With the cost of living still on the rise, especially when it comes to energy expenses, it's crucial to find ways to cut down on household costs. One area where you can make some simple changes is in the laundry.
While line drying as much as possible and selecting energy and water efficient appliances is helpful, there are additional ways to further optimise your laundry habits and save some pennies. After all, the ongoing household expense of doing laundry can easily add up quickly, especially for households doing multiple loads of washing each week.
Here, we share four innovative ways to transform your laundry habits and make them more energy efficient:
1. Wash on a cold wash cycle as often as possible
Did you know that 80–90% of the energy used by a washing machine goes toward heating the water?1 Given this, you should be utilising cold wash cycles wherever possible to ensure your washing machine uses significantly less energy. Furthermore, lowering the temperature of your cycle is vital to reducing the environmental impact of your laundry. Up to 60% of laundry's carbon footprint2 comes from heating water.
Plus, cold water washes work to protect your clothes against fading and ensure they last longer. There are plenty of laundry detergents nowadays formulated to clean just as well at lower temperatures.
2. Shorter wash cycles
Opt for shorter wash cycles for lightly soiled clothes, particularly if your clothes aren't heavily stained, as the longer the wash, the more energy and water used.
Electrolux washing machines are equipped with SensorWash technology to automatically detect dirt and soil levels and adjust the washing time for optimal, energy-efficient results that reduces unnecessary wear on fabrics. Additionally, research3 has shown that washing clothes on a shorter cycle reduces microfiber shedding by up to 30% resulting in less microfibers entering the marine ecosystems.
3. Maximise washing machine loads
Instead of using smaller loads or half loads, fill your machine up as much as you can. Even if you run your washing machine with small load settings, the machine will still use a majority of the water and energy needed for a full load.
Maximising loads will save you energy and water (and time) as you’ll end up doing fewer loads.
If you are a smaller household or often only need to do half loads, you may want to consider upgrading to a machine that matches your typical load size, thus meaning you’ll be more energy efficient with each wash.
4. Use the auto-sensing feature on your dryer
Heat Pump Dryers are widely recognised as the best in terms of energy efficiency, with our heat pump dryers exceptionally designed to use significantly less energy compared to our standard condenser.
Aside from this, another good tip is to look for models with an auto-sensing feature, such as our range with 3DSense technology. This advanced technology utilises humidity sensors throughout each cycle to eliminate over drying, which can not only be harmful to fabrics but uses unnecessary extra electricity. So, you enjoy optimal drying accuracy, along with exceptional care and performance.
1 Sustainability Victoria, 2024 – washing machines
