Home Appliance

Home Appliance, Is it time to buy new appliances?
If you haven’t been in the market for new appliances during the past several years, you’re going to be surprised at how innovative and energy-efficient appliances have become. You’ll find energy-smart appliance choices in almost all price ranges.

Before heading to the local appliance retailer or “big-box” store, measure the space the new appliance will occupy to make sure it will fit—and that there’s enough room to fully open the door (or lid), as well as adequate clearances for ventilation, plumbing connections and other hookups. Then go to the appliance manufacturers’ Web sites to look at product information, and make a list of questions and “must-have” and “nice-to-have-but-not-essential” features.

Follow this shopping strategy for each appliance ( Home Appliance )
With the measurements, questions and features list in hand, head for the store, and:

•  * Look at product brochures and the actual appliances to evaluate the features, performance capabilities and capacities of different brands and models. Ask questions about how different models operate. Are they noisy? What safety features do they have? What about repair histories? How much water do they use? How do the energy-saving cycles work?
• * Check the operating manuals for the models on display. This not only will tell you how each appliance operates, but also can help you ask pertinent questions about regular maintenance and care. Also make sure the appliance’s operation meets your family’s needs and, for kitchen appliances, will accommodate your favorite cookware.
•  * Consult the yellow Energy Guide labels to compare the annual energy costs of different models; look for ENERGY STAR® labels too. The more energy an appliance uses, the more it will cost to run; the difference on your utility bill could be significant.
• * Uncover both price tags for the appliance—the one for the purchase price and the one for the operating cost (utility bills plus maintenance expenses). Consider both in evaluating the real cost of the unit.
• * Read the warranty before finalizing your decision. Does the warranty cover the entire product or only certain parts? Is labor included? How long does the warranty last?
• * Find out the cost of delivery, installation and removal of the appliance you’re replacing.
• * Make sure authorized factory service is available in your area for the unit you select.
• * Finally, ask about manufacturer rebates, special local financing programs and energy efficiency incentives from your local utility.

When your new appliance is delivered, check the exterior for dents and scratches and make sure no components such as drawers, shelves or special fittings are damaged or missing.
If it’s not part of your purchase agreement to have the delivery crew hook up and test the appliance, do it yourself and immediately report any problems to your salesperson.

Even if you’re not ready to buy new appliances, read on
Each section in this book begins with tips for squeezing the most productivity from every unit of energy (and every gallon of water) being used by your existing appliances. Some are simple maintenance tasks the average homeowner can handle without calling a service technician. Others may suggest a change of behavior, such as running only full loads in the dishwasher
or clothes washer to reduce the amount of energy used by the water heater. (By the way, almost all of these tips also apply to new appliances.)
The bottom line is a pretty simple one: The more energy efficient an appliance is, the less it costs to run—and the lower your utility bills will be. Using less energy is good for the environment, too, in terms of reducing air pollution and conserving natural resources.

Refrigerators ( Home Appliance )

Get more from your refrigerator’s energy use

Your refrigerator (or refrigerator-freezer, since most people buy a combination unit) is the only appliance that works continuously in your home—day after day, all year long. According to ENERGY STAR®, that makes it the largest single user of electricity in your kitchen—especially

if it’s an older unit using two or three times as much electricity as models available today.

So, it’s important to keep the refrigerator running at peak efficiency—and to help everyone in your family recognize that they can have a major impact on the amount of electricity it consumes. Incidentally, most of these ideas apply to upright or chest-style freezers too.

Think efficiency ( Home Appliance )

- Keep the refrigerator door closed. Every time you open the door, about 30 percent of the cool air tumbles out

- Check the temperature in the refrigerator and freezer. Leave an appliance (or outdoor) thermometer in each compartment overnight. The refrigerator temperature should be 35-38 degrees; the freezer temperature should be 0-5 degrees.

- Keep your refrigerator and freezer compartments full. Food (and even containers filled with water or ice) will retain the cold temperatures better than empty spaces. As a result, the compressor will run less often.

- When you close the door, give it a little extra push. Make sure the door gasket seals completely by gently pushing on the door. Check the door visually too.

- Clean the condenser coils once or twice a year. After unplugging the unit, pull it away from the wall and use a vacuum cleaner or soft brush to remove dust from the condenser coils underneath (or on the back of) the appliance.

- Keep the top of the refrigerator clear. Don’t use the top of the refrigerator as a storage spot. To work at peak efficiency, the refrigerator needs plenty of ventilation space around it to release the hot air produced during cooling cycles.

