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hoovermatic

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 7, 2004
Messages
842
Location
UK
Given the recent news that the UK are the biggest energy waters in Europe, how many of you are going to drop your wash temps in an effort to redress this huge problem?
 
NEVER

I will not sacrifice my desire to see a 90oc wash in the nae of energy wastage. I turn of my lights don't keep things on standby but I will do my 90oc washes twice a week!! Already I have ahd to drop to 90 from 95 as bosch don't heat as high as hotpoint for some reason. Nothng can be a more pleasing sight than seeing steam coming from your dispenser drawer you don't need an LG just to see that
 
Have gotten into the habit of dropping my 40*C washes to 30*C now, and have noticed no difference in cleaning performance but I'll never turn my white/towel loads or my sheets to a temperature any lower than 60*C just for hygiene & allergy reasons. In fact just yesterday I used 75*C for my bedlinen and felt no shame at all.

Jon
 
never ever

will i not wash my whites at less than 95degrees. Yeah i love the steam from my Hotpoint drawer too. And the kitchen smells great when you have a boil in. Its about time Persil started to promote 95 degree washes as they are needed for tea towels and cleaning cloths. Thats coming from a chef and someone who has worked in the hotel industry. Well i guess you can make your own decisions. Just my view based on my qualifications of bacteria and illness.
 
braver man than I

Paul,
The last time I dared to mention that the UK was not exactly the greenest country in the EC, I got so many flamers I swore to never, ever say anything even slightly critical about the people living on these lovely islands again...
Seriously, it seems to me we can save energy in lots of way without making our lives dirty or colder - there is an interesting run of columns on this topic at www.slate.com these days - seems you can save 10% energy permanently with less than 1 hour investment of time and not even notice a loss of quality of life.
Worth thinking about - our planet doesn't need us, but we sure need her.
 
Never

Wools 40 c

Everything else 60 c quickwash

whites 95 c

Im not changing, I dont care about the environment and big brother !!
 
Global climate change is real (and the UK will probably feel it before we do) and energy conservation is important.

HOWEVER, intelligent conservation is what is important. No need to sacrifice your personal cleanliness. :-)

I took the advice of some website and replaced all of our basement lights and exterior lights (the ones that come on at night and shut off at dawn) to compact floursecents, and am quite pleased by how much brighter the laundry room is.

Last year we put in a "high efficiency" gas furnace and replaced the single pane aluminum windows.

The next step is a tankless gas water heater. We have it, we just haven't installed it yet.

I try not to drive anymore than possible (both for conservation and for my waistline) and invested in one of those grocery carts so I can bring bigger loads of groceries home than by carrying them. Since I started doing that, my thighs don't rub together when I walk, and I don't get winded walking up the front walk ;-).

I like to think these make up for the Tappan with the four standing pilots....
 
Well, at least it will be warmer :) should make a nice change here in Wales ... :-) for me at least. Up here in the hills we may even get sea views !
 
Dan, do you wear a babushka when you trot your cart full of groceries home ? LOL

Since arriving at moms in August I've replaced almost every single lightbulb in her house with compact fluoresents. At least 20 or more. There is a huge difference I found between brands though.. some give off a yellowish cast and she didn't like that, nor did I, reminisent of the soft white lightbulbs. I found some Noma and Sylvania Daylight brand cf's and they give off a very bright white light. What a difference in brightening up the house and especially the basement with those ones. Moms still commenting how much better those particular cf's are than the other ones.
 
I LOVE the compact fluorescent bulbs!

I balked for YEARS at their high price and that bluish glow that reminds me of work, but they've come a long way...much warmer glow....and have (at least on this side of the pond) gotten much less expensive.

There's a hidden benefit, as well. Over here, most lamp sockets are labeled not to exceed 60 watts. I hate dim light-unless I want it-and these new spiral-shaped bulbs use WAY less power, so you can install them and get far more brightness, at a substantial savings. It was the first time I installed something that actually showed a marked savings distance on my bill.

I'm still going back and forth on the whole whites-hot-water wash thing. I tried the Coldwater Tide, and it did brighten, but, over time, I noticed residual stains that weren't there with the hot water, even with the bleach. It's probably psychological.

I'm stil on this trip that if you use Tide with Bleach or Gain with Bleach powder with hot water and Clorox (yes, I've heard you're not supposed to mix bleaches, they cancel each other out), I STILL remain convinced that will kill just about anything lingering about in the wash water.

I think it's the whole boil-wash thing that some consider wasteful, and they may be right....but only the launderer knows what adventures their particular load of dirty laundry has seen, so I'm for people learning what works and what doesn't for them, and letting being free to do that without guilt or excessive worry.
 
Here's how I do it

Colored towels/cloths, sheets, warm/cold
Whites - Hot/cold (can't do a boil wash on an Oasis)
Light colored clothes (warm, cold)
Dark colors (cool, cold). Use the dark/colors cycle. It's a little more gentle but it still has the 1000rpm spin.
 
Currently Ontario has $3 coupons off any package off CF bulbs so that's why I'm stocking up.. buy a pack of 2 bulbs for $4, and you get them for a buck with the coupons good till the end of November.. I've stocked up on the coupons as well. LOL.
 
Pete, I love my little cart! All the little old Asian ladies in the neighborhood and I roll our carts around the store. It's like a lower-middle-class, culturally diverse Stepford Wives (the last scene, original movie) All we need are the floppy hats ;-)
 
its worth noting

i dont drive a car myself because i dont feel i need one. I enjoy my mile walk to work and back and the walk into town on my days off. When going any distance i absolutely love catching a train. They fascinate me. My favourite mode of transport. I used to hop on the bus everywhere and since i stopped doing that in march ive lost 4 stone. Im 5'9/10 ish LOL and was 17 stone. 42 inch waist! Now im back to a nice 34 inch waist keeping the weight off all thanks to walking. So why should i not wash at high temps? Not when there are so many smokers polluting the air with their filthy smoke. When they quit their shameful and degrading dirty habit of which they have no need whatsoever of in a selfish act, i will wash my whites at 30 degrees. Until then no way! Nick.
 
That lamp is AC/DC.......

Wehn first coming (back) to visit Europe (and lands of 50 hz) the strobing of the TV / Telly is noticible to me for a day or so till one adjusts to it. :-)

I was wondering.....do today's compact fluorescents "rectify" current (AC to DC)? If so the lack of strobing with the alternating current would be great! Woould reduce headaches, acne and stess. No joke!

I really don't like the quality of light of fluorescents, but will use one next to a regularincadescent bulb, when practical. Incadescent bulbs /lamps on't strobe BTW in that their filants stay hot and continue to glow for those milli-seconds when the power is low/off during the expected A/C sine-wave cycling.
 

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