Saving Electricity while Ironing

If you're like most people, your clothes iron is one of the most energy-sapping appliances in your home. For such a small item, it requires a surprising amount of power.

Here are some tips to help you save money while ironing:

• Buy a better model. While it seems contradictory to recommend spending more money in order to save money, you get what you pay for. Buying cheaper irons will cost you in the long run because they won't last is long and will need to be replaced.
• Stock your wardrobe with 'wrinkle-free' clothes that require little or no ironing.
• Don't let your clothes sit in the dryer. By removing and hanging or folding them as soon as the drying cycle is complete, they will be less wrinkled and will need less ironing.
• For the same reason, do not keep your clothes in a 'to be ironed' basket.
• Keep the iron clean to of mineral deposits to eliminate staining your clothes.
• Try to do all or most of your ironing at one time. Waiting for the iron to warm up multiple times wastes energy.
• Organize your ironing so that you can start by ironing clothes that require only a low temperature first, and then turn up the temperature for heavier clothes. If the iron temperature is too hot for the material you not only waste energy but also risk ruining the clothes.
• Don't leave the iron on while you finish other chores and make sure you turn it off when you have finished ironing. Leaving it on will waste money. And if you forget it is turned on you could either burn yourself or accidentally start a fire.