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Today’s Wall Street Journal features the story, “Do ‘Green’ Appliances Live up to Their Billing?”
It quotes several people who are unhappy with the job that their energy efficient appliances are doing, and points out that changing from standard to compact fluorescent lightbulbs in key areas of your home will often provide a much bigger bang for your buck, and sometimes a better overall energy savings.
Amid concerns about energy consumption, Americans are increasingly encouraged to buy energy-efficient appliances. But while some of the latest products can offer significant energy and water savings, they can be double the price — or have kinks that can result in clothes and dishes needing to be washed twice.
Still, water and energy bills are on the rise in many areas, and appliance-makers are increasing their offerings of low energy-use products. A few months ago, Sears Holdings Corp. unveiled a new line of high-efficient appliances, including the Kenmore Elite Ultra Wash dishwasher that promises to use about half the water of a standard one. General Electric Co. this year rolled out several new energy-efficient refrigerators, such as the Profile French Door Bottom Freezer Refrigerator that uses at least 15% less energy. Companies such as Bosch and Siemens Home Appliances Group and LG Group have stepped up their offerings of front-load washing machines, which have doors in the front and can accommodate bigger loads but save on water.
An efficient refrigerator won’t command much of a premium, but energy-saving dishwashers and clothes washers can go for double the price of standard models. According to the NPD Group, a market-research firm in Port Washington, N.Y., the demand for Energy Star products has fallen slightly in the past year. Approximately 52% of all dishwashers, refrigerators and washing machines sold in the 12 months ended in May were Energy Star qualified, compared with 54% in the year-earlier period. Energy Star is the government labeling program for products that meet energy-efficient criteria. Sales of major appliances were $22.4 billion in 2006, flat compared with 2005, according to NPD.
But, environmental advocates point out that the biggest energy sucks aren’t washing machines and dishwashers. Many consumers don’t realize that an energy-guzzling plasma TV can off-set the energy-savings of kitchen appliances. A conventional TV consumes about 130 watts of power per hour, while a 42-inch plasma consumes more than twice as much, or around 350 watts per hour, according to Tom Reddoch, manager of energy use for the Electric Power Research Institute, a Palo Alto, Calif., nonprofit organization that promotes the adoption of energy-efficient practices. And one of the largest energy-savings measures is replacing light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs, which use about 75% less energy than standard bulbs.
The article ends with a description of which large appliances are the ones you should concentrate on to save the most money and energy.
Energy-efficient builders and energy-saving advocates advise that if people want to upgrade to energy efficient appliances, they should focus first on refrigerators, because unlike a dishwasher or clothes washer, they run all the time. Air conditioning units, too, tend to be big energy hogs. Cooling accounts for 11% of total energy use in the average home, and refrigerators and freezers account for 8%, according to government data compiled by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, a nonprofit group in Washington, D.C. The energy used doing laundry and dishes combined accounts for just 5%, according to the council. However, in areas where water is a big cost, a water-saving washer or dishwasher may be a preferable investment.
At my house, we have swapped out almost every single bulb in the house to compact fluorescent, except for a few that are on dimmer switches (which aren’t always compatible with compact fluorescent bulbs).
We also have 1.6 gallon per flush toilets throughout the house, an Energy Star refrigerator, an Energy Star front loading Kenmore washer, and an Energy Star ceiling fan on the front porch.
I have been using a front loading, energy efficient washer since 2000, and I have been very happy with how well it cleans clothes. I’ve found that front loaders are easier on your clothing, because they don’t have that giant plastic agitator in the middle, moving them around and wearing out the fabric.
I’ll be the first to admit that the water saving 1.6 gpf Kohler toilets that came with the house are TERRIBLE. I think these must be first generation low flow toilets, because they are truly useless.
I replaced one of the Kohler toilets with this Japanese Toto toilet, and I would put that toilet up against any other residential toilet for flushing ability, water saving or not.
We have also just purchased two brand new Australian Dual Flush Caroma toilets for the building that Clean Air Gardening is renovating and moving into next month. Dual flush means that you can do a small flush that only uses .8 gallons, or a regular flush that uses 1.6 gallons. A dual flush toilet will save you thousands and thousands of gallons of water over the life of the toilet, and they work just as well as regular toilets.
Does anyone else out there have any specific experiences with energy saving appliances, good or bad?
Leave a comment so that we can all share which appliances are the best and the worst.
Tell us models and brands, if possible!
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