The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has finalized changes to the test procedures for residential and commercial clothes washers and consumer clothes dryers. These updates include adjustments to the specifications of test cloth used in test procedures, such as clarifying the requirements for fabric weight and thread count, adding an alternative type of test cloth, and streamlining test cloth specifications for both washers and dryers. These changes, which aim to improve test consistency and adaptability to fabric availability, will be effective on February 18, 2025. Importantly, these amendments are not expected to increase testing costs or burdens on manufacturers.
Simple Explanation
The U.S. Department of Energy has made some changes to how washing machines and dryers are tested to make sure they work well; they updated the type of cloth used in the tests and explained how thick and tightly woven it should be. These changes will start in February 2025, and they shouldn't make it harder or more expensive for the people who build these machines.