The green movement is common place all over the world these days. It’s evident whenever you watch television, read a magazine, or even go to the mall. If you’re like me you sometimes feel like shouting, “Enough already! My choice of water heater is not going to cause a global melt down!” Whether you’re on board with the green movement or not, there’s another question to be asked. Since so-called “green appliances” are by definition more efficient, can they save you money? If so, that fact alone could be enough motivation for the average consumer to care about his choices.
Beginning with the aforementioned water heater, the majority of homes still use the standard storage tank heated by gas or electricity. Over the last twenty years or so the efficiency of these units has increased. The bad news is that the increase hasn’t been all that great. The current technology has flat-lined, so until someone comes up with a super robust insulation product, water tanks are not likely to get much more efficient. The alternative is a tank-less water heater. These units still use gas or electricity to heat the water, but they do so only as the water is needed. There is no storage tank to keep hot, thus no constant cycling of the heating unit. The tank-less water heater is a bit more expensive than the conventional tank heater, but if the right unit is chosen and it’s installed properly, it should yield considerable cost savings in the long run.
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Another green appliance that can put green backs in your pocket is the washing machine. When purchasing a new machine there are really only two choices: a top loader or a front loader. The top loaders are by far the more popular of the two, largely because the front loaders are so expensive. But saving money on the purchase price actually costs more over the life of the machine. So what’s the big cost saving difference? The amount of water each machine uses. The typical top loader washing machine uses approximately 40 gallons for a full sized load, while the front loader uses between 10 and 24. If you think about it, it’s really just common sense. The top loader must fill the entire tub with water so that all the clothes will be soaked. The clothes are agitated through it by a central agitator in the tub. With the front loader, the tub itself moves and agitates the clothes through the water. Gravity and motion insure that all the clothes are soaked and agitated without filling the entire tub. The result is less water usage, and less heating of water for those loads that require it.
With just these two appliances alone, it can be demonstrated that thinking green can save you money. Extend this thinking to the refrigerator, dishwasher, clothes dryer, and stove, and there’s a gold mine of green backs just waiting to be saved. Let’s not stop at major appliances either. Technology has improved the efficiency of small appliances like microwaves, toaster ovens, vacuum cleaners, and so on. There’s also household electronics like televisions, computers, and every other electronic gadget we use. All being made green, and all ready to save us some too.
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