(1)

‘transparent door(s)’ means external door(s) made of a transparent material that allows the end-user to see items through it, at least 75 % of the internal cabinet height and 75 % of the internal cabinet width shall be transparent, both measured at the front of the cabinet;

(2)

‘fast freeze’ means a feature that can be activated by the end-user according to the manufacturer’s, the importer’s or authorised representative’s instructions, which decreases the storage temperature of freezer compartment(s) to achieve a faster freezing of unfrozen foodstuffs;

(3)

‘winter setting’ means a control feature for a combi appliance with one compressor and one thermostat, which according to the manufacturer’s, importer’s or authorised representative’s instructions can be used in ambient temperatures below +16 °C, consisting of a switching device or function that guarantees, even if it would not be required for the compartment where the thermostat is located, that the compressor keeps on working to maintain the proper storage temperatures in the other compartments;

(4)

‘chill compartment’ means a compartment which is able to control its average temperature within a certain range without user-adjustments of its control, with a target temperature equal to 2 °C and storage conditions ranging from - 3 °C to 3 °C, as set out in Annex III, Table 3;

(5)

‘vacuum insulation panel’ (VIP) means an insulation panel consisting of a firm, highly-porous material encased in a thin, gas-tight outer envelope, from which the gases are evacuated and which is sealed to prevent outside gases from entering the panel;

(6)

‘2-star section’ means part of a 3-star or 4-star compartment which does not have its own individual access door or lid and with a target temperature and storage conditions of - 12 °C;

(7)

‘door gasket’ means a mechanical seal which fills the space between the door and the cabinet of the refrigerating appliance to prevent leakage from the cabinet to the outdoor air;

(8)

‘spare part’ means a separate part that can replace a part with the same or similar function in a product;

(9)

‘professional repairer’ means an operator or undertaking which provides services of repair and professional maintenance of refrigerating appliances;

(10)

‘freestanding appliance’ means a refrigerating appliance that is not a built-in appliance;

(11)

‘built-in appliance’ means a refrigerating appliance that is designed, tested and marketed exclusively:

(12)

‘guarantee’ means any undertaking by the retailer or a manufacturer, importer or authorised representative to the consumer to:

(13)

‘climate class’ means the range of ambient temperatures, as set out in point 1(i) of Annex III, in which the refrigerating appliances are intended to be used, and for which the required storage temperatures specified in Annex III, Table 3 are met simultaneously in all compartment(s);

(14)

‘product database’ means a collection of data concerning products, which is arranged in a systematic manner and consists of a consumer-oriented public part, where information concerning individual product parameters is accessible by electronic means, an online portal for accessibility and a compliance part, with clearly specified accessibility and security requirements, as laid down in Regulation (EU) 2017/1369 of the European Parliament and of the Council (1);

(15)

‘annual energy consumption’ (AE) means the average daily energy consumption multiplied by 365 (days per year), expressed in kilowatt hour per year (kWh/a), as calculated in accordance with point 3 of Annex III;

(16)

‘daily energy consumption’ (Edaily ) means the electricity used by a refrigerating appliance over 24 hours at reference conditions, expressed in kilowatt hour per 24 hours (kWh/24 h), as calculated in accordance with point 3 of Annex III;

(17)

‘dispenser’ means a device that dispenses chilled or frozen load on demand from a refrigerating appliance, such as ice-cube dispensers or chilled water dispensers;

(18)

‘variable temperature compartment’ means a compartment intended for use as two (or more) alternative compartment types (for example a compartment that can be either a fresh food compartment or freezer compartment) and which is capable of being set by a user to continuously maintain the operating temperature range applicable for each declared compartment type. A compartment intended for use as a single compartment type that can also meet storage conditions of other compartment types (for example a chill compartment that may also fulfil 0-star requirements) is not a variable temperature compartment;

(19)

‘network’ means a communication infrastructure with a topology of links, an architecture, including the physical components, organisational principles, communication procedures and formats (protocols);

(20)

‘steady-state power consumption’ (Pss ) means the average power consumption in steady-state conditions, expressed in watt (W);

(21)

‘incremental defrost and recovery energy consumption’ (ΔΕd-f ) means the extra average energy consumption for a defrost and recovery operation, expressed in watt hour (Wh);

(22)

‘auto-defrost’ means a feature by which compartments are defrosted without user intervention to initiate the removal of frost accumulation at all temperature-control settings or to restore normal operation, and the disposal of the defrosted water is automatic;

(23)

‘defrost interval’ (td-f ) means the representative average interval, expressed in hour (h), between one time of activation of the defrost heater and the next in two subsequent defrost and recovery cycles; or if there is no defrost heater one time of deactivation of the compressor and the next in two subsequent defrost and recovery cycles;

(24)

‘defrost and recovery period’ means the period from the initiation of a defrost control cycle until stable operating conditions are re-established;

(25)

‘defrosting type’ means the method to remove frost accumulation on the evaporator(s) of a refrigerating appliance; that is auto-defrost or manual defrost;

(26)

‘manual defrost’ means not having an auto-defrost function;

(27)

