Energy Star Labels Stripped from Five Fridge Models
by Jaymi Heimbuch, San Francisco, California 
on 11.25.08
Photo via Sebrenner
Whirlpool is reveling in delight. The company is a leader in Energy Star appliances, and seeing a competitor stripped of the designation must be pretty exciting.
Here’s the story: The Department of Energy did an investigation and found that a certain manufacturer underreported the energy consumption of their French-door Bottom Mount refrigerators. And so – Off with their labels!
Read on to find out who the guilty culprit is.
An important part of the investigation is the mere fact that they uncovered essentially a lie being told to consumers. Consumers who take Energy Star ratings seriously were being mislead by the manufacturer.
But on Friday, November 14th, the cat was let out of the bag and the DOE announced that the immediate removal of the Energy Star label was required for LG fridges and the company is to compensate owners, modify inventory, and remove the five models mistakenly labeled from the Energy Star program.
So what happened?? From Twice:
According to both parties, LG rated the refrigerators on the basis of a standard test procedure that has been widely used for nearly 30 years. LG said it didn’t take into account different applications of the testing rules for newer technologies used in the latest energy-efficient products. Specifically, DOE said LG didn’t set the refrigerators’ temperature-controllable compartments to their coldest levels, a requirement for energy-usage measurements.
Whirlpool, as we mentioned, is all atwitter:
"Thanks to the DOE's ongoing investigation, we have confidence that consumers will ultimately be able to make informed decisions about energy savings and environmental impact in this popular segment of the refrigeration category," said Greg Miller, general manager, refrigeration, Whirlpool North America. "Through our own testing, we know that Whirlpool Corporation's French-door Bottom Mount refrigerators are the most energy efficient sold today and have fully earned their ENERGY STAR label and rating."
Ultimately, they’re right. Consumers trust Energy Star labels to tell the truth, and something like this shakes the confidence. With this, consumers can make more informed decisions. Additionally, manufacturers will know to be more careful and aware of what the testing requirements are, and to live up to them. At least the DOE proved they're paying a little attention.
More on Energy Star ratings:
PC Buyers Might Get Efficiency Tags to Help with Computer Purchases
TVs Meeting New Energy Star Standards Hitting Stores for Holidays
Gaming Consoles Finally Getting Attention from Energy Star
"Energy Star @ Work" Online Tool Launches
Follow @TreeHugger on Twitter & get our headlines with @TH_rss!
Thirsty for more? Check out these related articles:
- Forget Going Green Because It's the Right Thing to Do—Go Green to Make Your Neighbors Jealous
- Green Demolitions Recycles Your Junk, Helps You Find New, Energy-Efficient Appliances
- Green Alternatives to Traditional Insulation
- Create a Go Green Plan: Follow Wa$ted!'s Salon Example
- Your Idle Computer Can Save Lives
- Turn Down the AC for Better Skin, Energy Efficiency
Check out the refrigerator by ConServ it uses alot less energy than a Whirlpool.
I ordered an Energy Star GE fridge from the Sears Canada online service, or at least it said it was Energy Star on the web site. When it was delivered, I found out it was not in fact an Energy Star rated fridge, and had no Energy Star sticker placed anywhere on it. I went to the GE website to confirm the rating, and in fact it was not an Energy Star rated fridge. Complaining to Sears did not help, and there was no way I was going to be reimbursed for false advertising. They have the worst service ever!
Of course, this is a case of buyer beware, and reminder to always do your research. My lesson in this case was not to trust the Sears web site ever again. But the question is, if an appliance manufacturer can have its Energy Star labels ripped off and be required to refund customers, why aren't companies required to reimburse customers for purchasing products falsely advertised online as Energy Star compliant? I suppose that because the internet is unregulated, it's essentially lawless. Buyer beware.
Perhaps it was just a misunderstanding - a language issue?
LG = Lucky and GoldStar. This South Korean company has a wide range of appliances sold in the US. Incorporated in 1995, they have grown like, well, topsy. They own several brands (LG-Notel, telecom to the Twins baseball club) and have become big players in the US market.
Recently in the news with massive fines for price fixing (LCD screens), the company seems to do a good job on so-called green issues and as far as I can find anyway, has not been hit with fines for pollution - although South Korea is not known as an envro leader.
Perhaps the DOE action will kick-start an internal look at how they will continue to do business in the US - and avoid fines and the bad publicly that goes along with them.
Numbers are not a translation issue, numbers are the same in all languages. They knew well and clear what "max" and "min" meant and decided to bend the rules to make their products look better. All in all, buy yourself a Kill-a-watt.
My repairman rates LG most reliable, so my GE dishwasher is now being recycled after years of malwashance and in its place is an adopted (50% off blem) LG unit. So, if it does last twice as long that IS efficiency, as probably 10% of the energy use of an appliance is its manufacture.