Small household appliances at risk of extinction: the EU declares war on energy waste and wants to put some products out of business accused of consuming too much electricity. The clarification, however, is obligatory: indispensable objects such as toasters and hair dryers will be able to continue to be used even after 2017, but only under certain conditions. The European Commission's crackdown on energy efficiency in fact concerns toasters with two compartments, which according to calculations by Brussels consume 35% more than those with only one slot, which will therefore continue to be allowed. Ditto for the hairdryer: between 2015 and 2017 (barring exceptions), only those that do not comply with the standards of the European Union will be banned, which will require them to be less noisy (the noise of some can currently reach 85 decibels) and "energy-intensive" .
Toasters and hair dryers are just two of the almost daily objects that the EU has classified as energy-hungry appliances (as already happened in its time for incandescent light bulbs, polishers and vacuum cleaners) and which it is precisely about to ban: in the viewfinder all 16 appliances including kettles, le pressure washers (consumers of energy, but also of water), the batteries of some mobile phones or smartphones that contain toxic elements, some internet routers, video projectors, self-heating towels and even some fitness equipment.
Within the next year we will know in detail, explains the Commission, how we intend to proceed and regulate energy "wasteful" products. Meanwhile, the manufacturers of household appliances, as happened in the past with other revolutions such as low-consumption light bulbs and energy-saving TVs and monitors, are developing new low-power devices which will replace (hopefully in time) those currently on the market.
