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Suggestions for Saving a Bundle on Energy Use at Home - Kitchen Appliances

By: JT Navary

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Kitchen appliances are responsible for a major portion of your home energy use. Here are a few suggestions to help save energy (and money) in the kitchen:

• Keep your freezer and refrigerator doors closed. You can waste a lot of energy by constantly opening and closing the refrigerator. When preparing a meal, remove all of the required ingrediants at the same time. Also, be sure that the door has closed completely after you're done with the refrigerator.

• Locate your refrigerator or freezer away from direct sunlight, heating equipment and heater vents. Make sure there is adequate clearance on the sides, above and behind for proper air circulation.

• Set the temperature of your refrigerator between 36 and 41 degrees Fahrenheit and your freezer at around 0 degrees for maximum savings. The United States Food and Drug Administration also advocates these settings to preclude quick development of bacteria

• Try to keep your refrigerator or freezer full, but be careful not to overdo it. If it is too full it forces the compressor to run for a longer period. Keep foods somewhat separated on the shelves, being sure that they do not block the air flow inside the unit.

• Keep the unit's condenser coils free of stains and unblocked for the greatest energy efficiency.

• Clean door seals with plain, warm water or a kitchen cleaner that leaves no residue since a tight-sealing door seal is critical to the efficiency of your refrigerator.

• Seal all moist items kept in your refrigerator. If uncovered, moisture may transfer into the air, requiring the unit to run for a longer period of time.

• If you use an older back-up freezer with very little stored in it, use only the newer freezer and shut down the older one.

Cooking Appliances

• If you have a large and a small oven, you will save energy by using the smaller oven whenever you can.

• Save both time and money by using a single oven to prepare the entire meal. A cake or pie can be placed in the already heated oven as the main course is removed.

• Use a pressure cooker. It reduces cooking time to less than half compared to typical cookware.

• Keeping food, plates and platters warm with the oven's stored heat after broiling, requires no additional energy. If your hot meals must remain hot for longer than a half-hour, adjust the oven no higher than 13 to 18 degrees.

• Think about cooking with a microwave oven, small portable electric frying pan, grill, or toaster oven/broiler rather than your oven. Grill outside or prepare cold dishes to avoid adding heat to the kitchen and adding moisture to the inside air. Microwave ovens use less than half the power of a traditional oven and prepare food in about one-quarter of the time.

• Covered cookware will start producing steam or boiling sooner than those that are uncovered, permitting quicker results and less energy use.

• Use skillets, pots and pans that evenly cover the stove's burners. Use pots and pans that have even bases, straight sides and securely-fitting lids that hold heat and allow the use of lower settings.

• Cook using steamers, outside grills or casserol dishes to lessen the use of your stove's heating elements and conventional oven.

• Limit the use of water to the amount needed to create steam and preclude sticking when preparing fresh or frozen vegetables.

• Be sure that reflector pans beneath an electric stove's heating elements are bright and stain free. They reflect heat toward the underside of the cooking vessel.

• Don't cover oven racks with foil. The foil blocks the flow of hot air and makes it necessary for the oven to work longer to cook food.

• Cook following specific timing and temperature instructions. Specific timing reduces the need for repeated opening and closing of the oven door to determine cooking progress. Each time the oven opens, the temperature drops 25 to 50 degrees Fahrenheit.

• On an electric range, begin with more heat and decrease the setting as soon as the food starts to bubble or boil. Turn off the surface element a short time before cooking time is up. Electric stoves retain heat for a few minutes after they have been switched off.

• During summer months, do your heavy cooking in the cooler early-morning or evening hours. If possible, use the stove top and avoid using the oven.

Article Source: http://depositarticles.com/

Jim Navary has been a freelance writer and researcher for over thirty years reporting on a varied variety of subjects. He is also a licensed real estate agent in the Commonwealth of Virginia focusing on Tri-cities area of VA real estate and, in particular, Fort Lee VA homes for sale.

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