In December 2009, the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers (AHAM) announced its plan to create a voluntary third-party-verification program for refrigerators and freezers, to be implemented by June 2010. Independent testing is vital to ensuring that appliances don’t use more energy than what’s indicated on their EnergyGuide labels, as can happen under the current system of self-certification by manufacturers. Yesterday, the industry group finally launched the program ... well, sort of. “The procedural guide is in place, and we expect final approval from the board by August 13,” said AHAM spokeswoman Jill Notini.
 
Appliance testing evolves at a glacial pace in the U.S. (the Energy Department, for example, is in the process of updating a decades-old rule for refrigerators and freezers), so it’s actually pretty good that AHAM is only two months behind schedule. Eight manufacturers—AGA Marvel, Electrolux, GE, LG, Liebherr-Canada Ltd., Sanyo, Viking Range Corporation, and Whirlpool Corporation—have signed the voluntary agreement, with more expected to do so in the coming days.
 
The independent testing will be carried out by CSA International, a nationally recognized laboratory, with the results posted on a public, searchable database on the AHAM website starting September 1, 2010. The information is also likely to be used by the Environmental Protection Agency as part of its effort to require third-party verification for all Energy Star products by the end of 2010.
 
This is a big step forward for the appliance industry, and AHAM deserves credit for its relative speed. The only downside is that the procedural guide will, we’re told, reference the existing Energy Department test procedure, which won’t be updated until 2014. As a result, manufacturers are essentially agreeing to have their products tested according to an obsolete rule. Hopefully, manufacturers will continue to volunteer for third-party verification even after the new rules take effect.
 
Read our latest reviews of refrigerators and freezers, which include energy use tests.

—Daniel DiClerico