FROM THE FIELD
April 2006
When Lawmakers Mess With Pre-rinse Valves

The thing about legislators is that when they screw something up, it’s a botch that you can’t fix without involving more legislators. Common sense is no substitute where law is involved.

The new federal Energy Policy Act of 2005 is a good example. It does some good things, certainly. But like using a bull to clear out a china shop, some of the important details get overlooked.

The Act’s provision for corn ethanol-gasoline blends, to reduce our dependence on foreign petroleum, is a case in point. Strictly speaking, the move will significantly reduce the amount of petroleum in a gallon of fuel. But some argument continues about whether the poorer mileage of ethanol fuels will increase fuel consumption enough to offset the petroleum savings. And then there’s the matter of the petroleum used in the production of fertilizers. But no matter which way those debates go, the ethanol plan will actually increase overall energy consumption because the energy required to grow the corn and process the ethanol is greater than the energy value in the ethanol.

Another oddity is the law’s requirement that all pre-rinse spray valves sold as of  Jan. 1, 2006, must meet low-flow water standards set at 1.6 gals./min. at 60 psi. The idea is to save water and the energy needed to heat it.

Like the ethanol idea, or the water-saving toilet legislation from a few years back, the basic intent is good, but the details leave something to be desired.

"The new Energy Policy Act mandates low-flow pre-rinse valves, but no performance standard."

Two main sore spots arise. First, the law mandates water usage standards but not cleaning performance, much in the way that the low-flow toilet laws didn’t guaranty a successful flush. Manufacturers who have already qualified their low-flows against the California Energy Commission’s mandatory performance test (cleanability in 26 secs. or less per plate, based on ASTM’s standardized pre-rinse valve test procedure) are concerned that new valves with low-flow labels could come into the market and disrupt it with products that fail to clean plates effectively.

A second argument is that the new law removes the incentive for utilities to offer rebates on the low-flow units, which will, ironically, slow down conversions to the water-saving designs.

So what to do about it? First, whether you’re running foodservice in Maine or California, make sure the low-flow model you’re buying has been certified through the California Energy Commission program. If the valve you’re looking at is intended for sale in California, it’ll have to pass that test anyway. And even if you’re a regional operator looking at a manufacturer who doesn’t sell in California, you should at the very least have a reputable third party test the valve to the ASTM standard test method procedure and measure the cleaning time. Anything under 30 secs. is good.

As of this writing, Encore, Fisher, Niagra and T&S Brass have already put their low-flow models through the program and passed. To find out more about the process and see the current list of which models are certified, go to www.fishnick.com/saveenergy/sprayvalves/.

Brian Ward
Chief Editor