What does DOE mean on a washer ad?

Answer 1

It is misleading because it is actually less cubic feet than here in America. Electrolux for example.....says 4.7 cu. ft. I.E.C washer when in actuality it is really 4.1 cubic feet because of international standards. So, if you are looking for larger washer space.....look for the ones made here in the U.S.A. using standard cubic feet.

Answer 2

D.O.E stands for Department of Energy. Manufacturers used to be able to use various methods and standards for capacity. Unfortunately, the standards and methods used were often vague standards used in other countries, ie. - I.E.C (European method of rating capacity) and were always used in the manufacturers best interests, of course, to market their product as better and higher capacity than others. As of 4/30/11, the Dept of Energy in the US determined these type of rating systems were not uniform and were misleading to the citizens of the US, so they require all manufactures that sell in the US to now use the uniform capacity ratings set forth by the D.O.E. You might have noticed places like Best Buy, Lowes, Home Depot have changed the display cards on some of the older washers that listed them as 5.2 cu. ft. now state 4.5 cu ft instead. I saw an older open box item for sale at Best Buy the other day and noticed the tag said 5.2 cu ft capacity. I told the sales clerk that capacity didn't seem correct and he was quick to inform me that it was not correct and that Best Buy had to change all their display tags, but this one had slipped through, probably because it was an older, open box item.