Retrofitting_Residential_Equipment_–_Clothes_Washers

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Retrofitting Residential Equipment – Clothes Washers

Applicability

A typical family of four washes a little more than one load of laundry per day, which
accounts for approximately 22 percent of residential indoor water use (Vickers, 2001).
While the average clothes washer in the United States uses 41 gallons of water per
load, the new high efficiency clothes washers use between 11 and 25 gallons per load.
A Residential Clothes Washer Incentive Program BMP would encourage customers to
purchase water efficient clothes washers through a direct discount at the time of
purchase or a rebate after the purchase. This BMP can be implemented by any Water
User Group (“utility”) that has residential customers.

Description

Under this BMP, the utility would develop and implement an incentive program to
encourage customers to purchase efficient clothes washers. Water efficiency for clothes
washers is best described by using water factor (WF) terminology. WF is calculated by
dividing the gallons of water used to wash a full load of clothes by the capacity of the
washer tub in cubic feet. As of Jan. 1, 2011, the U.S. Department of Energy requires
that all Energy Star washing machines have a maximum WF of 6.0, which is the highest
ratio that the Consortium of Energy Efficiency (CEE) will consider as an efficient model
of washing machine. For more information, go to
http://apps1.eere.energy.gov/news/news_detail.cfm/news_id=11628.

For this BMP to be the most effective, the incentive offered should bridge at least one-
half of the gap in the price difference between the efficient machines and conventional
ones. As with any incentive program, the amount of the incentive will impact the
participation in the program. Fully featured inefficient machines cost approximately
$400, while the least expensive efficient machines cost between $600 and about $1000.
For the least expensive machines, the price difference is around $200. The price
difference is the most important factor of the buying decision for low-income customers.
In addition, low-to-moderate income customers would be more likely to purchase the
efficient washer if they received the incentive in the form of a discount at the time of
purchase, rather than waiting between four weeks and six weeks for a rebate.

A clothes washer incentive program can be more effective if offered in conjunction with
local gas and/or electric utilities because the incentive can be increased and the
marketing reach should expand. The energy savings is a result of using more efficient
motors, less energy required for heating hot water because less hot water is used, and
a shorter drying time because the spin cycle on efficient washers remove more water.

Incentives should only be given to those customers who install washers that qualify as
water efficient. A list of efficient washers is maintained and regularly updated by the
Consortium for Energy Efficiency (CEE); please see CEE website at
http://www.cee1.org/. CEE, a nonprofit public benefits corporation, develops national

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initiatives to promote the manufacture and purchase of energy-efficient products and
services. The U.S. Department of Energy and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
support CEE through active participation and funding. The CEE has ratings based on
water and energy efficiency. This list has been used by many utilities as the source of
qualifying washers to receive an incentive.

The utility may want to give higher rebates or discounts to customers purchasing the
most WF efficient CEE Tier III models, slightly less to those purchasing Tier II models,
and the lowest incentives to those purchasing Tier I models.

Implementation

Develop and implement a clothes washer incentive program designed to increase the
market share of efficient clothes washers to 20 percent of the installed units by the
second year of implementation. The program should be offered to customers in single-
family homes and in multi-family units that have in-unit washer connections. Approach
the local gas and/or electric utility to join in a partnership to implement the program.
Organize stakeholder meetings. Develop a marketing plan for educating customers,
appliance stores, and realtors about this program. Initiate the program.

Schedule

The following schedule should:

Plan, implement and market an efficient clothes washer incentive program within
six months of adopting this BMP.
Continue marketing efforts to achieve at least 20 percent market penetration for
efficient washers by the end of the second year after implementing this BMP.

Scope

In order to accomplish this BMP, the utility should:

Develop and implement a plan to offer incentives for the purchase of efficient
clothes washers.
Within two years of implementing this program, increase the market share of
efficient clothes washers to at least 20 percent of local clothes washer sales.

Documentation
To track the effectiveness of this BMP, the utility should:

Calculate the number of single-family homes and multi-family units with in-unit
washer connections.

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Calculate the average number of persons per household for single-family and
multi-family residences.
Calculate the number of efficient clothes washer incentives issued each year, by
year, including brand, model and water factor of each efficient washer.
Estimate water savings per efficient washer.
Average total washer sales per year in the service area.

Determination of Water Savings

H. Cost Effectiveness Considerations

The rebates to the customers for installation of water efficient clothes washers are the
most significant costs of this program. If the rebate cost for the clothes washer is set too
low, only those customers already planning to buy an efficient washer will do so. If the
rebate is set to high, the utility will be overpaying the customer to retrofit. Most utilities
that implement this BMP have found a rebate to work effectively if set between $50 and
$100 per efficient clothes washer. If partnering with an energy utility, the gas or electric
utility rebate could add an additional $50 to $100. Some utilities have started offering
tiered rebates based on the efficiency of the washer; the highest rebates are offered for
the most-efficient washers in the lowest water factor tier.

Administration of the program can be conducted by utility staff or contracted out.
Washer inspections are sometimes performed in order to verify installation and
discourage fraud. Labor costs range from $15 to $35 per clothes washer. Marketing and
outreach costs range from $5 to $15 per clothes washer. Administrative and overhead
costs range from 10 percent to 20 percent of labor costs.

To calculate the total cost per unit, total all costs and divide by the number of units
being retrofitted.

Savings = EWS x 5.6 x Hs + EWM x 5.6 x Hm

EWS = Number of single-family efficient washer incentives
EWM = Number of in-unit multi-family washer incentives
Hs = Number of people in average single-family household
Hm = Number of people in average multi-family household

Or

Single-Family: 5.6 = gallons saved per capita per day

Multi-Family In-Unit: 5.6 = gallons saved per capita per day

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For comments or questions regarding the Retrofitting Residential Clothes Washers
BMP, please contact the water efficiency specialist of the Water Supply Planning
Branch at 919-707-9009.

References:
The Department of Energy:
http://apps1.eere.energy.gov/news/news_detail.cfm/news_id=11628)
Handbook of Water Use and Conservation, Amy Vickers, Waterplow Press,
May 2001.
Texas Water Development Board Report 362, Water Conservation Best
Management Practices Guide, November 2004.