For Industry
Clothes washers
The Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (Clothes Washing Machines) Determination 2024 was registered on 4 October 2024.
We are working to update the information on this page as soon as possible to reflect the new determination. Until that time, the information (listed below), relates solely to the Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (Clothes Washing Machines) Determination 2015.
Overview
Clothes washers are a large investment for consumers, not only in the upfront purchase price, but also in ongoing running costs. The Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards Determination for clothes washers helps consumers make wise choices by allowing them to compare energy efficiency and running costs across different models.
At a Glance
|
Determination |
Minimum Energy Performance Standards |
Energy Rating Label |
|---|---|---|
|
Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (Clothes Washing Machines) Determination 2015 |
No |
Yes |
Legislation
In Australia, this product is regulated under the Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards Act 2012.
In New Zealand, the relevant legislation is the Energy Efficiency (Energy Using Products) Regulations 2002. Visit the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority website for more information.
What products are covered?
Products covered by this Determination includes clothes washing machines that are ordinarily supplied and used for personal, domestic and household purposes. This includes horizontal and vertical axis single bowl machines (front or top loading), twin tub units and the washing function of combination washer/dryer units.
The Determination only covers appliances designed to wash textile materials in water by mechanical action, and extract water from the textile materials, usually by centrifugal action.
Refer to section 5 of the Determination for more details.
What products are not covered?
The Determination does not cover clothes washing machines that have each of the following.
- A rated load capacity of less than or equal to 2 kilograms for all textile materials.
- No connections to a mains water supply.
- No pump or other means for extracting water.
The Determination also does not cover clothes washing machines that are only capable of being used for cold wash operations, and have each of the following.
- No provision for internal water heating.
- A single water connection marked only for cold water.
- Automatic fill control.
- No program that indicates (directly or indirectly) that a program other than a cold wash program is possible.
- A user manual that explicitly states it is only suitable for cold washing operations.
- No associated product literature that states it is suitable for anything other than cold washing operations.
Technical requirements
For technical requirements regarding clothes washers, including testing requirements, review the relevant Determination and standards.
Standards
The following standards are referenced in this Determination and are available for purchase from Standards Australia.
- AS/NZS 2040.1:2005 Performance of household electrical appliances – Clothes washing machines – Part 1: Methods for measuring performance, energy and water consumption.
- AS/NZS 2040.2:2005 Performance of household electrical appliances – Clothes washing machines – Part 2: Energy efficiency labelling requirements.
The versions of the standards that apply are the versions that existed on 31 October 2015, when the Determination came into force.
Minimum Energy Performance Standards
There are no Minimum Energy Performance Standards for clothes washers.
However, clothes washers must meet the performance requirements mentioned in Clause 3.2 of AS/NZS 2442.2:2000 (Drying Clothes in a Single Operation) and Clause 3.3 of AS/NZS 2442.2:2000 (Maximum Fabric Temperature).
Testing your product
Your product must be tested in accordance with section 2 of AS/NZS 2040.2:2005, subject to the modifications listed in section 7 of the Determination.
Swatch normalisation
AS/NZS 2040.1:2005 includes a requirement to measure soil removal for clothes washers. This measurement is done using standard soil swatches.
To measure soil removal using soil swatches, test laboratories are required to use a swatch normalisation calculator published several times per year on our site. The swatch normalisation calculator enables test laboratories to compensate for variations between batches of soil swatches.
Labelling requirements
If you are supplying (or offering to supply) clothes washers in a retail store, the Energy Rating Label must be adhered to the upper front portion or any display front of each displayed appliance. If that’s not possible, then the Energy Rating Label can be adhered to the top.
See section 7 and Schedule 1 of the Determination for more information on the labelling and communication requirements for these products.
Visit the Labelling page for general labelling information and resources.
