thousands of dollars more in installation costs.

The Federal Energy Star requirements mean that any contractor installing a furnace of less than 90% efficiency in this state after May 1^st is breaking the law and may be prosecuted. This means contractors will have an excess of stock, and that consumers looking to replace their furnaces only have a limited time to take advantage of it, or they run the risk of a needless bill for thousands of dollars that they are unlikely to make up in energy bill savings from the higher efficiency models for a very long time.

The newer efficiency models vent from the side and produce condensation so cannot be installed with the same venting system as the old furnaces, which used metal vents that the condensation would simply rust away. Given that they must vent out the side as well, serious pipe restructuring might be needed, along with new holes drilled in walls.

Owners of townhomes and rental properties stand the most to lose.  Townhomes can be very difficult to vent the 90% efficient furnace and because of the smaller size home there could be very little saving in heating cost.  With the additional installation cost there may not be any ROI over the life of the furnace.  Further information can be found on the Department of Energy (DOE) web site at www.eere.energy.gov.

You can also contact Corey Hickmann at corey@comfortmatters.com with questions about federal energy requirements. 

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