Walk-in freezer and walk-in cooler components

Energy Efficiency Regulations

Regulatory definition

Walk-in cooler, an enclosed storage space that has an area of less than 278.71 m² (3,000 square feet) and is designed to be cooled to temperatures at or above 0° C and to allow a person to enter, but does not include a walk-in cooler that is designed and marketed exclusively for medical, scientific or research purposes.

Walk-in freezer, an enclosed storage space that has an area of less than 278.71 m² (3000 square feet) and is designed to be cooled to temperatures below 0° C and to allow a person to enter, but does not include a walk-in freezer that is designed and marketed exclusively for medical, scientific or research purposes.

Dedicated condensing refrigeration system, a dedicated condensing unit, a single-package dedicated system or a matched refrigeration system.

Unit cooler, an assembly that includes a means for forced air circulation and elements by which heat is transferred from air to refrigerant without any element external to the cooler imposing air resistance.

Walk-in door assembly, an assembly that

• is installed, or is designed to be installed, in an opening of an interior or exterior wall of a walk-in cooler or walk-in freezer in order to allow access through the opening or to close it off, and
• consists of the framing material necessary for its attachment and a moveable door panel, including any glass, door plugs or mullions
• but does not include a walk-in door assembly that is designed and marketed exclusively for medical, scientific or research purposes

Display door assembly, a walk-in door assembly that is designed for product display and that has 75% or more of its surface area composed of glass or other transparent material

Freight door assembly, a walk-in door assembly, other than a display door assembly, that is 1.22 m (4 feet) or more in width and 2.44 m (8 feet) or more in height

Passage door assembly, a walk-in door assembly that is not a display door assembly or a freight door assembly

Walk-in panel, a panel that is installed, or is designed to be installed, as part of the envelope of a walk-in cooler or walk-in freezer, but does not include a walk-in door assembly or a walk-in panel that is designed and marketed exclusively for medical, scientific or research purposes.

Floor panel, a walk-in panel that is installed, or designed to be installed, as the floor of a walk-in freezer

Structural panel, a walk-in panel that is installed, or is designed to be installed, as the ceiling or a wall of a walk-in cooler or walk-in freezer

Walk-in refrigeration system, a refrigeration sys¬tem that is installed, or is designed to be installed, in a walk-in cooler or walk-in freezer for the purpose of cooling its refrigerated compartment and has a unit cooler or a dedicated condensing refrigeration system. It includes all controls and other components that are integral to its operation, but does not include a walk-in process cooling refrigeration system or a walk-in refrigeration system that is designed and marketed exclusively for medical, scientific or research purposes.

Walk-in process cooling refrigeration system, a refrigeration system that

1. is sold as a set with an insulated enclosure and, when assembled with the enclosure, has a cooling capacity of at least 1.035 kW/m3 (100 Btu/h/ft3) of enclosed internal volume;
2. is a unit cooler — or a dedicated condensing unit exclusively sold as a set that has a dedicated condensing unit and a unit cooler — that has an evaporator coil with a means of forced air circulation and a height that is
   1. at least 1.37 metres (4.5 feet), as measured perpendicular to the tubes, and
   2. at least one and a half times the width, as measured parallel to the tubes; or
3. is sold as a set that has a dedicated condensing unit and an evaporator coil that does not have a means of forced air circulation.

Compliance date

Manufactured on or after June 5, 2017 for walk-in door assemblies and walk-in panels

Manufactured on or after January 1, 2020 for walk-in cooler dedicated condensing refrigeration systems

Manufactured on or after July 10, 2020 for walk-in freezer dedicated condensing refrigeration systems and walk-in cooler or walk-in freezer unit coolers

Compliant product models

Walk-in freezer and walk-in cooler door assemblies;
Walk-in freezer and walk-in cooler panels;
Walk-in refrigeration systems as listed on NRCan’s searchable database.

