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Considerations When Selecting Appliances
for Off-Grid Living:
Washing Machine
Most washing machines can be satisfactorily powered from a 1000 Watt or larger
Sine Wave inverter. Drum Machines are generally more thrifty with power, and
also use less water and detergent per wash load. Most drum machines are front
loaders such as the
Maytag Neptune. The Staber
is a top loading
drum machine that is especially thrifty with both electricity and water.
While the reduced power requirement is of obvious benefit, do not discount
the benefits of using less water and detergent. Water requires energy to heat
(commonly propane in an off-grid application) and the more water you put into
your septic system, the more often it will need to be pumped. Drum machines
use one-half to one-third the detergent of agitator machines.
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