Save Kihei

Encourage Air-drying laundry over Electric clothes dryers:

Drying laundry using “Solar Power” is not new. We should encourage air-drying over electric drying. We are using imported fossil fuels to power electric clothes dryers, to dry clothes, The sun does the same job for free. We should encourage sun-drying laundry wherever possible, And discourage bans against sun-drying laundry as some people see it as unsightly. Some condo associations have rules against sun/air-drying laundry.  We can save finite fossil fuels and same the climate impacts and pollution that generating all this electricity can create. Maui County should pass a rule against any landlord prohibiting a tenant from sun/air-drying laundry. 

Cost per household in Maui County to run a clothes dryer for a Year: 

Cost per load for electricity up to $1.74 on Maui ($2.09 on Lanai)  Avg Households use up to $360 in electricity annually on Maui, but that electricity burned up approx 83 gallons of petroleum and produced 2215 pounds of atmospheric Carbon a harmful greenhouse gas.  

Electric clothes dryers use anywhere from 1800 to 5000 watts of energy, on average, dependent on the load and cycle configurations. This equates to about 1.8 to 5 kWh of electricity. https://www.whirlpool.ca/en_ca/blog/washers-and-dryers/how-many-kwh-does-a-dryer-use.html#:~:text=Electric%20clothes%20dryers%20use%20anywhere,to%205%20kWh%20of%20electricity.

On average and across all loads and cycle configurations, electric clothes dryers may use anywhere from 1800 to 5000 watts of energy. That translates to somewhere in the range of 1.8 to 5 kWh of electricity.  https://www.maytag.ca/en_ca/blog/washers-and-dryers/how-many-kwh-does-a-dryer-use.html#:~:text=On%20average%20and%20across%20all,to%205%20kWh%20of%20electricity.

What is one of the simplest ways to reduce energy use?  Harness the power of the sun and wind to dry your clothes!  Line drying saves money and extends the life of your clothes.  Plus, there’s nothing like the fresh smell of line-dried clothes. https://brightaction.app/hawaii/action/line-dry-clothes

Maui County

These figures are derived by dividing the total revenue by the total kWh sold for each category during the year.

How much does your electricity cost?

Electricity prices in Hawaii are generally higher than on the U.S. mainland due to the cost of imported oil used to power many of the islands’ generators. The fluctuation in the cost of fuel, which makes up roughly 50 percent of a typical bill, is the biggest driver. https://www.hawaiianelectric.com/billing-and-payment/rates-and-regulations/average-price-of-electricity

The annual average amounts of coal, natural gas, and petroleum fuels used to generate a kilowatthour (kWh) of electricity by U.S. electric utilities and independent power producers in 2021 were: Coal–1.12 pounds/kWh. Natural gas–7.40 cubic feet/kWh. Petroleum liquids–0.08 gallons/kWh.May 20, 2022  How much coal, natural gas, or petroleum is used to … – EIA

Switching to a solar water heating system can save you up to 40% on your electric bill (around $600) a year: Solar Water Heating Resources & Information – Hawaii Energy

Water heating can be responsible for up to 40% of a home’s electricity costs. In Hawaii, based on an average household electric bill of $162 a month*, that’s $778 a year spent on heating water!  https://www.hawaiihomemag.com/soak-in-the-benefits-of-water-heaters/