Shop RadioShack for Great GiftsAppliance manufacturer Whirlpool has received $19.3 million in U.S. Department of Energy funding as part of its Smart Grid Investment Grant program, the company announced Thursday.
Whirlpool, which markets appliances under the brand names Whirlpool, Maytag, KitchenAid, Jenn-Air, Amana, Brastemp, Consul, and Bauknecht, joins General Electric in what seems to be a quest for designing the most well-behaved appliances.
The Whirlpool Duet washer and dryer is part of the company's 2009 line of eco-efficient laundry appliances. With Department of Energy funds, it plans to have a million smart-grid-compliant dryers ready for sale by 2011.
(Credit: Whirlpool)Similar to GE's smart-appliance ambitions, Whirlpool plans to develop home appliances that can connect and communicate with municipal smart grids. The machines will be able to receive signals from a smart grid, letting it know of off-peak hours, a good time to turn on and run.
Whirlpool, which will get its funding over a two-year period, plans to match the funds in order to have a million smart-grid-compatible dryers available for public purchase by 2011. The smart dryers will be manufactured in the United States, and the company estimates that the dryers could save consumers $20 to $40 per year in energy savings.
In addition to the smart dryers, Whirlpool has pledged that by 2015, it will discontinue making appliances sans the ability to communicate with smart grids. It will no longer make "dumb" appliances at all.
That promise, however, is dependent on a few things happening.
"This commitment is dependent on two important public-private partnerships: the development by the end of 2010 of an open, global standard for transmitting signals to, and receiving signals from, a home appliance; and appropriate policies that reward consumers, manufacturers, and utilities for using and adding these new peak-demand reduction capabilities," Whirlpool said in a statement.
Whirlpool's announcement follows President Obama's release this week of plans to overhaul the country's electrical grid to turn it into a smart-grid system. An estimated $8.1 billion is planned to be spent on 100 smart-grid projects in 49 states. Utilities themselves will kick in $4.7 billion, while the remaining $3.4 billion will come from the U.S. government as stimulus money.
Not everything we write about here is flashy and shiny. Sometimes, we've got to get down to the nitty-gritty. Sometimes, we've got to figure out just where that icky smell is coming from. The culprit? Most likely your garbage disposal or dishwasher, and the latest offering from Whirlpool can help.
The new Affresh dishwasher and disposal cleaner can help maintain your kitchen appliances and keep your kitchen smelling fresh and clean. Pop a tablet in your main dishwasher detergent tray; place a second in your prewash tray or in the bottom of the dishwasher. Run the machine on the heaviest cycle (but don't put any dishes in it!) and the hottest temperature.
Have a garbage disposal? After you clean the dishwasher, drop one more tablet down the disposal, run hot water for 15 seconds, and then wait thirty minutes before flushing with hot water. This will clean the drain pipe that connects to the washer.
You may remember hearing about Affresh before--there's also a version for cleaning your washing machine. Find the tablets at your grocery store for about $6 for a pack of six.
I know I talk about laundry a lot, but let's face it: I do a lot of laundry. Probably close to 20 loads a week. So it's on my mind pretty much all the time. (Why, yes, I am a terribly fascinating person!) My children don't help to reduce the amount of laundry in the house--in fact, they add to it by leaving clean clothes crumpled in a heap on the floor. By the time I get to the pile, it's a wrinkled mess. So, to the machine it goes, even though it would ideally be freshened and put away properly. And my husband? Well, he seems to think that dress shirts should live on doorknobs and towel hooks. And then, in a panic, he takes all his dress shirts to the dry cleaners and pays extra for rush service. Good times. The Whirlpool Fabric Freshener provides a potential solution. It looks like an oversize garment bag with a cord attached. Plug it in, add the proper amount of water, and press a button. The freshener removes odors, relaxes wrinkles, and dries delicates--in about half an hour. No more last-minute dry cleaning runs, and no need to run a wash just to freshen clothes that spent too much time on the closet floor. I've seen products that do this before, but they're generally much less portable and much more expensive. This one could ostensibly be packed to take with you on a business trip--and it costs just over $200. If you're spending $10 a week at the dry cleaners just to avoid pressing your shirts, you could rack up some serious savings.
It's March Madness time again, and you know what that means: I'm spending a lot of time fighting for the right to watch a little "24" instead of basketball. But for those of you who actually care about the NCAA college basketball tournament, Whirlpool wants to make sure the only surprises are on the court--not in the kitchen.
It's a winner! Maytag's Jetclean line of dishwashers keeps your kitchen sparkling.
(Credit: Whirlpool)You've seen the Amana Jot refrigerator, with its dry-erase finish on the door panel. Use the fridge to manage brackets, track game times, or display correct picks.
And even though the magic of DVRs lets you pause the game when necessary, it's hard to make a roomful of fans wait while you head to the kitchen to check the food. So take another look at the latest Whirlpool-brand microwave-hood combination with convection technology, which lets you cook foods 30 percent faster than in the oven.
