Buying Service Contracts

Service contracts are extensions to the manufacturers warranty, which can be either parts, labor or both. The most common warranty in the appliance industry is a 5 year, which is actually 4 years plus the manufacturers original 1 year. Think of it as year 2-5 coverage.

There are many people who believe good products should work. I respect that. That thinking would bankrupt the insurance industry, but in theory, good products should operate for longer than 5 years. Statistically, our service department completed 15,000 service calls in warranty, so there are a good fraction of new products for whatever reason need repair.

The pricing structure should be very simple. usually a 5 year warranty will cost $99-199 on basic products and more on expensive products like SubZeros and professional products depending on the store

The question of whether to actually purchase a service contract becomes strangely complicated. You buy a service contract from anywhere. The first question is: Who fixes it? The number 2,3 and 4 volume appliance dealers have limited appliance service technicians in their organizations. On the Internet, it is even worse. How can an Internet store from New Jersey service an appliance in Boston or Boise. Think about it. Yale is one store and completes over 15,000 calls per year. Can you imagine a chain of stores. My point is do not invest the money on service when a company cannot by its very nature can complete the transaction

I do not want to turn this into a service rant. My purpose is to educate, so don't plunk down your hard earned money on a contract that may be worth only as much as the paper and ink

The Most Efficient Dishwashers Available

To be honest, dishwashers are not as compelling as clothes washers in terms of water and electricity savings. As discussed in previous posts, use the air dry and shorter cycles(which do not heat the water as much) for maximum efficiency.

List as follows:

Asko, D3531, 194 KWH and 141% better than the Federal Energy Standard.


Bosch/Thermador, 290 KWH and 61% better than the Federal Energy Standard.


Frigidaire, 309 KWH and 57% better than the Federal Energy Standard.

The Most Energy Efficient Washers Available

I saw Inconvenient Truth last night. It was moving to say the least, and I would recommend it as a must see. Personally, I am apolitical and fairly skeptical. We started The Green Project to demonstrate that they could save money, lots of money, by switching to energy efficient appliances. Another benefit is the savings of water and energy, which in turn is good for the environment.

To review, an average energy star washer is now 3.5-4 cubic feet, uses about 10-15 gallons of water and about 210 Kilowatts per year. The average top loader is still 2.4 cubic feet (without the agitator) uses about 42 gallons of water and about 420 Kilowatts per year. We used the Energystar guide of 8 loads per week when calculating the numbers. The numbers are even more pronounced if we consider the sizing difference. In other words, the front loader is 40% larger on average, so theoretically there would be 40% less usage with the same laundry.

There is no question that the dollar savings is substantial in water, sewer and electricity costs as well as the environmental benefit. Following are the most energy efficient washers on the market today.

Bosch WFMC3301, Average KWH 182 and 90% better than the Federal Energy Standards.


Bosch WFMC6401, Average KWH 176 and 93% better than the Federal Energy Standards.


Miele W4840, Average KWH 186 and 90% better than the Federal Energy Standards.


Compact Machines 24" or less-

ASKO W6461, Average KWH 127 and 98% better than the Federal Energy Standards.


Miele W1113, W1119 and W1930 Average KWH 113 and 62% better than the Federal Energy Standards.

My Favorite Lighting

This yet another totally biased blog entry. What further complicates matters is that I have contemporary tastes. The important idea behind this blog is understanding the importance of lighting. Well designed lighting does not have to cost a fortune and is integral to the environment.

Undercounter lighting: CSL, Seagull Ambience

Think about it. Meals are prepared on counters. Placing lights on the cabinets above is a good idea.

CSL is a strip of halogen lights that is available in varying lengths.


Seagull Ambience is a low voltage cable that allows for greater flexibility. Ambience is also low voltage, so it emits a whiter light.


Pendants: Techlighting, Hudson Valley

The demand for pendants increased dramatically with larger kitchens. As previously discussed, the kitchen and formal dining area have combined to form one "great" room in most new homes. Usually, there is a type of island in the plan. Pendants(essentially small fixtures) have become the light for these areas.

Techlighting is the premier contemporary pendant company with a profusion of color and styles.


Hudson Valley is a very decent transitional to traditional line of pendants and fixtures. Hudson also manufactures some great period pieces and most of the products are under $120.


Wrought Iron: Hubbardton Forge.

Wrought iron has become increasingly popular in transitional and traditional adaptations. Hubbardton stull forges lighting by hand.


Crystal: Schonbek

I say crystal, and the image that immediately runs through brains is your grandmas house(not that it is a bad thing) Crystal is incredibly interesting. Look at Geometrix from Schonbek.


Monorail: Techlighting

Think of it is very updated track that is bendable and with the ability to light track heads and/or fixtures.


Bulbs: Compact Fluorescent, Krypton bulbs

The equation is simple 13 watts fluorescent equals over 50 watts incandescent.


Krypton bulbs are beautiful bulbs for chandeliers. They also use much less energy.


Traditional: Visual Comfort

VC has some great heavier traditional pieces that even I appreciate.