Talia Miller knows all about cold-water clothes washing.
Her grandparents on Galiano Island near Vancouver taught her well.
Not only can making the switch from hot water to cold in washing machines save money, but as Miller found out this week, it can bring in some cold hard cash.
The 18-year-old English major from Fort St. John won $1,000 donated by Integris Credit Union as the grand prize winner of UNBC's Facebook Green Day contest for her idea to turn off the hot water taps that feed into the student residence washing machines.
"Heating takes up so much extra energy," said Miller. "Most loads don't even need warm water to clean. I use cold water for all of my laundry anyway. Some [greasy] loads you might need hot water to get clean but for most loads can be washed in cold. I can't imagine anybody on campus having really dirty loads.
"The people on residence I did talk to seemed to think it was a good idea. They just have to turn off the hot water tap. My grandparents have started doing noticed a huge difference. It's a very green-oriented island where they live and they've made lots of changes to reduce energy consumption."
See Thursday's Citizen for more
