Save Energy this Summer with These 13 Appliance Tips

With the weather getting hotter during summer, it can “shock” you when you receive your electricity bill. There are a few things that you can do to make sure your appliances are running efficiently to save you money and energy consumption.

1. Make sure to have ENERGY STAR- rated appliances. These devices are ranked by the U.S. Department of Energy as using less energy than the standard amount. ENERGY Star-rated appliances use about 20% less energy and can save you more than $270 in your energy costs.

Refrigerators:

2. Make sure not to overload the amount of groceries in your refrigerator. Having tons of items in your refrigerator will require more energy to keep it cool.

3. Don’t keep your refrigerator door open for a long period of time. Also make sure to not open your door repeatedly in a short period of time.  Opening the door will cause the cool air inside to escape and makes the refrigerator motor work harder.

4. Keep your refrigerator temperature in between 32- 40 degrees F. Your freezer temperature should be set between 30-0 degrees F.

Washing Machines:

5. Using cold water when doing most of your washes can save you money and still have your cloths perfectly cleaned.

6. Just like dishwashers, you should make sure that you run full loads because most washers will use the same amount of electricity.

7. Have a front-load washing machine. Front-load washing machines use two-thirds less water than top-load washing machines, reducing electricity and water.

Drying Machines:

8. Selecting to have a faster spin cycle can help reduce less time to dry your cloths.

9. When the weather is hot, you can dry some of your cloths outside on a clothesline or a drying rack to save energy costs.

10. Place your washing machine in a room that is warmer than a cold location like a cold basement. The warmer air going into the dryer will use less energy to heat the air up.

Dishwashers:

11. Make sure to load your dishwasher fully for each cycle. Most dishwashers use the same amount of electricity and hot water for each load whether it’s a full load or half of a load.

Ovens or ranges:

12. Don’t open your oven door frequently to check on your food. The temperature can drop about 25-30 degrees and requires more energy to regenerate the set temperature.

13. Use glass baking dishes as much as possible. Glass retains heat better than other materials. This can cook your food faster and you can even decrease the oven temperature.

What other things do you do to consume less energy in your home? Leave it in the comments section.