Weekend laundry will save 28 cents
Posted Sep 27, 2010 02:55:03 PM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Doing your laundry on the weekend to cut down on your hydro costs will save you less than you spend on a cup of coffee.
In response to Ontario premier Dalton McGuinty’s advice, 570 News conducted its own analysis using information available from the Independent Electricity System Operator . We found that doing a load of laundry during high demand hours — say, after you get home from work in the evening — will cost you 63 cents per load to wash and another 18 cents per load for using the dryer, for a total of 81 cents. That same work, if done during off-peak hours on the weekend, will cost 41 cents for the washing machine and 12 cents for the dryer, for a total cost per load of 53 cents. The difference? 28 cents per load.
But Ontario’s Minister of Energy, Brad Duguid, says it’s as much about changing our habits and conserving as it is about keeping some extra change in our pockets.
“We’ve saved 1700 megawatts so far, which is phenomenal,” Duguid told 570’s Jeff Allan Show. “That’s a huge savings to our system as a whole but we’ve got to keep going.”
A spokesperson for the IESO also tells 570 News a “culture of conversation” is something they’re hoping to see develop in Ontario.
The premier’s advice came in response to concerns that were raised over increasing hydro rates. The rates will climb by more than a dollar a month compared to last year. So can we offset the increase by shifting laundry day to the weekend?
Given our analysis, yes. The average family of four will do four loads of laundry every week, resulting in a peak energy cost of $3.24. Done at off-peak hours, such as Saturday or Sunday, the cost of doing those same four loads of laundry falls to $2.12, a weekly savings of $1.12. That’s more than $4 every month.
To help you in efforts to conserve, the IESO offers a variety of energy-saving tips. Click here for details.