- Let your refrigerator breathe. Prevent heat and dust buildup that will cause your unit to run more often by leaving about three inches of open space on both sides and the top of the refrigerator’s cabinet. (And don’t use those spaces to store items such as step stools, flattened cardboard boxes, TV trays or brooms.)

- Move your refrigerator to a cooler location. Keep your refrigerator away from heat sources such as furnace ducts, baseboard heaters, the dishwasher and cooking appliances. Also make sure the sun doesn’t shine directly on it through a window or door.

- Allow cooked foods to cool before putting them in the refrigerator. Adding hot foods to the refrigerator will make the compressor run overtime to compensate for the higher temperatures. Use shallow containers so the foods will cool more quickly.

- Use lids or tops on all foodstorage containers. Moisture from foods and liquids evaporates in the refrigerator compartment, causing the compressor to run longer.

- Turn off the “power saver” or “winter/summer” switch. This switch is designed to prevent condensation from forming on the outside of the cabinet during the summer. Leave this feature off unless you discover you really need it.

Cut your power bill with a new refrigerator ( Home Appliance )

New refrigerators are much more energy-efficient than older models. On average, the latest ENERGY STAR® qualified refrigerators use about half as much electricity as pre-1993 models.  ( Home Appliance )
The bottom line is pretty simple: Investing in a high-efficiency refrigerator now could have such a significant effect on reducing your monthly power bills that you’ll be able to recover the purchase price of the new unit long before it has outlived its usefulness.

There are many energy-saving and convenience features ( Home Appliance )

When you go shopping for a refrigerator, you’re going to be confronted with a lot of information about energy-saving technologies—some worthwhile and some not—as well as a seemingly unending list of convenience and “nice-to-have” features.

- Look for the ENERGY STAR label on the yellow-and-black EnergyGuide on every refrigerator you’re considering; they’re the best indicators of the appliance’s predicted energy use. But watch out for refrigerators with names or features that sound as if they may be “energy savers”—especially if their EnergyGuide labels reveal them to be among the highest energy consumers of comparably sized units.

- Generally speaking, the operating cost for one large refrigerator always should be less than that of two smaller units totaling the capacity of the bigger one. That’s an important consideration if you’re building a home or remodeling your kitchen and considering a small built-in refrigerator in the kitchen for daily use—and a second refrigerator (or freezer) in the pantry for longer-term storage.

- Before you hit the stores, make a list of things you liked about the refrigerator you’re replacing, as well as features you’d like to have in a new one. For example, most consumers gladly will pay for the convenience of an automatic-defrosting refrigerator, even though it will use a little more energy than one that needs to be defrosted manually every month or so. Was your old refrigerator large enough for your family, or do you need a bigger one? If you’re empty nesters, is it time to downsize to a smaller unit? Consider accessibility, too, for people with special needs or limited reach; a side-by-side refrigerator/freezer may use up to ten percent more energy than other styles, but it could be a necessity for someone in a wheelchair—or the most practical choice for a family with kids who are old enough to grab a juice box or a snack without assistance.

Focus on capacity, style, features and real cost ( Home Appliance )

Besides measuring the size of the available space—height, width and depth—for the refrigerator, consider the capacity (in cubic feet) you need. Around 20 cubic feet is a good starting point for an average family of four; if you do a lot of entertaining or freeze large quantities of food, add a few more cubic feet.

- Note that the advertised size of most refrigerators is for the empty refrigerator and freezer compartments—without shelves, hardware or spaces behind drawers or in corners you can’t use. Also keep in mind the special space needs for things such as your favorite beverage containers, serving trays and boxes for leftover pizzas.

- When considering style, you have three basic choices. A top-mount refrigerator (with the freezer on top) will be a little more energy-efficient than a side-by-side unit, but you may give up convenience; the side-by-side configuration works better in small kitchens and offers better accessibility to both the refrigerated and freezer compartments. A bottom-mount refrigerator puts the freezer under the refrigerated section; some models use a pullout drawer, which prevents food from tumbling out when you open the door.

- You’ll also find variations of these styles, including units with bottom freezers and sideby-side doors for the refrigerator above—sometimes called “French door” refrigerators—and even four-door models that let you determine the use and temperature of the compartments.

If you’re remodeling your kitchen or building a new home, you might want to consider refrigerator drawers that fit into standard cabinet spaces and eliminate the need for a conventional refrigerator. And if you’re considering a cabinet-depth, built-in model or a large “commercial” unit, make sure you have enough space around it for adequate ventilation; otherwise, the compressor will work overtime (and waste energy) during the cooling cycle.

