Start Conserving Energy when You Do Your Laundry

When you do your laundry the amount of water and energy consumed on average is quite a lot. Here are some tips to help you wash your clothes without getting a guilty conscience.

To be able to apply these tips at home you are going to need and eco-friendly laundry detergent, a laundry line and most importantly an energy-efficient washing machine.

If you own a washing machine that you bought 10+ years ago, you must consider replacing it with a washer that's energy-efficient. The best thing about energy-efficient models is that they use half the water and an average of 35% less energy per load. It's an investment that pays for itself.

To make sure that you are buying the ideal washer, look for one that has the "Energy Star" logo. These are built with the purpose of consuming less energy and water.

When you go shopping for detergent, purchase an eco-friendly one. You can actually make your own homemade detergent, just look for recipes that are readily available for free online.

Make sure that you have a full load before you do your laundry.

Washing your clothes with cold water is the best way to go if you want to be energy efficient, so do your loads with cold water unless you're washing baby clothes. Take into consideration that 90% of the energy consumed when washing clothes is from warming up the water.

If you don't find using cold water for your laundry convenient, you can at least use cold water on the final rinse cycle, which uses almost half of the amount of gallons that are needed to wash a load.

Line dry your clothes as much and as often as possible. Again, this may not be that convenient mostly for people with not much room but get creative. You can hang your jeans on hangers for example.

If and when using the dryer, always check the lint filter and clean it. This simple step will allow your dryer to keep running efficiently and dry your clothes quicker. Check the clothes often while they're drying so you don't let the dryer run longer than it needs to.

In the summer season do your laundry early in the morning or late at night. These are the best times to do laundry because the energy demand is lowest.

The average family in America does eight laundry loads per week. If you put some of these tips into practice you will be making a big difference