Here at North West Cooker Repairs we are the North West’s leading Gas Cooker Repair and Installation company, today we will be talkiing about the new energy label for ovens. From 1 January2015 a new energy label will apply to ovens. If you were considering getting a new oven, it could be worth waiting a little longer to benefit from clearer labelling.
The new label is part of a regulation on labelling kitchen appliances (ovens, hobs and hoods), which, associated to minimum energy performance requirements of Ecodesign measures, could save about 7. 5TWh of electricity yearly from 2020 (equivalent to the energy production of 2 large coal power plants of 500MW and the greenhouse gas emissions of 1.5 million cars).
Two label schemes for gas and electricity
Traditionally, the European energy label should be technology-neutral and enable a fair comparison between the appliances of the same product category whatever the energy source. In the case of ovens this rule has been breached and two different labels will co-exist for gas and electric cookers. This will be indicated by an icon on the label, as highlighted in the image above (the blue icon with a cable coming from it).
For those who have no choice with regard their energy source and are stuck with electricity, they will have to compare efficiency class and of course choose the right dimension (the dimension of the oven will be indicated in the bottom left corner of the label). But for those with a gas supply, it will be necessary to do a more thorough investigation. Ovens can be bought individually, but also very often with built-in hot plates. Sometimes there are gas ovens with gas operated hot plates, sometimes electric ovens with gas hot plates. Anyway, to identify the best appliance, shoppers should pay attention to the consumption per cycle (in the bottom right corner). The less energy used, the better it is for your energy bill. In the case of electric ovens, this will be indicated in KWh/cycle in the bottom right corner, both for conventional and forced fan feature. In the case of gas ovens, the consumption will also be expressed in MJ/cycle for these two modes. Some sort of direct comparison could be made by referring to the KWh/cycle that will be indicated for electric and for gas ovens for the two modes (green squares, dotted for forced fan mode).
And don’t get trapped by the tiny difference you will probably notice when comparing different products. Bear in mind the figure is per cycle, that means the consumption gap will occur each time you use the appliance and for its whole lifetime. A difference of even a couple of KWh could end up being worth several hundred Euros or much more if you use your oven once or twice a week for 10 to 15 years.
Making sure the label is correctly displayed
Another factor to bear in mind when choosing a new oven or integrated cooking appliance is whether or not the label is actually displayed and reflecting the performance of the equipment. Kitchen showrooms appear to be some of the most likely to fail to ensure labels are displayed correctly. In a project supported by the European Commission and finalised Spring 2013 – Come On Labels – inspections carried out in over 900 stores selling kitchen appliances showed a high level of non-compliance: around 20% of all products supposed to bear an energy label (with another 20% bearing only a partial label or a label displayed incorrectly), while almost 60% kitchen studios and furniture stores failed to display labels correctly. That means in some stores one product out of two is not properly marked with a label. This could also affect the new label entering into force for domestic ovens. In case no label is shown, our advice is to postpone your purchase rather than be locked into higher energy bills. This is particularly true for appliances placed on the market before the entry into force of the new regulations that would ban them. They will not come with a label and could be sold at an attractive price to clear the stock.
Of course an excellent way to ensure you make the best choice is to use Ecogator, now available on Android and IOS. By scanning the label or entering model details, you will get useful information about how it compares to the best appliances on the market and what kind of bill you can expect on a yearly or lifetime basis. In addition, you will benefit from advice and tips to best use your daily appliances, and even enjoy quiz and news as this one. It’s free, just give it a try.
If you would like to know more about our services such as our Gas Cooker Installation or our Gas Cooker Repairs, then please don’t hesitate to get into contact with us and a member of our friendly team will be in touch with you shortly. The areas we cover are shown below:
Gas Cooker Installation Liverpool | Gas Cooker Installation Manchester | Gas Cooker Installation Preston | Gas Cooker Installation Bolton | Gas Cooker Installation St Helens | Gas Cooker Installation Wigan | Gas Cooker Installation Leigh | Gas Cooker Installation Warrington | Gas Cooker Installation Runcorn | Gas Cooker Installation Widnes | Gas Cooker Installation Southport | Gas Cooker Installation Cheshire
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