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‘Eco-efficient’ domestic appliances
therefore be more efficient), but this would
Maytag XXL dishwasher with
Revision of the EU ener
not deliver the required cooking results,” large capacity and very economic The relative merits of several
continues Mike Jarett.
energy and water consumption
schemes have been considered:
Dishwashing 1 Additional numbers e.g. A1,
Perhaps the greatest unsung hero of the A2, A3 added onto A-G rating
resource-saving crusade is the dishwasher so that, eventually, when all
which is now packed with a host of products are a minimum of A
technological innovations. the letters would become
For example, the new Maytag XXL obsolete and there would be a
dishwasher is the industry’s first offering seamless transition to a
four racks and 17 place settings and numerical rating with scope for
operating on just 9.9 litres of water for a indefinite improvement.
standard programme. Whirlpool’s 2 Energy efficiency classes
AquaSteam dishwasher not only uses above the current ‘A’ rating
steam for superior cleaning performance expressed as A (minus) % - for
but also features a Super silent overnight example A-20%, A-40%, A-
programme making it one of the quietest 60% etc. The minus figure
machines on the market at just 39dB. would illustrate energy
The Fagor LF73DWiTU dishwasher efficiency by indicating how
features a special ECO sensor that will much less energy is used.
reuse up to 25% of the water for the wash 2012. Meanwhile Whirlpool declared that 3 Maintaining the existing A-G
dependent on its cloudiness, without by 2015 all the company’s appliances will label and rescaling
losing wash quality. Its AIS (Advanced be electronically controlled and capable of appliances in line with higher
Intelligence System) will vary the water receiving and responding to signals energy efficiency standards.
gy labels
and energy specific to the load and requesting curtailment of the appliance's Appliances already covered by
automatically adapts to the requirements energy consumption. the system would be
of the wash thus reducing washing time Most recently Indesit Company has downgraded by one or more
by up to 30% on any programme. begun a UK trial of fridges fitted with grid- notches from A+ to A and A to
Many of the top of the range balancing technology which helps to B. For a recent purchaser, this
dishwashers now utilise auto sensing maintain the balance between supply and would undermine the value of
technology which enables dishwashers to demand across the national electricity grid. their ‘A’ rated appliance.
assess how dirty the dishes are and to All Fisher & Paykel products are
Source: Amdea
automatically adjust the energy, water and designed to reduce energy and water
time to the requirements of a particular consumption and the company carefully
wash. It is present on the latest Baumatic selects production material to reduce many people who believe the initial price
BDS670SS model and Caple’s top strain on the environment. Scarce point is the most important factor to
dishwasher, the Di607/15. materials are used sparingly, while consider. It is very important to stress the
hazardous materials such as CFCs have specific advantages to the consumer about
A broad approach to been eliminated. the money that they will save in the long
sustainability Also Amica is very proud of its term by buying an energy efficient product,”
The largest proportion of the appliance’s environmental credentials. Thanks to the advises Danny Lay, sales director of Caple.
environmental impact takes place during modern technology applied and the Maytag’s Ray Mistry adds: “We need to
the product’s usage; however, consumers introduction of ecology-friendly explain that a ‘green’ appliance usually
are increasingly concerned with the techniques in the production process, costs more at the outset but the energy
environmental costs of producing new Amica’s factories have decreased water savings can total up to savings of
appliances and recycling the old. Therefore and energy use as well as limiting the hundreds of pounds during the
the leading brands proudly communicate amount of waste and sewage produced. appliance’s lifespan. Older appliances can
their green strategies and targets to their use twice the energy of a new one so
global consumer audience. Electrolux has Selling green appliances encourage trading in early, rather than
announced that its Climate Strategy Although an increasing number of waiting for an old one to break down. The
included cutting 15% in energy use group- consumers are aware of the benefits of fear of greater fuel bills is a huge
wide by 2009 and an additional 15% by energy efficient products, “there are still purchasing driver.” a73
“Today’s most efficient appliances can offer better performance while running on as little
as one third of the electricity and water consumed by some of the much older models”
32 TheIndependentElectricalRetailer February 2010
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