The Green Guide to Buying Coffee Makers

While a coffee machine is not a huge energy hog like a freezer or washing machine, it does use energy and there are options for those of us who would like to make as small as an impact on our environment as possible. Check out these tips and advice for purchasing a green coffee maker.

Filter

While there is no rating system for coffee makers like EnergyStar or Consumer Reports Green Options, there are options available to consumers who want to reduce there impact on the planet by reducing the consumption of energy and disposable products that can fill up our landfills. Paper coffee filters are a disposable product that causes an environmental impact and is not eco-friendly.

Purchasing a coffee maker that uses a reusable filter like a gold plated mesh screen or stainless steel filter can eliminate the need for wasteful paper filters. Although, according to some, the use of reusable metal filters changes the flavor of the coffee. Unbleached cotton filters are reusable and keep coffee tasting as good (if not better in my opinion) than metal filters without making paper filter waste. Simply wash and dry the filters after each use and you're good to go.

French Press

A French press coffee maker totally removes the need for filters at all (sort of) and requires no electricity to operate (sort of). Invented sometime during the late 19^th century, French presses mix boiling water with ground coffee allowing a richer and darker flavor to emerge from the coffee beans. A plunger presses the coffee grounds to the bottom of the coffee with a metal strainer or cheesecloth, removing the grounds from the coffee as its being poured.

The problem with French presses is they still require boiling water to operate. Whether you boil water on a stove using gas or electricity it still uses energy, albeit less than a conventional coffee maker by a long shot.

Single Serve

Single serve coffee machines have become more mainstream and common in today's kitchens. These coffee machines are perfect for the single cup and require a fraction of the energy of the conventional coffee machine and the French press.

The downside of using a single serve coffee machine is the wasteful use of single serve packs when multiple users, families or offices use them. Increased energy consumption is also an issue, but only if others use the machine. Single serve coffee makers should be just that-single serve if you want them to be energy efficient as possible.