Appliances
A lot of things in your house use energy. Appliances like refrigerators, dishwashers, ovens, washing machines, dryers, and hot water heaters all use a lot of energy. You can save energy by not holding the refrigerator door open and by not running hot water when you aren't using it.
Your parents can save energy by buying energy-saving appliances. Tell them to look for the ENERGY STAR® when they buy appliances, thermostats, and computers. The ENERGY STAR® tells them that they are saving energy. If there isn't an ENERGY STAR® on an appliance they want to buy, tell them to look for the yellow-and-black EnergyGuide label. If they read this label carefully, they can find out how much energy the appliance will use.
My solar house uses ENERGY STAR® appliances to save energy. I'm really proud of my new washing machine. It's called a front-loading washing machine because you put the clothes in through a door in the front, like a dryer, instead of through a door on top. It works better and holds more clothes than most washers, and it also uses very little hot water when it washes clothes. That saves energy, and it saves even more energy by spinning the clothes really fast to get the water out of them. That means the dryer doesn't need to run as long to dry the clothes.
