subject: Building A Green Home: Appliances [print this page] With small changes to your home, it is possible to cut your energy bills and lessen your household's impact on the environment.
When buying appliances, look for energy efficient products that will save you money in the long-run. The energy star label is awarded to products that dramatically cut energy and it has created healthy competition between companies to make the most eco-friendly appliance. Energy star appliances use 10-15% less energy than other models.
The type of appliance you buy will also affect your energy use. Induction cooker tops use less energy than gas and electric stoves, and a convection oven can cook 25% faster than a standard oven, saving you energy and time. Top and bottom freezer and fridge units use as much as 10% less energy than the side-by-side models. Buy appliances that are only as large as you need. Fridge-freezers use the most energy, as much as 14% of a household's electricity, and there is no need to buy a very large fridge for just one person or a couple. Also, the use of ice and water dispensers can add 20% to the electricity usage of said appliance.
To aid the efficiency and extend the life of a fridge, it's widely suggested that you should unplug it, clean the condenser coils and defrost to give it a boost. You only need to have your refrigerator working between 2-4 degrees celsius and keeping it working at colder temperatures will do little for your food and will waste electricity. It's always worth considering Wolf service or Sub-Zero repair so that you know the experts are on call for any problems you may come across because DIY with these appliances tends to be far more destructive than useful.
It's important to have your appliances working efficiently all the time and fridge-freezers tend to have a 10 year lifespan while you get 20 for stoves so know when to replace them. When you need to get rid of appliances, try to re-sell them or consult your local council or governing body on how you can recycle them.
For your cabinets you can use formaldehyde-free woods like cherry, maple oak and alder. Sustainable woods like bamboo are growing in popularity. Bamboo is a type of grass whose 'wood' is stronger than maple. Another alternative is wheatboard, a sustainable material made of recycled compressed wheat stalk and straw.
Countertops can be made from a variety of recycled materials that look just like their less eco-friendly counterparts such as granite. Different companies produce countertops made from recycled glass, quartz chips and even recycled paper.
Cork is a great choice for flooring, it is a renewable wood resource since it is made from bark peeled from a tree, which is then allowed to grow back. Cork flooring has a soft feel, it is sound-absorbent and resistant to mould. If you would rather buy hardwood floors, check that the wood is harvested from sustainable forests.
Lots of windows will ensure your home has plenty of light without the use of lights, you can even buy Energy Star approved windows, and put your work surfaces underneath windows. Fluorescent bulbs use half the energy of regular ones and installing a dimmer switch will reduce the amount of energy used even more.
To make your home greener and to save money all you need to do is make informed choices about the environmentally friendly alternatives available.
