All Posts Tagged With: "energy efficient"

Brenda writes…

Sust-it

This is a wonderful green reference website. Where you can find out, how much energy your electrical appliances consume. It keeps you up-to-date with all the latest figures and information which can help you when making future electrical appliance buying decisions.

The company aims to encourage individuals and companies to be more energy conscious, lower co2 emissions and help combat global warming.

This brilliant reference website has made it through to the Green Awards 2008 final. They are a finalist in the category “Best Green Campaigner”.

ooffoo

This is a great new community set up by the people who bring you Natural Collection, your ones stop shop for all things natural and organic. Anybody can join and add their thoughts - check out my couple of posts here.

All Things Eco

A great online directory which lists thousands of companies which are eco friendly.

Ethical Junction

This is a fantastic organisation, that helps green and ethical companies work together, utilising their strengths. Once you are a member, you can get access to a whole host of advantages, including inhouse PR, advertising etc.

Natalie writes…

I’d been very curious about the Tefal Quick Cup which is billed as being an energy efficient alternative to the kettle, producing filtered hot or cold water in about 3 seconds. They claim to provide an energy saving of up to 65% which could be as much as £31 off your leccy bill each year. Not something to be scoffed at you might say under the current climate, but after visiting a friend who owns one and trying it out, it’ll never make it in my house!

Why? There is a reason why it’s called a ‘quick cup’ because it’s ‘quick’ heat but certainly nowhere near as hot as your tea from a normal, supposedly energy sucking kettle, which means if you so much as dawdle over drinking your cuppa, like you would with any other cup of tea, it will be lukewarm pre-tty quickly. You could find yourself having to make another which isn’t really that energy efficient…

The kettle uses the unique “Opti-Quick” technology system which is a patented innovation by Tefal. You push the button which sends the water up the element to heat it. Naturally Tefal don’t go into the specifics of exactly how this works but I find it comparable to when I use to get hot drinks from the tea machine at work - handy, but only when you’re really stuck and have no other option. It’s certainly not appropriate for a young family that needs to make up formula feeds in a hurry when they forget…occasionally…

This is basically a hoof down your cup of tea or coffee in a hurry appliance and if this is you, you’re onto a winner, but if you savour your hot drinks whilst chilling out with a sneaky biccie when you have a few minutes peace from the kids, you’ll feel rather underwhelmed and underheated. Some like it hot - that’s me!

My suggestion - buy a tea cosy, make a pot just like your parents/grandparents used to, and make it last. Or boil enough for your cup. I think you can wait the extra minute!

If you are into the quick hot drinks, you can pick a Tefal Quick Cup up from Amazon for £45.99 instead of the RRP of £64.99

Brenda writes…

Have you checked your fridge recently?

Odd question you may say, but did you know that if you keep your fridge clean and defrosted regularly inside and out (next time you have the hoover out run it over the back of your fridge to get all the dust and dirt that accumulates there), that you can cut down the energy it uses?

The build up of dirt and dust can affect the running of the fridge because it makes it work harder which means it needs to use more energy (bad for environment) and it costs more to run (bad for your pocket).

Remember when you go shopping for your new fridge to check out its green credentials. Below are two of the best green fridges around.

Siemens KT16RP42 - This compact Siemens is A+ rated for energy, costing you just over 20p a week to run. Its steel door front opens up to reveal 4 metal-trimmed safety glass shelves, a bottle rack, 2 egg trays, a dairy box and 2 half width vegetable containers. Available from John Lewis for £329 including delivery. John Lewis can also arrange to take away your old one.

Zanussi ZRA328W - This fridge has a large 275l capacity. It is A rated for energy efficiency, its quoted annual energy cost is 14.95. Features include: 6 glass shelves, 2 vegetable drawers, 3 balcony shelves and a full width dairy compartment. Available from John Lewis for £289 including delivery.

Both fridges come with free 2 year guarantees.