Green Builder Energy Efficient Appliances
| There is a significant difference in the energy consumption of appliances. All major appliances have Energy Guide labels to help select the most efficient models. These labels compare the model bearing the label with other major models. This information doesn't indicate what the most efficient appliance is. The most efficient appliance will have specific features that should help the consumer to selecting the most efficient model with those features. At Stearns Custom Homes you get an experienced general contractor with knowledge of these products and a guide through them. Here are some helpful hints that we have put together. Be sure to contact us if you have any questions or you are ready to build you new custom home in Las Cruces. Let's start with clothes washers. Washers that are top loading vertical axis machines are not as efficient as clothes washers that are front loaders with a horizontal axis - both in energy and water use. Surprisingly, the improvement by using a front loader can be more than 50% in both energy and water use. Start by identifying the features (in this case, horizontal axis design) that create the most efficient energy consumption of an appliance as a starting point. If you are going to need a top loading machine, you should pay close attention to the number of energy saving features that are offered in temperature settings, rinse cycles, and load sizes. Refrigerators also have different efficiencies according to defrosting characteristics (manual, partial automatic, automatic), door style, and size. The top freezer models outperform the side by side models and partial automatic or manual defrost models are the most efficient. Many dishwashers have special features that improve on the overall energy efficiency of your home. Booster heaters and no-heat drying are two positive features. It's also important to know how much water is used by the different models. Select those that can accomplish the cleaning with the least amount of water. In general, European appliances are more energy (and water) efficient, durable, and unfortunately, expensive. Names of European brand national distributors are found in the Resources section. |
