How manufacturers coped with a $100 million mandate.
The first major change to hit the water heater industry for almost 30 years has been in place for six months. All new conventional gas-fired water heaters are required to use new technology complying with the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) standard, ANSI Z21.10.1-2001.
Gas water heaters captured the attention of the U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission in the early 1990s regarding the fire hazard posed by the potential ignition of flammable vapors, such as the spill or misuse of gasoline, near the heaters. The technology to meet the standard, which requires the design of water heaters “shall not ignite flammable vapors outside the water heater created by the spilling of… gasoline onto the floor,” was developed by the joint effort of industry members.