Energy savers

Save the environment—and your wallet—with a few easy changes to your laundry routine.

  • Wash clothes in cold or warm water instead of hot. According to the California Energy Commission, 85-90% of the energy used by washing machines goes to heat the water. And washing in cold gets your clothes just as clean as hot. Tide Coldwater, the first detergent specially formulated for energy-saving, has the same stain-fighting power as the original.
  • Pre-treat stains and presoak very soiled items so you don’t have to put them through the washer twice.
  • Hang dry laundry to reduce your electric dryer use. If weather prevents you from line-drying outside, buy a drying rack to use indoors. Or buy a tension rod and hang garments on plastic hangers in a doorway or alcove.
  • Don’t over-dry clothes—it wears your clothes out faster and uses more energy. Use the auto-dry feature if you have one, or set the timer for shorter intervals and check clothes to see if they’re done.
  • Pull clothes out of the dryer while still damp and hang them up. They will dry with fewer wrinkles, reducing the amount of ironing you normally do.
  • Clean the lint filter in your dryer after every use—it improves air circulation so your dryer works more efficiently and quickly.