-  Some features can help reduce energy usage, while others simply make a refrigerator easier to use. For example, a unit with side-by-side doors may include an ice and cold-water dispenser in one of the doors, which eliminates the need to open the freezer door (and let the cold air inside escape)—but it uses a little more energy than a refrigerator without a dispenser. Special drawer systems with separate temperature and/or humidity settings can help you keep different types of food fresher for longer periods. And an automatic moisture control can help prevent moisture from building up on the exterior of the cabinet on high-humidity days without using an energy-wasting heater.

- Like other appliances, every refrigerator has two prices that make up its real cost of ownership: one for purchase price and the other for operating cost. The purchase price is a onetime expense, but the operating cost runs for the lifetime of the refrigerator—an average of 13 years.

-  For a refrigerator, the operating cost includes monthly electricity charges and maintenance. To estimate power costs, use the EnergyGuide label that’s required by law to be posted on every new refrigerator. Maintenance costs are a little harder to estimate; check with the appliance store’s service department, talk with friends who have appliances from the same manufacturer or take a look at annual consumer guides or magazines.

Your old refrigerator isn’t doing you any favors ( Home Appliance )

Keeping your 15- or 20-year-old refrigerator in operation after you buy a new one may seem like a good idea — especially if it’s paid for and still seems to be working fine. However, the reality is that the old appliance may be costing you a lot more than it’s worth; in fact, if you really need the cold-storage capacity of a second refrigerator (or freezer), you’ll likely be better off buying a new, low-cost, ENERGY STAR qualified unit.

- To check the predicted operating costs of your present older refrigerator (especially if you’re thinking about replacing it and keeping it for use in the garage or basement), check the Recycle My Old Fridge Campaign in the Appliances section at the ENERGY STAR Web site (www.energystar.gov). All you have to do is enter your refrigerator’s model number and the amount you pay per kilowatt-hour of electricity.

Freezers, compacts and coolers ( Home Appliance )

Is a separate freezer a good choice?  ( Home Appliance )

Before you go shopping, realistically evaluate your family’s need for a separate freezer for year-round use. Many people buy a freezer for stocking up on bulk foods or game once or twice a year, and then let the appliance run half-full or mostly empty the rest of the time.

• * If you decide that a new freezer does make sense for your situation, make energy efficiency a top priority by looking for units that carry the ENERGY STAR® sticker and by comparing the Energy Guide labels on the ones you’re seriously considering. Also note that many of the energy saving and maintenance tips for refrigerators on page 3 apply to freezers.

• * From a style standpoint, you have two choices. An upright freezer looks like a single-door refrigerator and is available in both manual- and automatic- defrosting versions. A manualdefrost freezer uses a little less energy, but most or all of its shelves will not be adjustable because they contain the tubes that carry the coolant throughout the unit. A self-defrosting upright costs a little more to operate, but many people think the added convenience is worth the extra expenditure—especially considering that you have to remove the food from a manual defrost unit and shut it down for up to 24 hours, unless it has a “quick-defrost” mode that heats the coolant tubes to melt accumulated ice.

• * On the other hand, a chest freezer of similar capacity will cost a little less to operate than either type of upright freezer. Most chest freezers require manual defrosting, which means removing all of the food inside, turning off the power and draining the water that accumulates in the bottom; only a few self-defrosting units are available.

• * No matter which style you prefer, even the most basic freezer should include an adjustable temperature control, an interior light to make it quicker to find foods, an exterior “power on” light, an alarm that sounds if the temperature gets too high and a door lock to keep kids out of the unit. For an upright freezer, also look for adjustable shelves, bins and door storage, which maximize convenience but reduce the usable capacity of the appliance. And for a chest freezer, check for a counterbalanced lid (so you won’t have to hold it open with one hand while you’re searching for a particular food item) and hanging or stacking baskets that make what’s inside easier to organize.

You can save energy with compact refrigerators and freezers too ( Home Appliance )

Looking for a compact refrigerator, freezer or combination unit to fit under a countertop in your family room or to send to a dorm room with a college student? Many of these compact appliances—ones less than 7.75 cubic feet in capacity and under 36 inches in height—are ENERGY STAR qualified and are at least 20 percent more efficient than required by federal standards. For more details on ENERGY STAR qualified compact units (including updates in standards and a list of products by manufacturer), go to the Appliances section at the ENERGY STAR Web site (www.energystar.gov).

