It’s probably pretty safe to assume that most people have seen the ENERGY STAR logo on an appliance. Typically, you know that it means that the appliance will lower your home energy costs compared to non-rated models. But there’s a lot more to the rating than just the sticker.
How did the ENERGY STAR rating start?
In 1992, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Energy created ENERGY STAR in the United States. It was created to reduce greenhouse gas emissions caused by the inefficient use of energy. The label also makes it easy for consumers to identify and purchase high-quality, energy-efficient products.
The first products to get the ratings were computers and printers, but by 2006, there were over 40,000 qualified products. It now includes items such as: major appliances, office equipment, lighting, home electronics, new homes, and even commercial and industrial buildings. While it covers more than 70 different product categories, the mission and purpose are still the same – conserve energy through innovation.
ENERGY STAR has become an international standard for energy efficient consumer products – Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Taiwan, and the European Union have all adopted it.
How much energy does ENERGY STAR save?
In general, if an appliance has the ENERGY STAR logo, it uses 20-30% less energy than what is required by federal standards. Energy efficiency is always evolving, and the EPA continues to increase performance across all of its products, homes, buildings, and plants. A qualifying clothes washer compared to a standard washer from 20 years ago uses approximately 75% less water and 70% less energy.
85% of all Americans recognize the ENERGY STAR label and of the households that knowingly bought a qualifying product, approximately 75% of them used the label as an important factor in their decision. If the certified product costs more than a conventional, less-efficient counterpart, purchasers will recover their investment in increased energy efficiency through utility bill savings, within a reasonable period of time.
Families and businesses across the world are benefiting from ENERGY STAR products. Not only are people saving money, but they’re also helping the environment. It continues to be inventive, cost-effective, and produce high-quality energy solutions.
ENERGY STAR contributes to improved environmental quality and public health. Through voluntary action, it provides states and local governments with more flexibility and reduced costs towards meeting their air quality requirements and their health, environmental, and climate goals. In 2018 alone, it helped Americans save nearly 430 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity and avoid $35 billion in energy costs with associated emission reductions of 330 million metric tons of greenhouse gases, 220,000 short tons of sulfur dioxide, 210,000 short tons of nitrogen oxides, and 23,000 short tons of fine particulate matter. Since 1992, ENERGY STAR helped families and businesses achieve 3.5 billion metric tons in greenhouse gas reductions.
In our book, you can’t go wrong! While protecting the environment, you are also putting money back into your pocket.
