Go Ahead, Buy, and Give TLC a Try Joe Both, owner of ARC Appliance Repair for 22 years, has been maintaining residential and commercial appliances for 35. Basic understanding of these machines, coupled with proper maintenance, is the best combination for making them work like they should, new or old. “Read the manual!” he advises. When he’s asked how to best prolong the life of an appliance and operate it most efficiently, he cites, “common sense as the most uncommon factor.” “You’d think you wouldn’t have to say these things, but make sure the fridge door is actually closed before walking away from it,” he says. “Turn the oven off when the meal is ready.
Don’t leave the house when a washer, dryer or dishwasher is turned on. Washers have flooded; dryers keep drying; dishwashers can flood or run on for hours.”
Buying New Saves Energy for You Appliances are now light years beyond the energy consumption of previous generations, even if they don’t have the Energy Star rating. So the “huge savings” are found in the difference between both Energy Starrated and high-efficiency new appliances versus older ones. To receive the Energy Star approval, the manufacturer must ensure the appliance is 20 per cent more efficient than required by current federal standards. What this all means is that when you buy new, you’re far better off in terms of energy savings than holding on to your old
appliance, even if the new one isn’t Energy Star-rated. Perry Schwark, general manager, Coast Wholesale Appliances, says there’s not a huge difference in efficiencies of brand name new refrigerators or laundry machines, the high-end users of energy and water. Manufacturers have put their most concentrated efforts into improving the technologies of these appliances. The biggest change has come in the technology and design of clothes washers, says Schwark. Whereas old top-load varieties could swallow a hefty 48 gallons of water per cycle, many new models now sip only 22. “The majority of people are going to front load washers which are far more efficient than top load, and very competitively-priced,” says Schwark. Two years ago, about half his customers opted for the traditional top load, and half for the newer front load. Today, 90 per cent are purchasing the front load variety.
What Do You Do with the Funky Old Fridge? The Energy Guide was designed to inform people about energy use. So when Gerry Tarko of Saskatoon Appliance gets a 30-year-old Frontloading washing machines consume less than half the water of top loaders.
Photo: Courtesy Coast Appliances
34 Saskatoon HOME Summer 2010