Labelling requirements

Nameplate required

Every walk-in door assembly and walk-in panel that is manufactured on or after June 26, 2017 must be labelled with a nameplate that is attached to the outside of the product in a location that is readily visible prior to assem­bly of the walk-in cooler or walk-in freezer and that sets out the following information in English and French:

• the brand name or manufacturer of the product, and
• a statement indicating whether the product is intended for use in a walk-in cooler, walk-in freezer or both.

Every walk-in cooler dedicated condensing refrigeration system that is manufactured on or after January 1, 2020 and every walk-in refrigeration system that is manufactured on or after July 10, 2020 must be labelled with a nameplate that is attached to the outside of the product in a location that is readily visible prior to assembly of the walk-in cooler or the walk-in freezer and that sets out the following information in English and French:

• the brand name or manufacturer of the product;
• a statement indicating whether the product is intended for use in a walk-in cooler, walk-in freezer or both;
• the model number;
• the product’s date of manufacture, if it is not included in the model number; and
• a statement indicating that the product is for indoor use only, if applicable.*

*For matched refrigeration systems, the statement must appear on the dedicated condensing unit.

Testing standard

• 10 C.F.R. Appendix A [Appendix A to Subpart R, Part 431 of Title 10 to the United States Code of Federal Regulations] for E_daily of walk-in door assemblies
• 10 C.F.R. Appendix B [Appendix B to Subpart R, Part 431 of Title 10 to the United States Code of Federal Regulations] for R-Value of walk-in door assemblies and walk-in panels
• 10 C.F.R. Appendix C [Appendix C to Subpart R, Part 431 of Title 10 to the United States Code of Federal Regulations] for annual walk-in energy factor of walk-in refrigeration systems

Energy efficiency standard

Energy performance standard for walk-in door assemblies

Product type	Testing Standard	Energy efficiency standard
Display door assemblies for walk-in coolers	10 C.F.R. Appendix A	Edaily ≤ 0.306 × Add + 0.41 (0.15 × Add+ 0.41)
Display door assemblies for walk-in freezers	10 C.F.R. Appendix A	Edaily ≤ 1.6146 × Add + 0.29 (0.15 × Add+ 0.29)
Freight door assemblies for walk-in coolers	10 C.F.R. Appendix A for Edaily 10 C.F.R. Appendix B for RSI-value (R-value)	Edaily ≤ 0.4306 × And + 1.9 (0.04 × And + 1.9) RSI-value ≥ 4.40 m²·K/W (25 ft2·°F·h/Btu)
Freight door assemblies for walk-in freezers	10 C.F.R. Appendix A for Edaily 10 C.F.R. Appendix B for RSI-value (R-value)	Edaily  ≤ 1.2917 × And + 5.6 (0.12 × And + 5.6) RSI-value ≥ 5.64 m²·K/W (32 ft2·°F·h/Btu)
Passage door assemblies for walk-in coolers	10 C.F.R. Appendix A for Edaily 10 C.F.R. Appendix B for RSI-value (R-value)	Edaily ≤ 0.5382 × And + 1.7 (0.05 × And + 1.7) RSI-value ≥ 4.40 m²·K/W (25 ft2·°F·h/Btu)
Passage door assemblies for walk-in freezers	10 C.F.R. Appendix A for Edaily 10 C.F.R. Appendix B for RSI-value (R-value)	Edaily ≤ 1.5069 × And + 4.8 (0.14 × And + 4.8) RSI-value ≥ 5.64 m²·K/W (32 ft2·°F·h/Btu)

• E_daily - daily energy consumption in kilowatt-hours (kWh)
• A_dd - surface area of the display door in square meter(m²) or square feet (ft²)
• A_nd – surface area of the non-display door in square feet (ft²)
• R-value – thermal resistance, expressed in square metre kelvins per watt (m²·K/W) or square foot Fahrenheit per British thermal unit per hour (ft²·°F·h/Btu)

Energy performance standard for walk-in panels

Product type	Energy efficiency standard
Structural panels for walk-in coolers	RSI-value ≥ 4.40 m2·K/W (25 ft2·°F·h/Btu)
Structural panels for walk-in freezers	RSI-value ≥ 5.64 m2·K/W (32 ft2·°F·h/Btu)
Floor panels	RSI-value ≥ 4.93 m2·K/W (28 ft2·°F·h/Btu)

