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Due to the high cost of electricity, natural gas and water there is a lot of concern over the efficiency of new appliances. The two biggest energy users in a home are the fridge and freezer units. They work day and night and unless you turn them off they will be running regularily. A refrigerator of 20 years ago would use 125-2000kwh/ month. That is 1500-2400kwh/ year. And a freezer would use 50-75% of a refrigerator’s consumption. Today’s appliances must meet strict government standards in regard to energy consumption.
A current model refrigerator uses 500-800khw/year, most freezers are under 350kwh/year, that is a substantial savings over older models. The idea of putting an old fridge in the basement as a beer fridge really has to be considered in light of how inefficient the older fridges are to operate and the cost to keep them around. Infact a new fridge will pay for itself in about 8 years based on today’s energy prices.
Ranges and dryers do not have a large difference in energy consumption due to the fact that they operate on a resistive load to create heat. X amount of wattage produces X amount of usable heat. So there are not major increases in efficency in heating type appliances as in others.
Microwaves in general are fairly efficient and the differences in power consumption are not considerable.
Dishwashers have improved somewhat. Most European models use substantially less water and power compared to North American models
In terms of water consumption the traditional top load washing maching has had no improvement, however with the arrival of low cost front load washing machines there is an alternative to save a lot of water and energy. Dishwashers too have made some inprovement in terms of water consumption.
Energuide ratings are not a totally reliable way to gauge how much energy you will consume with a specific model in your home as the rating is based on a preset amount of usuage per day based on the average family. You may use more or less than the rating stated depending on you usuage of the appliance and the settings you use. Even the amount the refrigerator door is opened will affect the energy consumption.
Choosing the right appliances will save you a lot of money on your utility bills over the years
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