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Use EnerGuide Labels to Maximize your Home's Energy Efficiency

(424 words)

Household appliances account for a significant portion – about 14 percent – of a home's energy use. So if you're in the market for a new appliance, be sure to use the EnerGuide label to help you select the most energy-efficient model.

The EnerGuide label tells you how much energy an appliance will consume in a year of normal service. Your power utility measures electricity use in kilowatt-hours (kWh), which is calculated by multiplying the wattage of a product by the number of hours it is in use. To estimate how much it will cost you to run an appliance for a year, multiply the large figure labelled “kWh per year” on the EnerGuide label by the local electricity rate per kWh shown on your utility bill.

A refrigerator that has an EnerGuide rating of 465 kWh per year, for example, multiplied by the Canadian average electricity price of $0.10 per kWh, results in an annual operating cost for that appliance of $46.

The shaded bar on the EnerGuide label (located under the “kWh per year” figure) lets you compare the model you're considering with the most and least efficient models of the same type and size sold in Canada. The lower the kilowatt-hourfigure, the more energy-efficient the appliance.

All major household electrical appliances (refrigerators, freezers, stoves, dishwashers, clothes washers, clothes dryers and room air conditioners) are required to have EnerGuide labels on the product before they are sold. If you don't see a label, ask a salesperson for the model's EnerGuide rating.

After you've purchased an appliance, you should keep its EnerGuide label for future reference. A good place to store it is with the appliance's operating manual.

Buying energy-efficient appliances also reduces air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change. The end result is more money in your pocket and a better environment for everyone, including future generations. To find out more about the Government of Canada's initiatives to help reduce the consequences of climate change, visit  ecoaction.gc.ca

Natural Resources Canada publishes an annual directory that lists more than 5000 appliances currently sold in Canada and calculates annual operating costs based on national average electricity rates. To order a free copy of the
2007 EnerGuide Appliance Directory, call 1 800 387-2000 toll-free or visit the Publications link on ecoaction.gc.ca and chose Energy Efficiency Publications. Other publications are also available by writing to Energy Publications, Office of Energy Efficiency, Natural Resources Canada, c/o St. Joseph Communications, Order Processing Unit, 1165 Kenaston Street, P.O. Box 9809, Station T, Ottawa ON   K1G 6S1.