Make 2017 the Year of the Laundry Room
When it comes to the laundry room, happiness within (it) can come from loads of different places. If you’re investing a new laundry pair, why not think about reconfiguring the room to make it more functional? We rounded up a bunch of inspiration to help you love your laundry room more in our previous blog Love-Able Laundry Rooms: Ideas to Make You Love Your Laundry Room More.
Whether it’s a new laundry pair or old faithful, you’ll want to ensure they are operating at their best, which means regular cleaning and maintenance. We promise it’s not as hard you’d think and will help extend the life of your laundry pair for sure.
To see all our tips and hints for cleaning and maintaining your washer and dryer, read our blog Helpful Hints on Cleaning and Maintaining Your Washer and Dryer.
Give Steam a Chance
If you’re looking for a new pair, or haven’t yet discovered all the features your existing pair has got, it’s worth giving steam a glean. The power of steam can accomplish a lot!
Washing Machines
- The high temperatures do a lot to reduce allergens, giving allergy sufferers some much-needed help during allergy season.
- High temperatures also kill bacteria, helpful for baby clothes, stuffed animals, dog toys, and more.
- Stains lift easily with the high-temperature steam provided, extending the life of your clothing and household items.
Steam also uses less water than a regular wash cycle creating a more eco-friendly wash.
Dryers
- Steam will minimize wrinkles in your clothes. Less ironing needed! (An iron is steam anyway, so this just cuts down on the steps which is always helpful.)
- It fluffs, you still fold. Many steam dryers provide an option to ‘refresh’ your load if you’ve left it sitting too long. This warm blast of steam does a great job of removing all the wrinkles. It’s also great for a quick ‘refresh’ of an item before you head out the door.
To read about the power of steam in other household appliances, have a look at The Power of Steam – in Your Laundry, Cooking, Dishwasher.
Energy Star Appliances
With rising energy costs, the benefits of Energy Star appliances are many. An Energy Star clothes washer uses 50% less energy and consumes 35% – 50% less water than a conventional model. By using an Energy Star clothes washer, you will save an average of $50 per year on your utility bill.
Energy-saving features include:
- Sensors to prevent energy waste by matching water needs to the size of each load
- Advanced high-speed motors to reduce the length of spin cycles and remove more water from clothes, so less time and energy are needed for drying
- Adjustable water temperature controls and load capacity settings
Front load washing machines offer further savings and benefits. The higher capacity of the front load design means that you can do the same amount of laundry in fewer loads. The front load design also uses less water as laundry sits in a small amount of water as opposed to being completely submerged, like in a top-load model.
All of this means less energy, less water, less detergent and less time are required to get the job done. Also, the back-and-forth motion of the front load drum is gentler on fabrics, which helps your clothes to last longer. With appliances this efficient, laundry just might become your favourite household chore!
Our previous blog article Buying Energy-Efficient Appliances will give you more information about what to look for when buying Energy Star appliances.
Let’s make 2017 the year the laundry room really makes its mark in your home, both in style and in efficiency!
Isabelle, Your Appliance Expert