Appliances

Hello,

We still haven't closed on the house which means we are not yet knee deep in construction. However, we have been able to buy our appliances in anticipation of the move. Appliances are  a big part of how efficient your house can be. We have a very specific budget and within that we have tried to buy the best (meaning most efficient and durable) appliances we can afford. Our first purchase and so far the only appliance tat we have paid full price for is an Asko washing machine. I originally found out about the Asko online when I was doing research for efficient appliances. The websites I read were about the extreme efficiency of Asko clothes washers on three different levels, water conservation, energy conservation and soap conservation. I am not putting laundry soap on the list of environmental causes but it doesn't hurt that you only need a tablespoon of detergent per load. Asko is a Swedish brand, a country that has long been listed as one of the cleanest and most environmentally conscious countries in the world. I just need to say that I cannot wait to start using this machine. I get excited just thinking about it. We also managed to score another Asko appliance for our house, the dishwasher. We originally did not think that we could also afford an Asko dishwasher because they are one of the most expensive brands on the market. We managed to get a 2002 model at a discount from a kitchen showroom in the area that was trying to move it out to make room for a new model. I found it on craigslist.org Boston which has already proven to be a great tool for us in our quest for furniture and appliances. The dishwasher has never been used so is in essentially new condition and we bought it for only $600 which is about half of the original price. Woohoo! If you can't afford an Asko I  would recommend a Bosch dishwasher and/or washing machine. They are only slightly less efficient, a few hundred dollars less and more widely available. Just make sure to check the energy guide tag because Bosch has different lines with different levels of efficiency. Of course the higher efficiency comes with a higher price but do the math and see how much you will save on your water and energy bills with the more efficient appliance. 

We were able to get our range and refrigerator on sale at the end of the year and is another big reason we were able to stick to our budget. We got a 21 CF GE Profile fridge on sale and it actually uses less energy than the lowest end of the energy guide scale. Before we found that fridge though we were planning to get an 18.5 CF fridge that uses only 407 kilowatt hours per year. This was the lowest energy consumption that I could find readily available on the American market in a regular sized refrigerator. They come in several price ranges as well so if you're on a tight budget and you can't find a sale you should be able to pick one up for about $600-$800. We did not go for energy efficiency on our range. The data is not readily available and they are not the biggest energy suckers in the kitchen by a long shot. We got a servicable little Hotpoint range. Hotpoint gets high marks for durability so hopefully this one will last us longer thereby cutting down on the need to replace the range and creating more waste faster. If you have money to blow I would recommend an induction cooktop because it is by far the most efficient use of energy. The stove only heats the pot and what's inside it. The stove never gets hot to the touch so it's safer if you have kids or pets. They will run upwards of a thousand dollars and that does not include an oven. Josh is complaining that I've ben writing too long so I'm going to close up shop.