The Energy Star program has been working on making its qualifications stricter, but across all the appliances there are still many bearing the label that aren't really that much of an improvement over other models. To make it clearer which appliances are really the best of the best, Energy Star will now identify the top tier appliances with a "Most Efficient" label.
The new label will apply to just 5 percent of Energy Star washing machines, heating and cooling equipment, televisions and refrigerators/freezers. The EPA may add more categories of appliances later this year.
To give you an idea of what the new label means, for refrigerators/freezers to earn the "Most Efficient" title, they have to be 30 percent more efficient than standard models, while TVs will have to be about 80 percent more efficient that standard models. Out of the existing 1,800 refrigerators and freezers that are Energy Star certified, only 15 qualify for the new label, while only 18 out of the 1,400 Energy Star TVs qualify.
I think that technology and expectations has caught up to the program... it isn't that what is now 'efficient' isn't, just not efficient when considering the new advances... all that said, this will be very helpful and hopefully encourage shoppers to choose products with the new labels...
ReplyDeleteI do like to know how effecient an appliance is. I don't always buy the most efficient, but I definitely use it as a guide.
ReplyDeleteOver half of the electronics in my house are energy savers, but I have wildly mixed reviews of them.
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