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| Environmental Standards For Appliances - Colorado House Bill HB23-1161 |
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| Energy Star ratings starting July 31, 2026 |
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| Find the HB23-1161 Act here - Signed by the Governor on June 1, 2023 - Colorado General Assembly - Effective January 1, 2026 |
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| This Act sets new standards for Furnaces, Water Heaters, Air Purifiers, Fluorescent Light Bulbs, Gas Fireplaces, Residential Doors, Windows and Skylights, and other equipment. |
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| Part 15 - (page 32) Environmental Standards for Heating and Water Heating Appliances |
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| Emission Standard for new products, also known as Ultra Low NOx (NOx = Nitrogen oxides) |
| > Furnaces - 14 ng/J* |
| > Water Heaters - 10 ng/J* with a rated heat input capacity of up to 75,000. |
| > Water Heaters - 14ng/J* with a rated heat input capacity of more than 75,000 to 2 million BTU's per hour. |
| * Nanograms of NOx per Joule |
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| Current furnaces are about 40 ng/J |
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| NOx contributes to poor air quality, smog formation, respiratory problems particuarly for children and people with asthma. |
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| Ultra Low NOx is mainly achieved by precisely pre-mixing gas and air before it reaches the burners rather than mixing them in the flame itself combined with lower flame temperatures. Which achieves a cleaner emissions. |
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| See Ultra Low NOx L8 models on the Submital page. |
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| Energy Star ratings starting July 31, 2026 |
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| 7/31/2026 new Energy Star Furnace Version 5 specification of 97.0% AFUE for the U.S. North regions (Colorado) |
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| Late 2028 DOE Energy Efficiency Standard of at least 95% AFUE |
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