Before you go shopping, make a list of the features you really need. For example, lessexpensive refrigerator-freezers may have a tiny freezer shelf for storing a couple of ice trays, but higher-priced units may have a separate, zero-degree freezer. Some mini-fridges and freezers don’t have adjustable shelves, so they won’t hold two-liter or gallon bottles. Finally, look for a unit with automatic-defrost, adjustable thermostat and an easy-to-clean interior.

Dishwashers: Push the right buttons to save ( Home Appliance )

Most of the energy used to run a dishwasher isn’t for powering the appliance; instead, it’s for heating the water used by the dishwasher. So, if a new dishwasher isn’t in the budget, focus on making the most of your current machine’s water consumption, in addition to reducing its energy use. Also keep in mind that washing dishes by hand is not an energy-wise choice: According to ENERGY STAR®, in a year you’ll save about 5,000 gallons of water and $40 in utility costs by letting a dishwasher do the work.

Help your dishwasher do its job efficiently  ( Home Appliance )

- Scrape (don’t rinse) large pieces of food and bones. Rinse, soak or pre-wash dishes only if food is dried-on, burnedon or extremely greasy.

- Match the cycle selection to the load. The normal setting will work best for most loads (even pots and pans).

- Run only full loads. A dishwasher can’t vary the amount of water it uses based on load size.

- Avoid using the rinse-and-hold cycle. Depending on the age of your dishwasher, just rinsing the dishes could use several gallons of water.

- Let the dishes air-dry. If there’s no air-dry button, stop the cycle after the final rinse and prop open the door. (Watch for escaping steam when you first open the door!)

- Find the filter and clean it.  If your dishwasher doesn’t have a self-cleaning filter, regularly remove it and clean out trapped food particles.

- Clean the spray-arm nozzles and water jets. Use a toothbrush to remove hard water deposits that can reduce the powerful flow of water necessary to clean dishes.

- Use the delay-start setting. Run the dishwasher late at night when some utilities offer reduced rates. Also avoid times when hot water demand is high, such as during morning showers or when preparing meals.

Cooktops, ovens and ranges of Home Appliance

Cook up some energy savings in your kitchen  ( Home Appliance )

Whether you prefer gas or electric cooking appliances, make sure you’re getting your money’s worth from every energy dollar you spend in the kitchen. Besides the gains you’ll see from properly maintaining your cooktop, oven and/or range, you’ll see the greatest savings on your monthly utility bills from modifying your cooking methods a little bit—and getting rid of the bad cooking habits that waste more energy than they effectively use.

Don’t let high energy bills for cooking appliances burn you up!  ( Home Appliance )

- Add only as much water as necessary for cooking. The more water you use, the longer it will take to heat. On the other hand, adding less water will allow you to use lower temperatures and shorten cooking times.

- Choose pots and pans that fit the size of cooktop burners. A 6-inch pot on an 8-inch burner loses about 40 percent of the burner’s heat to the surrounding air. Conversely, oversized pots and pans won’t heat efficiently, extending cooking times.

- Downsize cookware whenever possible. Use the smallest pot, pan or baking dish for the portion you’re cooking.

- Use flat-bottom cookware. For the greatest heat transfer from an electric cooktop, cookware should rest flat on coil-style, solid, ceramic, halogen and induction elements.

- Put lids on your pots and pans. Lids help retain heat, allowing foods to cook faster and more efficiently. Your kitchen will stay cooler too.

- Keep gas burners clean and adjusted. A blue flame means proper combustion, but a yellow flame indicates service is needed to ensure that the gas is burning efficiently.

- Wipe off the cooktop. Baked-on spills can inhibit the heating of the burners, as well as reduce their lifespan. Also polish dirty burner pans under the burners so they reflect the heat, rather than absorb it.

- Limit oven preheating. Unless your oven automatically handles the preheating function, restrict preheating time to a maximum of 10 minutes.

- Covering oven racks with foil is a no-no. An oven works most efficiently when air can circulate within it. Stagger multiple pans to maximize air circulation too.

- Check the oven with a thermometer. Also monitor whatever you’re cooking with the appropriate thermometer to make sure your oven’s controls aren’t wasting energy.

- Watch cooking progress through the oven window. Every time you open the oven door, the interior cooking temperature goes down by 25 to 30 degrees.

- Make multiple meals in the oven. It takes less energy to reheat meals than it does to cook them.

