Be Energy Conscious

Be Energy Conscious When Using Home Appliances

Home appliance use goes into overdrive during the summer months. The kids are home for summer break; the grandkids sleep over; and grandparents pop in for a visit. More people at home leads to more appliance use, increased energy consumption and higher utility bills.

Major appliances are responsible for about 13 percent of the electricity use in a typical household and appliances that use hot water are the biggest offenders when it comes to energy consumption. Keeping energy use at a conservative and efficient level during the busy summer months can be hard.

Consumerenergycenter.org suggests that the dishwasher is responsible for 2.5 percent of the energy used in a standard household. Dishwashers labeled Energy Star are an obvious solution, but purchasing a new dishwasher may not be immediately practical. Proper care and maintenance are crucial to having an energy efficient dishwasher, but we have also come up with list of 4 easy-to-follow tips that can help homeowners be more energy efficient with dish washing this summer.

• Scraping instead of rinsing can save more than 55,000 gallons of water.

• Running the dishwasher only when it’s full because the same amount of energy and water will be used running a half load.

• Selecting the air-dry option can prevent a heat buildup from a heated, dry cycle.

• Washing dishes during off-peak hours is a greener choice that affects the entire community.

The washing machine also takes a beating during the summer. Considering that the typical American household will do about 300 loads of laundry in a given year, there’s room for more energy efficient habits in the laundry room as well. We recommend washing only full loads and using cold water whenever possible. Small changes made this summer can make a difference throughout the entire year.