• ft²·°F·h/Btu – square foot Fahrenheit per British thermal unit per hour

Energy performance standard for walk-in refrigeration systems

Product type	Energy efficiency standard
Walk-in cooler dedicated condensing refrigeration systems for use indoors	Annual walk-in energy factor ≥ 1.644
Walk-in cooler dedicated condensing refrigeration systems for use outdoors	Annual walk-in energy factor ≥ 2.227
Walk-in freezer dedicated condensing refrigeration systems for use indoors with a net refrigeration capacity of < 1900 W (6,500 Btu/h)	Annual walk-in energy factor ≥ 9.091 x 10-5 x qnet + 0.530
Walk-in freezer dedicated condensing refrigeration systems for use indoors with a net refrigeration capacity of ≥ 1900 W (6,500 Btu/h)	Annual walk-in energy factor ≥ 0.703
Walk-in freezer dedicated condensing refrigeration systems for use outdoors with a net refrigeration capacity of < 1900 W (6,500 Btu/h)	Annual walk-in energy factor ≥ 6.522 x 10-5 x qnet + 0.800
Walk-in freezer dedicated condensing refrigeration systems for use outdoors with a net refrigeration capacity of ≥ 1900 W (6,500 Btu/h)	Annual walk-in energy factor ≥ 0.923
Walk-in cooler unit coolers with a fan motor that operates using direct current or has a nominal voltage of not more than 480 V ACFootnote *	Annual walk-in energy factor ≥ 2.638
Walk-in freezer unit coolers with a fan motor that operates using direct current or has a nominal voltage of not more than 480 V AC and with a net refrigeration capacity of < 4540 W (15,500 Btu/h)	Annual walk-in energy factor ≥ 1.575 x 10-5 x qnet + 1.146 W-h/W-h (1.575 x 10-5 x qnet + 3.91 Btu/W-h)
Walk-in freezer unit coolers with a fan motor that operates using direct current or has a nominal voltage of not more than 480 V AC and with a net refrigeration capacity of ≥ 4540 W (15,500 Btu/h)Footnote **	Annual walk-in energy factor ≥ 1.216 W-h/W-h (4.15 Btu/W-h)

Btu/h -British thermal unit per hour
W-Watt
W-h-Watt-hour
V-Volt
q_net-net refrigeration capacity available for space and product cooling

Energy efficiency report requirements

• name of product
• brand name
• model number
• manufacturer
• name of the certification body or province whose verification mark will be on the product or its package
• whether a mathematical model as defined in the Regulations was used to generate any of the information provided below
• for walk-in door assemblies:
  • E_daily
  • information that indicates whether it is a display door assembly, freight door assembly or passage door assembly
  • information that indicates whether it is for use with a walk-in cooler or walk-in freezer, and
  • if the product is a freight door assembly or passage door assembly, its R-value
• for walk-in panels:
  • RSI-value
  • information that indicates whether it is a structural panel or floor panel, and
  • if it is a structural panel, information that indicates whether it is for use with a walk-in cooler or walk-in freezer
• for walk-in refrigeration systems:
  • annual walk-in energy factor
  • information that indicates whether it is designed and marketed for use indoors, outdoors or both
  • information that indicates if it is for use in a walk-in cooler or walk-in freezer
  • information that indicates if it has a unit cooler or a dedicated condensing refrigeration system; and
  • if it is a walk-in freezer unit cooler or dedicated condensing refrigeration system, its net refrigeration capacity expressed in watts

Download the energy efficiency reporting template.

This document does not constitute part of the Energy Efficiency Act (Act) or its associated regulations. This document is an administrative document that is intended to facilitate compliance by the regulated party with the Act and its associated regulations. This document is not intended to provide legal advice regarding the interpretation of the Act or its associated regulations. If a regulated party has questions about their legal obligations or responsibilities under the Act or its associated regulations, they should seek the advice of legal counsel.