- The new rule would require that gas-burning residential furnaces be condensing gas furnaces
- Condensing furnaces which reuse gas and water vapor that normal noncondensing furnaces vent into the atmosphere
- All gas-burning furnaces on the market would have to be converted from condensing to non-condensing by 2029
- The rule is now open for public comment on the Federal Register for the next 60 days before its final consideration
Biden’s Energy Department has proposed a new rule that would require homeowners looking to buy a new furnace to install a 95 percent energy-efficient one within the next seven years.
The new rule would require that gas-burning residential furnaces be condensing gas furnaces, which reuse gas and water vapor that normal noncondensing furnaces vent into the atmosphere. It would require that all gas-burning furnaces on the market to be switched over by 2029.
The rule is now open for public comment on the Federal Register for the next 60 days before its final consideration.
Condensing furnaces cost about $350 more than noncondensing furnaces, according to a 2017 public comment from the American Gas Association when President Obama tried to implement a similar rule. Condensing models also cost about $1,500 to $2,200 to install.
The current national average cost to replace a furnace, including materials and labor, is $4,671, according to HomeAdvisor.
The Department of Energy (DOE) estimates that the new furnaces will save households about $60 per year, a number that totals $30.3 billion over the next 30 years. It also estimated that the rule would eliminate more than 360 million metric tons of carbon emissions.
‘By updating energy standards for many carbon-emitting appliances, such as home furnaces, the Biden Administration is working to save consumers money,’ Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm said in a statement.
Older furnaces currently have a fuel efficiency rate of around 56 percent, according to DOE. The new rule would be the first significant update to furnace efficiency standards in decades.
The Obama-era proposal would have required furnaces to be 92 percent efficient, though the rule never came to fruition. One of former President Trump’s last moves in office was a January 2021 rule requiring energy efficiency standards to allow noncondensing furnaces to stay on the market.
The new rule comes after on Tuesday Granholm suggested electric cars were a solution to sky-high gas prices.