We all like to check on our food as it bakes. Do not open the oven door. Use your oven’s light and window to check on your food instead. Each time you open the door the oven temperature drops by 25 degrees. This is especially important when preparing pastries. Watch the clock or use a timer instead.

Turn off electric burners several minutes before the allotted cooking time. The heating element will stay hot long enough to finish cooking a dish without using more electricity.

Check the seal on your oven door for wear. Even a small tear or gap can allow heat to wander away from your meal. A clean seal also provides better heat retention.

Make sure stovetop electric coils work properly. A worn-out element is a real power drain.

If you don’t have one, consider buying a self-cleaning oven. They use less energy for normal cooking because of higher insulation levels. They also save on your rubber glove and cleanser purchases! However, if you use the self-cleaning feature more than once a month, you’ll end up using more energy than you saved. When you clean the oven, do it right after cooking to take advantage of residual heat.

Stagger pans and baking sheets on upper and lower racks to improve airflow, and don’t cover racks with foil. Food cooks more quickly and efficiently when heat circulates freely.

Use glass or ceramic pans in ovens. You can turn down the temperature about 25 degrees and foods will cook just as quickly.

Even though they are like magnets for spills, keep stovetop reflectors clean. They will reflect heat better and save energy. If you need new ones, buy quality. The best on the market can save as much as 1/3 of the energy used with inferior reflectors.

Match the size of the pan to the heating element; more heat will get to the pan and less will be lost to the surrounding air or found by the pan handle! A 6-inch pan on an 8-inch burner will waste over 40 percent of the energy.

On electric stovetops, use flat-bottomed pans that make full contact with the element. A warped or rounded pan may be a conversation piece, but will waste most of the heat.

When cooking on a gas burner, use moderate flame settings to conserve natural gas. Remember that a blue flame means your gas stove is operating efficiently. A yellowish flame is sick and needs an adjustment.

Solid disk elements and radiant elements under glass stove tops are easier to clean than conventional electric coil elements, but they take longer to heat up and use more electricity.

Halogen elements and induction elements are more efficient than conventional electric coil elements, but you must use the proper cookware. Induction elements require that you use only iron or steel pots and pans-aluminum cookware will not work.

Use toaster ovens or microwave ovens to cook small- to medium-sized meals.

Source: http://www.consumerenergycenter.org

Dishwashers

• Dishwashers can be set on economy mode, or the door opened to ‘air dry’ dishes economically.
• New models have delayed start features – you can set them to operate when energy prices are lower later in the day.

Laundry Appliance Energy Conservation

• Smaller loads dry faster.
• Dry clothes only as long as required; you could be using 30 minutes to dry a load that really only needs 15 minutes.
• Certain dryer models have damp/dry sensors and will shut off when the load is dry.
• Hang dress clothing to air dry on laundry racks. This keeps clothes looking better too!
• Front-load washers use less energy and water than top-loaders.
• Use cold water for rinsing and most other washing cycles.
• Clean the lint filter before every load.

Refrigerators, Freezers & Energy Conservation

• For best efficiency, temperature should be set per manufacturer guidelines.
• Defrost freezers and manual-defrost refrigerators regularly – they’ll work better.

Cooking Ranges & Microwaves

• When stove top cooking, use lids on pots to reduce heating time.
• On the stove, use a proper size pot, not a larger one.
• Microwave ovens use 75% less energy than range ovens.

Source: about.com

Front Load Laundry pair

Front-load washers may look similar to the more common household top-load machine, but they are considerably different. Front-load washers operate without an agitator, the large paddle-device in the center of the wash tub.

Front-load washers have been in use for many years, most often in commercial laundrys. Appliance manufacturers have more recently developed new models of front-load washers which are smaller, more affordable and designed for domestic use.

Front-load washers are also desirable from an environmental point-of-view. They require less water, hold larger loads and save energy in reduced water heating. They also save you time with fewer loads to wash, and will keep your clothes looking better longer.

Advantages:

• Larger capacity because of no bulky agitator. The average load increase is 30%. The extra space improves washing of bulky items like sleeping bags, bedspreads and throw rugs.
• High-speed extraction. Front-load washers spin at over 1000 rpm in American-made machines, and higher on European models. This is considerably faster than the 600-700 rpm spin cycle on top-load washers. Clothes come out drier and thereby reduce drying time. This saves energy, and helps the dryer keep pace with the washer during multiple-load washing.
• Gentler on laundry items. Gentler wash action, with no agitator.
• Quieter. No clunky sounds, just the whir of the spin cycle.
• Cleans better. Front-load washers clean many stains better than conventional top-load washers.
• Stackable. The dryer can be stacked on top of the washer for space savings. (Not all models have this feature.) Models with controls mounted on the front can also be installed under counters.
• Energy conservation. Front-load washers can easily save over $100 per year in energy costs, and they use 1/2 as much water. Because they use less water, they also require up to 68% less electricity to heat the water, resulting in more energy savings.

A recent study by the U.S. Department of Energy shows that consumers can save money for themselves and communities may reduce the need for costly new power plants and water supplies by switching to water- and energy-efficient clothes washers, dryers and dishwashers.

This study demonstrates that consumers seeking water and electricity savings should look to the kitchen or laundry rooms in our homes. When consumers in the study switched to a combination of the front-loading washer, a water and energy-efficient dishwasher and an energy-efficient clothes dryer, they attained a 38 percent reduction in water consumption and a 37 percent reduction in electricity.

(The study used Frigidaire-brand appliances.)

To purchase any of the products mentioned in this blog, please visit http://www.mymaytagstore.com