An iron consumes as much energy as ten 100 watt light bulbs.
Improve ironing efficiency by use the permanent press feature on your washer and dryer. Removing clean laundry promptly from the dryer, and fold immediately - many items will require no ironing, or just a quick press.
- Iron large batches of clothing at one time to avoid wasting energy reheating the iron several times.
- Switch your iron off just before you are finished and complete the ironing on stored energy.
- Prevent scorching and wasting energy by not over heating the iron.
- Be sure to turn your iron off if you are interrupted whilst ironing.
Washing machine
- Buy a washing machine, which offers a variety of water temperature settings and use the lowest temperature you need.
- A front loading washing machine uses less water and costs less to operate even though the purchase price may be higher than a top loader.
- Use warm and cold water setting as much as possible in order to cut down on energy needed to heat the water.
- Take advantage of special features on your washer that can save money. For example, soak cycles remove stubborn stains in one wash cycle.
- The automatic washing machine uses the same amount of electricity for a full load as it consumes for a single item. Save dirty clothes until a full load has accumulated.
- Never overload your automatic washing machine. Overloading will reduce the cleaning action. (Varying the size of garments in a full load improves the cleaning action by allowing free circulation).
Tumble dryer
- Clean the lint filter on the dryer after each operation to maintain full air flow and to maximise the drying efficiency.
- Dryers equipped with an electronic humidity control are the most efficient because they automatically shut off the drying cycle when the clothes are dry. Other models are equipped with electric timers which, allow you to select the length of the drying cycle. Here it is important not to overestimate the length of the drying cycle.
- A permanent press cycle with a "cool-down" period saves energy and dries efficiently.
- Compact dryers are economical provided that you only have small amounts of clothes to dry. Never overload a tumble dryer but avoid under-loading as well.
- Use correct temperature settings to minimise the amount of electricity consumed.
- Over-dried clothes feel harsh and waste energy. Experiment to find the right setting. Some natural materials such as cotton and wool should retain some moisture to avoid wrinkling.
- Clothes should never be placed in the tumble dryer dripping with water. They should have as much moisture removed beforehand and they should never be folded before being placed in the dryer.
- Dry clothes in consecutive loads where possible. The dryer will be warm already and will save on initial energy consumption.
- On sunny days take advantage of good weather and dry your clothes outside.
Source – www.eskom.co.za
