our appliances are your friends and can make your life easier... but they can also sap a lot of energy, raise your bills, and harm the environment if you’re not careful. One way to make sure you are using your appliances in the most efficient way is to run the ones with the highest energy use later in the evening. Especially during the summer when you are running your A/C, energy sucking appliances like your dishwasher, washing machine, and dryer produce additional heat and can make the AC work harder. And wash your clothes and your dishes with cold water... it will save you on the energy it takes to heat up the water when running the large appliances. And when you using a dryer, try to do multiple loads back to back instead of waiting awhile between them... you will be using the same heat that was produced in the original load, and it will take your next loads less time to dry and less energy will be used in heating up the dryer. Plus, you'll be getting your chores done in a more efficient manner, which is something your mom always tried to teach you anyway, right?