- Use the microwave, instead of the oven. You’ll save up to 80 percent on energy costs and decrease the heat load in the kitchen too.

- Cook or reheat small portions in a specialty appliance. Lower energy consumption by using a toaster oven, mini-grill, pressure cooker, steamer or slow cooker. You’ll reduce heat in the kitchen, too, which helps cut air-conditioning costs.

- Inspect the oven door gasket. If you find burned, crushed or damaged spots, replace the gasket to prevent heated air from escaping into the kitchen.

For more information about major home appliance :

Major Home Appliance *

Alliance to Save Energy

1850 M Street, NW, Suite 600
Washington, DC 20036
Phone: 202-857-0666
Web site: http://www.ase.org

Major Home Appliance *

Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
Consumer Response Center
600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20580
Phone: 877-382-4357
Web site: http://www.ftc.gov

Major Home Appliance *

Iowa Department of Natural Resources
502 E. 9th Street
Des Moines, IA 50319-0034
Phone: 515-281-5918
Web site: http://www.iowadnr.gov

Major Home Appliance *

Alliant Energy
4902 North Biltmore Lane
P.O. Box 77007
Madison, WI 53707-1007
Phone: 800-255-4268
Web site: http://www.alliantenergy.com

Major Home Appliance *

Gas Appliance Manufacturers Association (GAMA)
2107 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 600
Arlington, VA 22201
Phone: 703-525-7060
Web site: http://www.gamanet.org

Major Home Appliance *

Iowa Office of Energy Independence
Lucas State Office Building
312 E. 12th Street
Des Moines, IA 50319
Phone: 515-281-0187
Web site: http://www.energy.iowa.gov

Major Home Appliance *

American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy
529 14th Street, NW, Suite 600
Washington, DC 20045-1000
Phone: 202-507-4000
Fax: 202-429-2248
Web site: http://www.aceee.org

Major Home Appliance *

Home Energy Saver Environmental Energy Technologies Division at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Web site: http://hes.lbl.gov

Major Home Appliance *

Iowa Renewable Energy Association
P.O. Box 3405
Iowa City, IA 52244-3405
Phone: 319-643-3160
Web site: http://www.irenew.org

Major Home Appliance *

Atmos Energy Corporation
2547 Hilton Road
Keokuk, IA 52632
Phone: 888-286-6700
Web site: http://www.atmosenergy.com

Major Home Appliance *

IowaENERGY.org
Web site: http://www.iowaenergy.org

Major Home Appliance *

Iowa State University Extension
Answer Line Phone: 800-262-3804
Web site: http://www.extension.iastate.edu/
answerline/ or http://www.extension.iastate.edu/housing/

Major Home Appliance *

Black Hills Energy
625 9th Street
Rapid City, SD 57709
Phone: 888-890-5554
Web site: http://www.blackhillsenergy.com

Major Home Appliance *

Iowa Association of Electric Cooperatives
8525 Douglas, Suite 48
Des Moines, IA 50322-2992
Phone: 515-276-5350
Fax: 515-276-7946
Web site: http://www.iowarec.org

Major Home Appliance *

MidAmerican Energy
666 Grand Avenue, Suite 500
Des Moines, IA 50309-2580
Phone: 888-427-5632
Web site: http://www.midamericanenergy.com

Major Home Appliance *

Energy Efficient Rehab Advisor
Web site: http://rehabadvisor.pathnet.org

Major Home Appliance *

Iowa Department of Human Rights/Division of Community Action Agencies
Lucas State Office Building
321 E. 12th Street
Des Moines, IA 50319
Phone: 515-281-3861
Fax: 515-242-6119
Web site: http://www.state.ia.us/government/
dhr/caa/

Major Home Appliance *

U.S. Department of Energy Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
Forrestal Building
U.S. Department of Energy
1000 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20585
Phone: 877-337-3463
Web site: http://www.eere.energy.gov

Major Home Appliance *

ENERGY STAR®
1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20460
Phone: 888-782-7937
Web site: http://www.energystar.gov

Major Home Appliance *

Iowa Association of Municipal Utilities
1735 NE 70th Avenue
Ankeny, IA 50021-9353
Phone: 515-289-1999 or 800-810-4268
Fax: 515-289-2499
Web site: http://www.iamu.org

Major Home Appliance *

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Ariel Rios Building
1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20004
Phone: 202-272-0167
Web site: http://www.epa.gov

Reference : ENERGY STAR®, Home Appliance