‘load factor’ (L) means a factor accounting for the extra (beyond what is already anticipated through the higher average ambient temperature for testing) cooling load from introducing warm foodstuffs, with values as set out in point 3(a) of Annex III;

(28)

‘standard annual energy consumption’ (SAE) means the reference annual energy consumption of a refrigerating appliance, expressed in kilowatt hour per year (kWh/a), as calculated in accordance with point 4 of Annex III;

(29)

‘combi parameter’ (C) means a modelling parameter that takes into account the synergy effect when different compartment types are combined in one appliance, with values as set out in Annex III, Table 4;

(30)

‘door heat loss factor’ (D) means a compensation factor for combi appliances according to the number of different temperature compartments or the number of external doors, whichever is lower and as set out in Annex III, Table 5. For this factor, ‘compartment’ does not refer to sub-compartment;

(31)

‘defrost factor’ (Ac ) means a compensation factor that takes into account whether the refrigerating appliance has an auto-defrost or a manual defrost, with values as set out in Annex III, Table 5;

(32)

‘built-in factor’ (Bc ) means a compensation factor that takes into account whether the refrigerating appliance is built-in or freestanding, with values as set out in Annex III, Table 5;

(33)

‘Mc’ and ‘Nc’ means modelling parameters that take into account the volume-dependence of the energy use, with values as set out in Annex III, Table 4;

(34)

‘thermodynamic parameter’ (rc ) means a modelling parameter which corrects the standard annual energy consumption to an ambient temperature of 24 °C, with values as set out in Annex III, Table 4;

(35)

‘equivalent model’ means a model which has the same technical characteristics relevant for the technical information to be provided, but which is placed on the market or put into service by the same manufacturer, importer or authorised representative as another model with a different model identifier;

(36)

‘model identifier’ means the code, usually alphanumeric, which distinguishes a specific product model from other models with the same trade mark or the same supplier’s name;

(37)

‘refrigerator-freezer’ means a combi appliance that has at least one freezer compartment and at least one fresh food compartment.

(a)

From 1 March 2021, the energy efficiency index (EEI) of refrigerating appliances shall not be above the values as set out in Table 1.

Table 1

Maximum EEI for refrigerating appliances, expressed in %

(b)

From 1 March 2024, the EEI of refrigerating appliances shall not be above the values set out in Table 2.

Table 2

Maximum EEI for refrigerating appliances, expressed in %

(a)

Any fast freeze facility, or any similar function achieved through modification of the temperature settings in freezer compartments, shall, once activated by the end-user according to the manufacturer’s, the importer’s or authorised representative’s instructions, automatically revert to the previous normal storage conditions after no more than 72 hours.

(b)

Winter settings shall be automatically activated or de-activated according to the need to maintain the frozen compartment(s) at the correct temperature.

(c)

Each compartment shall be marked with the appropriate identification symbol. For the frozen compartments this shall be the number of stars of the compartment. For the chill and unfrozen compartments, this shall be an indication, chosen by the manufacturer, the importer or authorised representative, of the type of food that should be stored in the compartment.

(d)

If the refrigerating appliance contains vacuum insulation panels, the refrigerating appliance shall be labelled with the letters ‘VIP’ in a clearly visible and readable way.

(e)

For 2-star sub-compartments or 2-star sections:

(f)

For 4-star compartments, the specific freezing capacity shall be such that the freezing time to bring the temperature of the light load (3,5 kg/100 l) from +25 to - 18 °C at an ambient temperature of 25 °C, is smaller than or equal to 18,5 h.

(a)

Availability of spare parts:

(b)

Access to repair and maintenance information:

After a period of two years after the placing on the market of the first unit of a model or of an equivalent model, and until the end of the period mentioned under (a), the manufacturer, importer or authorised representative shall provide access to the appliance repair and maintenance information to professional repairers in the following conditions:

Once registered, a professional repairer shall have access, within one working day after requesting it, to the requested repair and maintenance information. The available repair and maintenance information shall include:

(c)

Maximum delivery time of spare parts:

(d)

Requirements for dismantling for material recovery and recycling while avoiding pollution:

(a)

the combination of drawers, baskets and shelves that result in the most efficient use of energy for the refrigerating appliance;

(b)

clear guidance about where and how to store foodstuffs in a refrigerating appliance for best preservation over the longest period, to avoid food waste;

(c)

the recommended setting of temperatures in each compartment for optimum food preservation. These settings shall not contradict the storage conditions set out in Annex III, Table 3;

(d)

an estimation of the impact of temperature settings on food waste;

(e)

a description of the effects of special modes and features, and in particular how temperatures are affected in each compartment and for how long;

(f)

for wine storage appliances: ‘this appliance is intended to be used exclusively for the storage of wine’. This shall not apply to refrigerating appliances that are not specifically designed for wine storage but may be used for this purpose, or to refrigerating appliances that have a wine storage compartment combined with any other compartment type;

(g)

instructions for the correct installation and end-user maintenance, including cleaning, of the refrigerating appliance;

(h)

for a freestanding appliance: ‘this refrigerating appliance is not intended to be used as a built-in appliance’;

(i)

for appliances without a 4-star compartment: ‘this refrigerating appliance is not suitable for freezing foodstuffs’;

(j)

access to professional repair, such as internet webpages, addresses, contact details;

(k)

relevant information for ordering spare parts, directly or through other channels provided by the manufacturer, importer or authorised representative;

(l)

the minimum period during which spare parts, necessary for the repair of the appliance, are available;

(m)

the minimum duration of the guarantee of the refrigerating appliance offered by the manufacturer, importer or authorised representative;

(n)

for refrigerating appliances with climate class:

(o)

instruction on how to find the model information in the product database, as defined in Regulation (EU) 2019/2016 by means of a weblink that links to the model information as stored in the product database or a link to the product database and information on how to find the model identifier on the product.

