(Fox News) It took an angry public reaction against proposed federal restrictions on gas stoves to get the Biden-Harris administration regulators to reconsider. But that was last year, and in the meantime, Washington bureaucrats have quietly continued their meddling over many other home appliances, with potentially negative consequences for consumers in the years ahead.
1. Furnaces – A new Department of Energy (DOE) efficiency regulation will effectively prohibit new non-condensing gas furnaces by 2028. Owners of many older residences rely on these non-condensing models, and those in need of a new one would usually be best off with a straightforward replacement rather than face potentially costly installation challenges from switching to a condensing gas furnace with very different venting requirements. Even the agency admits to an $867 price increase for more difficult installations, but others think this a lowball estimate given all that the changeover from a non-condensing to a condensing unit can entail.
2. Water Heaters – Anyone interested in a new electric water heater might want to buy one before 2029, when another DOE efficiency standard will raise prices by an agency-estimated $953. As with the furnace rule, DOE claims homeowners will earn back the higher up-front cost of these newfangled water heaters in the form of energy savings. In reality, the rule will probably be a net money-loser for many homeowners, especially if the installation costs turn out to be higher than the agency’s often-rosy estimates.
3. Central Air Conditioners – DOE isn’t the only federal agency inflicting pain on homeowners. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized a rule requiring that all new central air conditioners manufactured after January 1, 2025, must use new agency-approved refrigerants deemed sufficiently climate-friendly.
