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Energy Consumption of Major Household Appliances Shipped in Canada, Summary Report –
Trends for 1990–2009

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Chapter 3: Dishwashers

The average annual unit energy consumption (UEC) of dishwashers in 2009 was 325 kilowatt hours (kWh),10 compared with 1026 kWh in 1990. Also, almost 90 percent of standard dishwashers on the market in 2009 were ENERGY STAR® qualified products exceeding the minimum energy performance standards (MEPS) by at least 41 percent.

3.1 Average annual unit energy consumption by model year

The energy consumption of shipped dishwashers improved dramatically between 1990 and 2009. Figure 5 shows that during this period, the average annual UEC of shipped dishwashers decreased by 68 percent, from 1026 kilowatt hours per year (kWh/yr) to 325 kWh/yr. The most significant improvements in energy consumption occurred before the introduction of the (MEPS) in 1995, and between 2001 and 2005, a period coinciding with the 2004 amendment to the MEPS.

However, the more recent improvements in energy consumption do not entirely reflect an actual improvement in energy efficiency. In the 2004 amendment to the MEPS, the number of loads used to calculate average energy consumption was reduced from 264 to 215 per year. Therefore, the energy rating of any dishwasher would be lower according to the new standard, and data before and after 2004 are not directly comparable.11 Using current assumptions about frequency of use would reduce the average annual UEC of dishwashers to 836 kWh/yr in 1990, resulting in a change of 61 percent over the period.

3.2 Distribution of shipments by unit energy consumption

Figure 6 shows the distribution of shipped dishwashers by average annual UEC between 1990 and 2009. In 1990, all shipped dishwashers consumed 700 kWh/yr or more. By 2009, 90 percent of them consumed fewer than 350 kWh/yr.

Figure 5 Average annual UEC of dishwashers, 1990–2009

Figure 5 Average annual UEC of dishwashers, 1990–2009.

Figure 6 Distribution of dishwashers by average annual UEC, 1990–2009

Figure 6 Distribution of dishwashers by average annual UEC, 1990–2009.

Dishwashers consuming less than 300 kWh/yr also appeared in shipments for the first time in 2006 and attained a share of 4 percent in 2009.

Tables A.24 and A.25 in Appendix A present regionally disaggregated data on the distribution of shipments of dishwashers by average annual UEC and distribution by channel.

10 Includes hot water requirements.

11 NRCan, EnerGuide Appliance Directory 2009, p. 193.

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