According to the national geographic web site in an article called “Washing Machine Buying Guide”, the average washing machine takes up fourteen percent of a home’s water usage. It not only warns that these machines use up a lot of water, but it also tells that washing machines consume a lot of energy in order for them to work. The article says that in one year a washing machine emits about seventy-two kilograms of carbon dioxide into the air. Reading this article I started to think about all of the times I threw something into the hamper that really wasn’t even dirty. On many occasions I will wear something for only a few hours and throw it in with other dirty clothes because it is easier than re-folding or hanging it up in its right place. Throwing in a few extra clothes into the wash may not seem like a big deal, but if you add all of the clothes that could’ve been re-worn but were thrown into the wash anyways you would probably find that this is a bigger deal than you previously thought. I hope that now that I am more knowledgeable  of the environmental impact washin g machines can have I will be more aware of what I am doing as I was my clothes, and try harder to only wash clothes that truly need to be cleaned.

Hello, Brenna. When reading your post, I was interested in your statistics that washing machines account for 14% of the total water usage in an average home and release 72 kg of carbon dioxide per year. Since there is currently a major drought in California, I am conscious of the need to run fewer loads of laundry in order to save water. However, the impact of washing machines on our carbon footprint is not as evident, and I was surprised that an appliance that I mainly associate with water usage releases so much carbon dioxide. Like you, my family is currently making a greater effort to only run full loads of laundry and to only wash clothes that are dirty. Another appliance that reminds me of washing machines are dishwashers, which emit between 64-81 kg of carbon dioxide each year depending on the temperature of the water and number of uses. Like with washing machines, making sure to only run full loads of dishes can reduce the carbon dioxide emissions. Additionally, people can try to use fewer utensils, plates, cups, etc. so that they can run their dishwashers less of ten. In an effort to reduce the number of dishes that we wash, for instance, each person in my family has started to use only one cup per day (we each have a specific colored cup that we use) so that we do not get a new cup every time we want to drink water. Being more conscious of the impact of everyday household appliances such as dishwashers and washing machines on our carbon footprints in addition to making little changes in our lifestyles, such as using fewer dishes each day, will help reduce our carbon footprints.
I found a website that has a chart of many different household items, which shows their carbon dioxide emissions as well as their cost. It is interesting to compare appliances like dishwashers and washing machines with other appliances such as refrigerators. http://www.carbonfootprint.com/energyconsumption.html