Make sure post-party clean-up runs smoothly with Maytag Jetclean dishwashers. Run the SteamClean option to get dishes and glassware clean without any prewashing. You'll appreciate the extra-durable, heavy-duty stainless-steel racks. Remove the top rack to accommodate oversize items in the lower rack--the perfect post-party move.
The Jetclean line is definitely one player you want on your team: The tough stainless steel food chopper blade pulverizes food to prevent particles from plugging the wash system and spray jets. And the micro-fine filtration ensures that even minuscule particles such as poppy seeds or coffee grounds are captured, preventing them from being redeposited onto dishes.
May your team win--and may your kitchen stay clean!
If your microwave has been getting away with making popcorn and reheating leftovers, maybe it's time you showed it the door and ushered in a microwave that really knows how to cook.
Whirlpool has a new model that offers grilling. In a microwave.
To deliver, the GMH5184XV (catchy name, no?) uses a quartz heating element that alternates with microwave energy to grill and brown food. So, you can enjoy that barbecue without standing outside in the chill of winter or firing up the indoor cooktop and filling the house with smoke.
Whirlpool's microwave is a microwave-hood combination with an industry-exclusive nonstick interior and newly designed hidden vent you can clean with a damp cloth. The new 6th Sense-sensor cooking detects the humidity level of the food, and adjusts the time and temperature as needed during the cooking process.
Look for the GMH5184XV in June. It's currently set to retail at about $520.
So you went out and got an HE washer because you love the environment and the energy savings. And you've been feeling pretty good about your choice--using less water and wasting less energy is a good thing, after all.
So where's that funky smell coming from?
Turns out that just like your fancy sports car needs regular oil changes, your high-end, high-efficiency washer needs a little TLC, too. And Whirlpool has come up with the tools to help you: the Affresh washer cleaning kit with Power Puck tablets and Grit Grabber cloths.
The system is fairly simple to use: add a Power Puck to an empty washer and run it on a normal cycle with hot water. Then, after the machine finishes running, gently pull back the rubber door seal and use the rough side of a Grit Grabber cloth to clean the entire surface.
Behind the scenes, the Power Puck tablets use oxygenated bubbling action to penetrate and remove residue that can accumulate behind the washer drum. That residue--which Whirlpool helpfully points out could be detergent, lint, sloughed off skin cells, and soil--is what sits in the washer and makes it smell bad. It's more likely to happen with HE washers precisely because they use less water, making it harder for water to penetrate "hidden" areas and because of the integrity of the washer's seal, which can trap debris.
Whirlpool suggests you treat your HE washer every 30 days for peak performance, and that you measure detergent carefully and leave the door open when the washer is empty for best results.
Find your washer cleaning kit at major retailers nationwide for about $11.
I am all about built-in and integrated appliances, so I didn't think I would get excited about a slide-in range, but a couple things about Whirlpool's new TimeSavor line really caught my eye.
The TimeSavors are so named because they use a rear fan and a third heating element to circulate preheated air over, under, and around food to seal in flavor and juices and cook 30 percent faster than traditional ovens. In addition, the range top takes advantage of a dual-radiant element to bring liquids to a boil quickly, saving you prep and wait time when you're hungry for a meal.
This range is designed for real life use. It has dishwasher safe burner grates and a satin finish that's easy to wipe clean and wear-resistant. The angle of the console and its removable knobs make it easy to clean the exterior of this range.
Best of all, these ranges offer a SteamClean option that spot cleans light spills using only water in 20 minutes. If you've ever run a self-cleaning cycle on your oven or sprayed it with oven cleaner, you understand why this is big news. A typical self-clean cycle takes as long as four hours, and the entire house smells awful for the entire time. A 20-minute steam cycle is, simply, a brilliant idea.
The TimeSavor line also features the AccuBake temperature management system, rapid preheat mode, delay and hold timers, Sabbath mode, and a more comprehensive self-cleaning mode. The ranges come in gas and electric models and hit a variety of price points.
Three years ago, we switched from an ordinary refrigerator to a French-door, bottom-freezer model, and the difference in space is nothing short of amazing. If you spend just a little bit of time planning your fridge layout, you'll quickly find that you really can open just one door most of the time to reach your favorite drinks and quick snacks. But when you need to store trays of food for easy access, you have the space, and a terrific presentation. Slide open the full-length deli drawer and wow your guests--really! I have at least two friends who bought a new fridge solely because of my deli drawer.
Maintain organization from fridge to table with these convertible condiment drawers.
(Credit: Whirlpool)Now Whirlpool has come out with a new French-door, bottom-mount fridge with a water and ice dispenser on the outside of the door, for even more space and storage flexibility. The advantage of the external water and ice dispenser is the ability to get fresh, filtered water anytime without having to open the fridge door. And, the interior-space conservation lets you keep your fridge filled with everything you want.
