PDFWAC 51-11C-40350

Section C403.5Economizers.

C403.5 Economizers. Air economizers shall be provided on all new cooling systems including those serving computer server rooms, electronic equipment, radio equipment, and telephone switchgear. Economizers shall comply with Sections C403.5.1 through C403.5.5.
EXCEPTIONS:
1. Cooling systems not installed outdoors nor in a mechanical room adjacent to outdoors and installed in conjunction with DOAS complying with Section C403.3.5 and serving only spaces with year-round cooling loads from lights and equipment of less than 5 watts per square foot.
 
2. Unitary or packaged systems serving one zone with dehumidification that affect other systems so as to increase the overall building energy consumption. New humidification equipment shall comply with Section C403.3.2.5.
 
3. Unitary or packaged systems serving one zone where the cooling efficiency meets or exceeds the efficiency requirements in Table C403.5.
 
4. Equipment serving chilled beams and chilled ceiling space cooling systems only which are provided with a water economizer meeting the requirements of Section C403.5.4.
 
5. For Group R occupancies, cooling units installed outdoors or in a mechanical room adjacent to outdoors with a total cooling capacity less than 20,000 Btu/h and other cooling units with a total cooling capacity less than 54,000 Btu/h provided that these are high-efficiency cooling equipment with IEER, CEER, SEER, and EER values more than 15 percent higher than minimum efficiencies listed in Tables C403.3.2 (1) through (3), in the appropriate size category, using the same test procedures. Equipment shall be listed in the appropriate certification program to qualify for this exception. For split systems, compliance is based on the cooling capacity of individual fan coil units.
 
6. Equipment used to cool Controlled Plant Growth Environments provided these are high-efficiency cooling equipment with SEER, EER and IEER values a minimum of 20 percent greater than the values listed in Tables C403.3.2 (1), (3) and (7).
 
7. Equipment serving a space with year-round cooling loads from lights and equipment of 5 watts per square foot or greater complying with the following criteria:
 
7.1. Equipment serving the space utilizes chilled water as the cooling source; and
 
7.2. The chilled water plant includes a condenser heat recovery system that meets the requirements of Section C403.9.5 or the building and water-cooled system meets the following requirements:
 
7.2.1. A minimum of 90 percent (capacity-weighted) of the building space heat is provided by hydronic heating water.
 
7.2.2. Chilled water plant includes a heat recovery chiller or water-to-water heat pump capable of rejecting heat from the chilled water system to the hydronic heating equipment capacity.
 
7.2.3. Heat recovery chillers shall have a minimum COP of 7.0 when providing heating and cooling water simultaneously.
 
8. Water-cooled equipment served by systems meeting the requirements of Section C403.9.2.4 Condenser heat recovery.
 
9. Equipment used to cool any dedicated server room, electronic equipment room or telecom switch room provided the system complies with option a, b, or c in the table below. The total cooling capacity of all fan systems without economizers shall not exceed 240,000 Btu/h per building or 10 percent of its air economizer capacity, whichever is greater. This exception shall not be used for total building performance.
 
10. Dedicated outdoor air systems that include energy recovery as required by Section C403.7.6 but do not include mechanical cooling.
 
11. Dedicated outdoor air systems not required by Section C403.7.6 to include energy recovery that modulate the supply airflow to provide only the minimum outdoor air required by Section C403.2.2.1 for ventilation, exhaust air make-up, or other process air delivery.
 
Equipment Type
Higher Equipment
Efficiency
Part-Load Control
Economizer
Option a
Tables C403.3.2(1)
and C403.3.2(2)a
+15%b
Required over
85,000 Btu/hc
None Required
Option b
Tables C403.3.2(1)
and C403.3.2(2)a
+5%d
Required over
85,000 Btu/hc
Waterside Economizere
Option c
ASHRAE Standard 127f
+0%g
Required over
85,000 Btu/hc
Waterside Economizere
Notes for Exception 9:
a
For a system where all of the cooling equipment is subject to the AHRI standards listed in Tables C403.3.2(1) and C403.3.2(2), the system shall comply with all of the following (note that if the system contains any cooling equipment that exceeds the capacity limits in Table C403.3.2(1) or C403.3.2(2), or if the system contains any cooling equipment that is not included in Table C403.3.2(1) or C403.3.2(2), then the system is not allowed to use this option).
b
The cooling equipment shall have an EER value and an IPLV value that is a minimum of 15 percent greater than the value listed in Tables C403.3.2(1) and C403.3.2(2).
c
For units with a total cooling capacity over 85,000 Btu/h, the system shall utilize part-load capacity control schemes that are able to modulate to a part-load capacity of 50 percent of the load or less that results in the compressor operating at the same or higher EER at part loads than at full load (e.g., minimum of two-stages of compressor unloading such as cylinder unloading, two-stage scrolls, dual tandem scrolls, but hot gas bypass is not credited as a compressor unloading system).
d
The cooling equipment shall have an EER value and an IPLV value that is a minimum of 5 percent greater than the value listed in Tables C403.3.2(1) and C403.3.2(2).
e
The system shall include a water economizer in lieu of air economizer. Water economizers shall meet the requirements of C403.5.1 and C403.5.2 and be capable of providing the total concurrent cooling load served by the connected terminal equipment lacking airside economizer, at outside air temperatures of 50°F dry-bulb/45°F wet-bulb and below. For this calculation, all factors including solar and internal load shall be the same as those used for peak load calculations, except for the outside temperatures. The equipment shall be served by a dedicated condenser water system unless a nondedicated condenser water system exists that can provide appropriate water temperatures during hours when waterside economizer cooling is available.
f
For a system where all cooling equipment is subject to ASHRAE Standard 127.
g
The cooling equipment subject to the ASHRAE Standard 127 shall have an EER value and an IPLV value that is equal to or greater than the value listed in Tables C403.3.2(1) and C403.3.2(2) when determined in accordance with the rating conditions ASHRAE Standard 127 (i.e., not the rating conditions in AHRI Standard 210/240 or 340/360). This information shall be provided by an independent third party.
Table C403.5
Equipment Efficiency Performance
Exception for Economizers
Climate Zones
Efficiency Improvementa
4C
64%
5B
59%
a
If a unit is rated with an IPLV, IEER or SEER then to eliminate the required air or water economizer, the minimum cooling efficiency of the HVAC unit must be increased by the percentage shown. If the HVAC unit is only rated with a full load metric like EER or COP cooling, then these must be increased by the percentage shown.
[Statutory Authority: RCW 19.27A.020, 19.27A.025, 19.27A.160 and chapter 19.27 RCW. WSR 19-24-040, § 51-11C-40350, filed 11/26/19, effective 7/1/20. Statutory Authority: RCW 19.27A.025, 19.27A.160, and 19.27.074. WSR 16-03-072, § 51-11C-40350, filed 1/19/16, effective 7/1/16. Statutory Authority: RCW 19.27A.020, 19.27A.025 and chapters 19.27 and 34.05 RCW. WSR 13-04-056, § 51-11C-40350, filed 2/1/13, effective 7/1/13.]