The government is offering homeowners $840 for money-saving clothes dryers: 'It's the future'

Nov 02, 2024

The U.S. Department of Energy estimates the overall rebates will ultimately save Americans up to $1 billion every year on energy bills.

Photo Credit: EnergyStar

When you're tight on time, air-drying your damp clothes just won't do. That doesn't mean your household utility budget has to suffer, though. The United States government is offering rebates of up to $840 for an increasingly popular electric device called a heat pump clothes dryer.

When U.S. Congress approved the Inflation Reduction Act in 2022, it essentially created an $8,000 bank account for every American to adopt energy-efficient, money-saving upgrades through the Home Efficiency Rebates program. Meanwhile, the Home Electrification and Appliance Rebates provide up to $14,000 in further tax credits, and that's the program that has provisions for a heat pump clothes dryer.

The U.S. Department of Energy estimates the overall rebates on energy-efficient electric devices — including heat pump clothes dryers, smart home technologies, weatherizing features, and more — will ultimately save Americans up to $1 billion every year on energy bills.

Rebate availability may vary depending on your state or territory of residence, but California, Arizona, New Mexico, Wisconsin, New York, Maine, and Rhode Island all had the rebate program underway as of Oct. 21. Overall, 51 states and territories plan to participate.

If you're interested in learning more about which tax incentives or rebates (some upfront!) are available to you, including the possible $840 rebate on EnergyStar-approved heat pump clothes dryers, the nonprofit Rewiring America makes it easy to sort through the details.

According to EnergyStar, heat pump clothes dryers are not only kinder to your wallet and the environment because they operate with nearly 30% less energy compared to conventional dryers, but they are also gentler to your clothes — possibly helping them last longer — because they require lower temperatures.

Moreover, they are easy to install because they don't need ventilation. In order to remove moisture from clothes, heat pump clothes dryers heat the air in the closed-loop system and reuse it after sending it through an evaporator rather than losing that energy through a vent.

Reddit's r/Appliances was abuzz with praise from homeowners who had installed electric heat pump clothes dryers, with one Redditor boldly declaring, "It's the future," in a post asking for a list of pros and cons about the devices.

"I am happy with mine. Very energy efficient," another person said. "Make sure you clean all the filters as stated in the manual."

"Maintenance is very easy," someone else wrote. "One suggestion is even if the clothes feel damp at the end of the cycle, take them out one at a time and shake them out. It's residual moisture on top of the clothes and doing a little shake will make them instantly dry."

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