21 easy ways to conserve electricity
Clothes washer
- Wash your laundry with cold water whenever possible, using cold-water laundry detergents. To save water, try to wash full loads or, if you must wash a partial load, reduce the level of water appropriately.
- Water heating accounts for about 90 percent of the energy your machine uses to wash clothes—only 10 percent goes to electricity used by the washer’s motor.
- Switching to cold water can save the average household more than $40 annually (with an electric water heater) and more than $30 annually (with a gas water heater).
- Washing full loads can save more than 3,400 gallons of water each year.
Clothes dryer
- Don’t overdry your clothes. If your dryer has a moisture sensor that automatically turns the machine off when clothes are done, use it.
- One of the easiest ways to increase drying efficiency is to clean the lint trap before each and every load.
- It’s easy to overdry clothes if one setting is used for various fabrics. Try to dry loads made up of similar fabrics, so the entire load dries as the cycle ends.
Dishwashers
- Rinsing dishes can use up to 20 gallons of water before the dishes are loaded. Instead, scrape food off dishes. Energy Star-qualified dishwashers and detergents are designed to do the cleaning so you don’t have to.
- If dirty dishes sit overnight, use the dishwasher’s rinse feature. It uses a fraction of the water needed to hand rinse.
- Most dishwashers use about the same amount of energy and water regardless of the number of dishes inside, so run full loads whenever possible.
- Select the no-heat drying option. It gives good drying results with less energy.
Microwave
- Use a microwave or toaster oven to reheat or cook small portions.
- Reduce cooking energy by as much as 80 percent when using a microwave for small portions. This also helps save on summer air-conditioning costs, since less heat is generated when compared to using a stove or oven.
Oven range
- Use the right-sized pot on stove burners. A 6-inch pot on an 8-inch burner wastes more than 40 percent of the burner’s heat. Also, cover pots and pans to keep heat in.
- Using the right-sized pot on stove burners can save about $36 annually for an electric range, or $18 for gas.
Refrigerators
- Keep your refrigerator at 35 to 38 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Place the fridge in a cool place away from a heat source such as an oven, a dishwasher, or direct sunlight.
- Allow air circulation behind the fridge.
- Keep the condenser coils clean if it’s an older model. Read the user’s manual to learn how to safely clean coils. Coil cleaning brushes can be purchased at most hardware stores.
- Make sure seals around the door are airtight. If not, replace them.
- Minimize the amount of time the refrigerator door stays open.
_____
RELATED STORY
Source: Energy Star