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Recycle Your Old Clothes Washer; Replace When Needed with ENERGY STAR®
 
Has your clothes washer been around for years? You've had it so long, it sounds like a marching band when it runs?
 
There's no better time than the present to recycle your time-worn clothes washer. If your washer is more than 10 years old, you're paying about $145 more each year on your utility bill than you would if you owned a new, ENERGY STAR qualified model. You're also wasting 30 gallons of water per load of laundry--equivalent to almost two times the amount of water used in an average shower.
 
In addition to the immediate energy and water savings from unplugging your old unit, some utilities, cities, and counties are paying consumers to get their old washers off the grid, and to properly recycle the steel and other materials they contain. You may also be able to take advantage of rebates on new energy-efficient appliances in the coming months, thanks to federal stimulus funds. Visit the ENERGY STAR Make a Clean Change: Recycle Your Old Clothes Washer Campaign at www.energystar.gov/recycle to find recycling options and learn about rebates and special deals in your area.
 
When you go searching for a new unit, be sure to look for the blue ENERGY STAR label. Every major appliance manufacturer sells ENERGY STAR qualified clothes washers, which are 40 percent more energy and water efficient than the minimum federal energy standard. That means that purchasing an ENERGY STAR qualified model over a conventional model will save you an average of $50 a year on your utility bills. Over the life of your new washer, you'll save enough money to pay for the matching dryer.
 
Other plusses: new ENERGY STAR qualified clothes washers are easier on your clothes, have larger capacities, and use less detergent than their conventional counterparts. Perhaps best of all, ENERGY STAR qualified clothes washers use less energy, helping us reduce our contribution to global climate change. By reducing water consumption, they also help protect our lakes, streams, and oceans.
 
To get the best performance from your machine, use the recommended amount of high-efficiency laundry detergent. For the greatest energy savings, fill the washer to capacity and use cold water whenever you can.
 
ENERGY STAR is a government-backed program that helps individuals and businesses save energy and protect the environment through superior energy efficiency. Learn more at www.energystar.gov.
 

The U.S. Department of Energy announces the ENERGY STAR® Make a Clean Change: Recycle Your Old Washer Campaign. Found at www.energystar.gov/recycle, this campaign encourages consumers to properly recycle their inefficient clothes washers and, when needed, replace them with new ENERGY STAR qualified models.

Why? Because clothes washers manufactured before 1999 use more than 4 times the energy of today's ENERGY STAR qualified models. These inefficient units waste 30 gallons of water per load of laundry--equivalent to almost two times the amount of water used in an average shower. An estimated 84.1 million households have a top-loading washer; 24 million of these are ten years old or older. Combined, the inefficient appliances use $9 billion per year in energy and water costs.

Please spread the word by sharing the article below with your friends and family. 

A complementary effort to recycle inefficient refrigerators and freezers is also in progress. Thank you for your continued support of ENERGY STAR.

Your utility costs are a major monthly expense. If your laundromat or laundry room's washing machines are over 5 years old, you may be paying too much on your utility bills.

By installing new High Efficiency Clothes Washers (HEW), you can reduce your energy costs by about 50%. In addition, you will lower your water and sewer costs by 35-50%.

The new, High Efficiency Clothes Washers help to minimize drying time by extracting more water from the clothes in the spin cycle than in traditional machines. High Efficiency Washers also require 50% less laundry detergent, so customers will realize additional savings.

Rebate programs often have a number of High Efficiency Clothes Washers (HEW) that qualify in a variety of price ranges, with a factor of 7.5 gallons of water per cycle or less. Rebates are frequently available for units installed and operating in facilities such as laundromats, multiple housing units, common areas and hotels or motels.

Some Companies that Manufacture High-Efficiency Clothes Washers

Today, high-efficiency clothes washers are produced by every major domestic manufacturer and are readily available in virtually all retail outlets.

• Huebsch
• LG Electronics
• Maytag
• Speed Queen
• Unimac
• Wascomat

High efficiency washing machines with Energy Star certification can save both water and energy...and utility costs.

When buying an appliance, remember that it has two price tags:

ONE: How much you pay to take it home and

TWO:  How much you pay for the energy and water it uses.

ENERGY STAR qualified appliances incorporate advanced technologies that use 10-50% less energy and water than standard models. The money you save on your utility bills can more than make up for the cost of a more expensive but more efficient ENERGY STAR model. www.energystar.gov

An estimated 84 million American households own washing machines and approximately 8 million washers are sold in the United States annually.

Clothes washers meeting CEE's specifications use up to 72 percent less energy and up to 57 percent less water compared to standard-efficiency washers.

Federal high-efficiency energy minimum standard for clothes washers include a Modified Energy Factor (MEF) of 1.26.

They are projected to save as much as 475 kWh per year when used with an electric water heater and electric dryer.

Savings are projected to be up to 13 therms of gas per year when used with a gas water heater and gas dryer.

Potential water savings are estimated at up to 8,000 gallons annually.

SOURCE: CEE

U.S. Department of Energy Implements More Stringent Criteria for ENERGY STAR® Clothes Washers, Expands CFL Program

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)  announced more stringent criteria for clothes washers under the ENERGY STAR® label in 2008.

Based on first-year projected sales data, approximately 1.9 million ENERGY STAR®-qualified clothes washers will be sold, saving American families up to $92.4 million annually on their water and utility bills.

The more stringent requirements for clothes washers carrying the ENERGY STAR® label will take effect in two phases. In order to qualify, clothes washers must be a minimum of 43 percent more efficient than current federal energy efficiency standards with a maximum Water Factor (WF) of 7.5, as of July 1, 2009. As of January 1, 2011, clothes washers must be a minimum of 59 percent more efficient with a maximum WF of 6.0. WF measures the water efficiency and is calculated as gallons of water used per cubic foot of capacity – the lower the WF, the more efficient the clothes washer.

Following the 2011 criteria change for clothes washers, consumers are expected to save $120 million on utility bills annually, 11.2 billion gallons of water and 659 million kilowatt hours of electricity.

Current ENERGY STAR-qualified clothes washers use 75 percent less energy than clothes washer models manufactured in 1980. The ENERGY STAR® criteria for clothes washers, last modified in January 2007, were drafted with input from stakeholders and public review and comment.