Drying clothes on your clothes line provides ultraviolet sterilisation and generates no greenhouse gases. Select a washing machine that uses the least energy, water and detergent, and has a high spin-dry speed. Front loading washing machines can use up to 40% less water and 50% less energy than top loaders of the same capacity. Some top-loaders now perform well. Check the energy label. Choose a size that suits your household – an oversized model will often be used with part-loads, while an undersized model may be used too often – both are wasteful. Use the washing machine efficiently. Wash your clothes in cold water: you will generate less than one-fifth of a kilogram of greenhouse gas per wash. Heating the water for a hot wash can generate about three kilograms of greenhouse gas. Avoid washing more loads than necessary: washing a full load or only a few socks generates almost the same amount of greenhouse gas. Don’t waste detergent: 1.3 kilograms of greenhouse gas is generated in the manufacture of 100 grams of detergent (the approximate amount used per wash in top-loading machines – front-loaders use half as much). Using more than the recommended amount of detergent does not make clothes cleaner.
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