Dear Clothes Dryer
I have an apology to make. Well let's make that half an apology. I've been blaming you for high electricity usage. I have sullied your name across the blogosphere in the pursuit of good copy. I have abandoned you in favour of solar drying.
I have an apology to make. Well let's make that half an apology. I've been blaming you for high electricity usage. I have sullied your name across the blogosphere in the pursuit of good copy. I have abandoned you in favour of solar drying.
I was confident that my refusal to look you in the eye would result in great savings and environmental kudos.
And then I got my bill. Despite not using you for two months my kWh usage of electricity went UP not DOWN. Confused I soldiered on for an additional two months, refusing to even plug you in. And yet, again, my kWh usage of electricity went UP not DOWN.
Disheartened I consulted the Oracle at Energy Australia. The Oracle said "Grasshopper, you have been searching wisely, but in the wrong place. Your spurning of the Dryer is admirable but you harbour much greater enemies in places you are yet to look".
Disheartened I consulted the Oracle at Energy Australia. The Oracle said "Grasshopper, you have been searching wisely, but in the wrong place. Your spurning of the Dryer is admirable but you harbour much greater enemies in places you are yet to look".
"Grasshopper" continued the Oracle "Go to the back shed where the beer is kept cold and there you shall find a bigger culprit. Deny this appliance the Power it craves and you shall save $500 a year".
"And Grasshopper" purred the Oracle "What do you see before you?"
"My b-b-baby, my l-l-lifeline, my computer" said I
"Grasshopper, it vies for your attention in its desire for more Power. Turn it off when you are not using it and it will save you hundreds a year".
"But" I said "The Dryer. The Dryer is EVIL."
"Oh yes, but it is not your biggest evil. The way you use the Dryer, turning it off will save you $120 per year*. Maybe".
So, Dryer, I apologise for maligning you more than any other electrical appliance. I now see there are bigger evils afoot. But don't think you will plugged in again any time soon because while free power from the sun beckons I will bask in it.
"My b-b-baby, my l-l-lifeline, my computer" said I
"Grasshopper, it vies for your attention in its desire for more Power. Turn it off when you are not using it and it will save you hundreds a year".
"But" I said "The Dryer. The Dryer is EVIL."
"Oh yes, but it is not your biggest evil. The way you use the Dryer, turning it off will save you $120 per year*. Maybe".
So, Dryer, I apologise for maligning you more than any other electrical appliance. I now see there are bigger evils afoot. But don't think you will plugged in again any time soon because while free power from the sun beckons I will bask in it.
Powerfully yours,
M
*based on two hours per week usage. If you use the dryer 2 hours per day as, apparently, many people do your savings could be $500 per year if you turn it off.
11 comments:
such a great post
particularly since I now don't feel so guilty about my use of our dryer!
I wish computers worked on air along. I wonder if they do at Bill Gates' house. I hate to blame my computer for using power.
Despite realising that my computer is a Power-hungry monster that makes Plasma TVs look like eco-friendly devices I can't imagine not having it on during the day.
Ha, what a funny writer you are. No turning off the compueter as rebooting shortens the life and then you have to buy a new PC! (At least, that's what I am told...)
That's it I'm going out to buy a dryer!
I've worked with computers for the last 17 years and I've not found shutting PCs down limits their life any. Heat is a computer's #1 enemy, the longer its on the hotter it gets and the slower it runs. Although computers are so fast now and so much better at diffusing heat that its not the issue it once was. The biggest danger to your computer, not counting the presence of 4 year old girls named Abby, is dust being drawn into the inside of the computer. It wouldn't hurt to get some compressed air and blow out the inside of your computer a couple of times a year.....don't try this inside unless you happen to like the "nuclear fallout" look.
My rule of thumb with electricity is if it generates heat its using much more electricity than those things that don't generate heat. Big freezers generate a lot of heat, ironic as it is. Older CRT TVs and computer monitors generate much more heat than LCDs. So need an excuse to get that flatscreen TV....it'll save you money in the long run, granted the "long run" may take a while but still that's what excuses are all about. I'm rambling, I'll stop now.
You really want that flat screen TV don't you Rob?
And I thought that I was the main user of "power" around our place. I have no problem giving up chore-related power like the dryer, but my computer? Come on!
Actually Melinda we really can't afford NOT to get one. I'll start checking around.
Rob, I'm so glad you and Rhubarb Wine are coming to the defence of the computer. There is no way I could turn it off during the day.
They say you can save a lot of elec-trickery by turning everything off at the power point. unfortunately, ours is a jerry built rental house and all the power points are in completely inaccessible places.
You are just too funny!
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