Here’s why…
Sales of vacuum cleaners that are ‘inefficient’ will be banned after today as new EU rules come into effect.
Shoppers have until stocks run out to buy more powerful models as the new rules mean manufactures cannot make or import vacuum cleaners with a motor that exceeds 900 watts.
The rules relate to vacuum cleaners that are ’more powerful’ than those under the new regulations. Vacuum cleaner producing more heat than suction using more than 900 watts and producing more noise emitting more than 80 decibels, will be banned under the new rules. The machines are now subject to EU energy labelling and eco-design requirements.
The European Commission website says: “From September 2017, the most efficient vacuum cleaners will carry a label of A+++. These ratings take into account the vacuum cleaners’ total power and how efficiently that power is used to pick up dust.”
“By switching to one of the most energy efficient vacuum cleaners, you can save €70 over the lifetime of the product. With more efficient vacuum cleaners, Europe as a whole can save up to 20 TWh of electricity per year by 2020.
“This is equivalent to the annual household electricity consumption of Belgium.”
While it may be good news for the environment some have said that lower wattage machines will mean that homes will not be properly cleaned.
However the European Environment Bureau (EEB) said: “Power doesn’t always equal performance, though the misconception has become widespread.
“Some efficient models maintained high standards of dust pick-up while using significantly less energy – due to design innovation.”
Vacuum cleaner salesman Howard Johnson, who works in Coventry, told BBC News: “People want a more powerful vacuum cleaner but they can’t see that more power doesn’t mean more suction.
“The lower power machines are perfectly adequate, and better for the planet”.
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