(a)

for refrigerating appliances with anti-condensation heaters that can be switched on and off by the end-user, the anti-condensation heaters shall be switched on and — if adjustable — set at maximum heating and included in the annual energy consumption (AE) as daily energy consumption (Edaily );

(b)

for refrigerating appliances with ambient controlled anti-condensation heaters, the ambient controlled electric anti-condensation heaters shall be switched off or otherwise disabled, where possible, during the measurement of energy consumption;

(c)

for refrigerating appliances with dispensers that can be switched on and off by the end-user, the dispensers shall be switched on during the energy consumption test but not operating;

(d)

for the measurement of energy consumption, variable temperature compartments shall operate at the lowest temperature that can be set by the end-user to continuously maintain the temperature range, as set out in Table 3, of the compartment type which has the lowest temperature;

(e)

for refrigerating appliances that can be connected to a network, the communication module shall be activated but there is no need to have a specific type of communication or data exchange or both during the energy consumption test. During the energy consumption test it has to be ensured that the unit is connected to a network;

(f)

for the performance of chill compartments:

(g)

for adjustable volume compartments, when the volumes of two compartments are adjustable relative to one another by the end-user, the energy consumption and the volume shall be tested when the volume of the compartment with the higher target temperature is adjusted to its minimum volume;

(h)

the specific freezing capacity is calculated as 12 times the light load weight, divided by the freezing time to bring the temperature of the light load from +25 to -18 °C at an ambient temperature of 25 °C expressed in kg/12 h and rounded to one decimal place; the light load weight is 3,5 kg per 100 litre of the compartment volume of the frozen compartments, and shall be at least 2,0 kg;

(i)

for the determination of the climate classes, the acronym for the ambient temperature range, that is SN, N, ST or T:

(a)

For all refrigerating appliances, except for low noise refrigerating appliances:

The energy consumption shall be determined by testing at an ambient temperature of 16 °C and 32 °C.

To determine the energy consumption, the average air temperatures in each compartment shall be equal to or below the target temperatures specified in Table 3 for each compartment type claimed by the manufacturer, the importer or authorised representative. Values above and below target temperatures may be used to estimate the energy consumption at the target temperature for each relevant compartment by interpolation, as appropriate.

The main components of energy consumption to be determined are:

(b)

For low noise refrigerating appliances:

The energy consumption shall be determined as provided for in point 3(a), but at an ambient temperature of 25 °C instead of at 16 °C and 32 °C.

Edaily , expressed in kWh/24 h and rounded to three decimal places for the calculation of the AE is then as follows:

Edaily = E25

where E25 is ET at an ambient temperature of 25 °C and derived by interpolation of the energy tests at the target temperatures listed in Table 3.

(a)

For all refrigerating appliances:

SAE, expressed in kWh/a and rounded to two decimal places, is calculated as follows:

where

—	V, expressed in dm3 or litres and rounded to the nearest integer, is the totalvolume with ;

When carrying out the calculations above, for the variable temperature compartments, the compartment type with the lowest target temperature for which it is declared suitable is chosen.

(b)

Modelling parameters per compartment type for the calculation of SAE:

The modelling parameters are set out in Table 4.

Table 4

The values of the modelling parameters per compartment type

(c)

Compensation factors per compartment type in the calculation of SAE:

The compensation factors are set out in Table 5.

Table 5

The values of the compensation factors per compartment type

—

if frzf ≤ 0,3 then C = 1,3 + 0,87 × frzf;

—

else if 0,3 < frzf < 0,7 then C = 1,87 – 1,0275 × frzf;

—

else C = 1,15.

1.

The Member State authorities shall verify one single unit of the model.

2.

The model shall be considered to comply with the applicable requirements if:

3.

If the results referred to in point 2(a), (b), (c) or (d) are not achieved, the model and all equivalent models shall be considered not to comply with this Regulation.

4.

If the result referred to in point 2(e) is not achieved, the Member State authorities shall select three additional units of the same model for testing. As an alternative, the three additional units selected may be of one or more equivalent models.

5.

The model shall be considered to comply with the applicable requirements if, for these three units, the arithmetical mean of the determined values complies with the respective verification tolerances set out in Table 6.

6.

If the result referred to in point 5 is not achieved, the model and all equivalent models shall be considered not to comply with this Regulation.

7.

The Member State authorities shall provide all relevant information to the authorities of the other Member States and to the Commission without delay once a decision has been taken on the non-compliance of the model according to points 3 or 6.