India adds solar water heaters to voluntary scheme of Standards & Labeling Programme. 
On December 2019, India’s Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) announced the addition of solar water heaters to the voluntary list of products covered by the Standards & Labeling Programme. The programme specifies the energy-labelling requirement for solar water heaters imported or sold in India for water heating and similar use. The programme covers all types of thermosyphon based solar water heaters up to 500 Liters storage capacity and does not apply to them where:
- Concentrating collectors are used
- Heat transfer fluid changes phase
- Water temperature is ≥100℃
- Unglazed flat-plate collectors are used
The star rating shall be based on efficiency of the system averaged over the day-test period as per IS 16368:2015 (Test procedure for thermosiphon type domestic solar hot water heating systems). Other standards for this star rating are as follows.
| Number | Standard |
|---|---|
| IS 12933 part 1: 2003 | Solar Flat Plate Collector- specifications; Part 1 Requirements |
| IS 12933 part 2: 2003 | Solar Flat Plate Collector- specifications; Part 2 Components |
| IS 12933 part 3: 2003 | Solar Flat Plate Collector- specifications; Part 3 Measuring Instruments |
| IS 12933 part 5: 2003 | Solar Flat Plate Collector- specifications; Part 5 Test Methods |
| IS 16544: 2015 | All Glass Evacuated Solar Water Heating System |
| IS 16543: 2016 | All Glass Evacuated Solar Collector Tubes – Specification |
Solar hot water systems must be tested for its thermal performance as per the clause 7.0 of IS 16368:2015 and the test report accredited only by BIS recognized lab/ NABL/ ILAC/ APAC are acceptable.
The star rating parameters for Indian Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio:
| Star level | System Efficiency | |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum | Maximum | |
| 1 Star | 40.00 | 45.00 |
| 2 Star | >45.00 | 50.00 |
| 3 Star | >50.00 | 55.00 |
| 4 Star | >55.00 | 65.00 |
| 5 Star | >65.00 | |
Example of the label:
The specifications of solar water heaters for the programme can be downloaded from the following URL (in English)
https://www.beestarlabel.com/Content/Files/schedule_solar_water_heater.pdf
