The US Energy Department is changing how it tests clothes washers and dryers

The US Energy Department wants to update how it tests clothes washers and dryers. It is changing the type of cloth used in the tests and making the instructions easier to read.

This is a small, technical change. It does not update the actual energy efficiency standards for these appliances. It also does not fulfill the legal requirement for the department to review these test procedures every seven years. This means the underlying rules for how efficient these appliances must be remain unchanged, even as the testing methods get a minor tweak.