The driving design principle behind this fridge is in-home entertaining, so you'll discover extra space for fresh ingredients. You'll also find two gallon-size bins, a can caddy in the door, and an extra ice bucket with a scoop--a sweet touch for entertainers. And, the door bins feature easy-to-grip pads that let the bins do double duty as condiment trays you can easily carry to the table or even outside.
But, what if a deli drawer isn't your thing? Maybe you're more into the traditional model with a fridge on one side and a freezer on the other. Whirlpool has you covered with a model boasting extra tall humidity-controlled crispers for watermelons, a caddy for tall bottles, and a can-pack keeper to store a case of beverages. And you'll still find an external water and ice dispenser to keep your thirst quenched.
Both models also offer an electronic temperature readout right on the door, so you can verify that everything is as it should be with a quick glance. Whirlpool's new models meet Energy Star's most recent guidelines. And, if you've been looking for some extra green cred, the bottom-mount fridge exceeds efficiency standards by 20 percent.
Choose your fridge in stainless, Satina, white, or black, for about $2,200.
The Whirlpool Velos SpeedCook oven/microhood is a big, powerful appliance that taps the latest technology to let you cook four ways with one oven.
With 2 cubic feet of space, this oven is also roomy enough for large family or group use. (However, it weighs a whopping 88.9 pounds, something to think about if you are considering an over-the-range option.)
This Whirlpool SpeedCook oven cooks four ways.
(Credit: Whirlpool)The SpeedCook is versatile, functioning as a microwave, an oven, a convection oven, and a steamer, so it does everything from defrosting meat to making popcorn to baking cookies to speed-heating a roast for dinner.
Different power levels on the oven are designed for different sorts of cooking, with 1,200 watts or straight cooking power that can be jacked up to 1,500 watts for grilling. (The oven uses halogen and quartz lights for browning meat.) You can also use the 1,500-watt convection oven, which cooks and bakes by using air that's heated and circulated with a fan. You can also steam vegetables with the Whirlpool SureMist steamer.
On the outside, a glass LCD screen makes programming simple and easily visible. You can choose from a handy 30-second cook option and many resets to cook different sorts of food. There are also speed cook, "keep warm," and childproof options on the oven.
Inside, oven sensors prevent food from getting too hot or not heating uniformly, adjusting time to cook and temperature as needed. A grill rack, broil rack, and sizzle pan with handle are included, along with a 16-inch removable glass turntable.
The oven includes a four-speed vent to accommodate its larger size.
Eight Sears.com reviewers ranked this oven 4.6 out of a possible five stars and a few raved about it. "I tried the "sizzle pan" mode," one wrote. ""Wow! In less than 15 minutes I had thoroughly cooked (from frozen), juicy, tender chicken breasts ready to serve my hungry crew." Another said, "I have had it for three weeks now and have steamed veggies perfectly, used convection oven several times for angel food cake, cookies, and a casserole. All turned out perfect." Another Sears reviewer was less enthusiastic, noting, "I have had to have this serviced THREE times since I purchased it a year and a half ago."
This oven comes in white, black (about $1,049), stainless steel ($1,079), and monochromatic stainless steel ($1,199).
Like it or not, our lives depend on energy. Lots of it. In fact, the United States alone consumes more than 3.35 terawatts per year, enough energy to run that computer you're reading this from for about 35 billion years, give or take a few million.
In an effort to decrease our environmental imprint and be smarter about how efficiently we're using our energy, several companies have introduced "green" models of their products. Though the Green movement started as a few political conservationist groups in the early 1980s, it is now responsible for one of the more prominent paradigm shifts in technological innovation. Products like Whirlpool's concept green kitchen are paving the way in allowing us to still live comfortably without making things quite so uncomfortable for Mother Earth.
In the true spirit of "green," the ecokitchen follows the familiar mantra of "reduce, recycle, reuse" in a way that would make even the most die-hard tree hugger happy. Its design makes it 70 percent more energy efficient than its conventional counterparts, using processes that are apparently supposed to mimic earth's ecological cycles (Kit Eaton via Gizmodo). Doing so not only saves precious resources, but also saves you some green...running this kitchen costs 24 percent less.
The magic begins in the fridge, which has drawers designed to conserve the cold while you're standing with the door agape, wondering what to have for your midnight snack. The heat that is a by-product of the refrigerator's cooling cycle is then funneled off to be used to heat the water for your dishwasher. Using tricks like these, the kitchen succeeds in reusing up to 60 percent of the water and heat that it generates for other purposes.
Since it's still just a concept, it may be awhile before you have a "trash into treasure" kitchen. But there are ways that you can "green" your kitchen in the meantime, like fully stocking your fridge (this reduces the amount of energy necessary to cool your food) and using as much natural light as possible. See here for more ideas.
