passatdoc
Well-known member
A week or so ago, we had a discussion for the benefit of European readers on the use of gas vs. electric dryers. I posted that when I bought my first home 19 years ago, the utility sent me a memo stating that it cost $1 to dry a load of laundry with electricity and only $.25 with gas (not sure if the 25 cents included the electricity to run the dryer, but the utility in question supplies both gas and electricity).
I found this map that shows the wide variation in prices of electricity in the USA, based on 2003 data:
As you can see, the cost (2003) varies almost three-fold, depending where one lives in the USA. My electricity supplier, SDGE (San Diego Gas and Electric) supposedly has the highest rates in California, as well as rates second in the nation only to New York City and Long Island (LILCO). So the figure for SDGE is probably higher than the rate for California as a whole.
I was amazed to learn in that discussion thread that 80% of the dryers sold in USA are electric. I do have a 240V outlet (never used in 19 years...) in my dryer area, but newer homes in our area are built with a gas line and 120V only, by city ordinance, to promote electricity conservation. Anyone who moves in with an electric dryer has to buy a new gas dryer, or else rip out the wall and have 240V installed.
If I ever bought a Miele washer, I could plug it in the 240V outlet, as long as I kept a non-Miele gas dryer (Bosch makes them for the US market). If I had a Miele washer AND dryer, I would need a second 240V outlet.
As you can see from the map, in many low cost areas of the USA, electricity probably costs the same or less than gas to dry a load of laundry. Where I live in California, however, most neighborhoods have gas lines and people generally choose gas models, even though the dryers cost $50-60 more than the matching electric models.
I found this map that shows the wide variation in prices of electricity in the USA, based on 2003 data:
As you can see, the cost (2003) varies almost three-fold, depending where one lives in the USA. My electricity supplier, SDGE (San Diego Gas and Electric) supposedly has the highest rates in California, as well as rates second in the nation only to New York City and Long Island (LILCO). So the figure for SDGE is probably higher than the rate for California as a whole.
I was amazed to learn in that discussion thread that 80% of the dryers sold in USA are electric. I do have a 240V outlet (never used in 19 years...) in my dryer area, but newer homes in our area are built with a gas line and 120V only, by city ordinance, to promote electricity conservation. Anyone who moves in with an electric dryer has to buy a new gas dryer, or else rip out the wall and have 240V installed.
If I ever bought a Miele washer, I could plug it in the 240V outlet, as long as I kept a non-Miele gas dryer (Bosch makes them for the US market). If I had a Miele washer AND dryer, I would need a second 240V outlet.
As you can see from the map, in many low cost areas of the USA, electricity probably costs the same or less than gas to dry a load of laundry. Where I live in California, however, most neighborhoods have gas lines and people generally choose gas models, even though the dryers cost $50-60 more than the matching electric models.
