Another European Directive That Really Sucks…EU Now Banning “Energy-Hungry” Home Appliances

The EU is now in the process of taking away larger size electric appliances from consumers, saying they consume too much energy. Small appliances are enough for the citizens and they’ll just have to learn to like them.

EU banning “energy-hungry” vacuum cleaners

Incandescent light bulbs have already been removed from the shelves. Next being removed are larger size vacuum cleaners. Germany’s online flagship daily the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ) reports: “Beginning September 2014 in the EU only vacuum cleaners that consume less than 1600 watts may be sold. From 2017 only a maximum of 900 watts will be allowed.”

Hat-tip: DirkH

The FAZ writes that the ban was very quietly passed by Brussels some weeks ago, going unnoticed by the public.

Vacuum cleaners will also carry a sticker informing the consumer of the appliance’s energy efficiency rating. The EU thinks it can save energy by forcing consumers to buy only small appliances.

Whether the intrusion by the state will have an effect on overall electricity consumption remains a question. Smaller vacuum cleaners will only mean that housewives (and many husbands, of course) will have to spend twice as long vacuuming to get the house clean, and so may end up using even more electricity. This is the latest Brussels eco-justified intrusion into the free market and our private lives.

To be fair, the FAZ does write that the manufacturers of vacuum cleaners have pretty much accepted the law without protest, as most cleaners are already below the 1600-watt limit. However, a couple of high-end vacuum cleaner manufacturers, such as Vorwerk, are resisting.

What’s next?

The FAZ writes that not only light bulbs and vacuum cleaners are targeted for higher efficiency, but also an entire range of appliances. This is all in the wake of the European Ecodesign Directive, which will go into effect on November 1st for clothes dryers. “For condensation tumbler dryers, the weighted condensation efficiency must not be less than 60 percent.”

This latest additional government encroachment into private lives is necessary, European bureaucrats believe. Citizens have to stop being wasteful and it’s past time to rescue the planet from dangerous climate change, so claim the nannies in Brussels and other European capitals. It’s all for our own good.

How could people have come to accept being treated like irresponsible children who need to be nannied 24 hours a day? Surely if a poll were taken in Europe, a majority of citizens indeed would agree that they really are too stupid to make their own personal decisions and so it’s best that the state decides simple things for them, like the purchase of an appliance.

A large part of the European citizens have been brainwashed into believing this.

Recently the EU attempted to force consumers to have only the option of buying cars that emit low levels of CO2. But Angela Merkel resisted the move, claiming that Germany’s powerful automotive industry needs more time to make its cars more efficient.

 

112 responses to “Another European Directive That Really Sucks…EU Now Banning “Energy-Hungry” Home Appliances”

  1. European Union Banning Large Size Vacuums » Pirate's Cove

    […] (No Tricks Zone) Incandescent light bulbs have already been removed from the shelves. Next being removed are larger size vacuum cleaners. Germany’s online flagship daily the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ) reports: “Beginning September 2014 in the EU only vacuum cleaners that consume less than 1600 watts may be sold. From 2017 only a maximum of 900 watts will be allowed.” […]

  2. Dave-0

    More nanny state directives by micro-managing EU apparatchik.

  3. SeeRight

    A vacuum cleaner that is undersized for the job will not last long and will need to be replaced–over and over. This is true of many appliances and tools. So, start up more factories: manufacture and ship more component parts and more assembled vacuums. Is this really the way to be energy efficient? As the saying goes, let’s be practical and realistic.

  4. Stonewall

    Meanwhile, in the USSA, the feds are gearing up for the same kind of assininity with Smart Meters.

  5. Tony

    Time Europe understood that you cannot save yourself to prosperity, you need free capitalist markets to generate real wealth for all

  6. Stan

    And anything that consumes energy will soon be equiped with an RFID chip that will communite usage to the government thru your wireless router.

    Just another brick in the wall…

  7. Jack

    Next they will take away hot water. The EU elitists want to be the “haves” and everyone else a smelly, dirty, peasant. Coming soon to a former free country near you.

  8. chisum

    The Europeans just can’t get enough of the NAZIs can they.

  9. The Right Opinion – October 28th, 2013 | John R. Bolton

    […] Related: EU Now Banning “Energy-Hungry” Home Appliances – No Trick Zone […]

  10. grumpyKoz

    Great!
    Smaller appliances take longer and use more energy to get the same job done. So they have just signed up for larger electric use, not smaller.
    By the way, where do electric cars fit in? Are they small/efficient Or are the large/energy guzzling?

  11. Environmental Fascism: The Ecofascists Are Slowly But Surely Taking Over America «

    […] But over in Europe, environmental fascism is actually even worse than it is in the United States.  In fact, one new regulation that was recently implemented bans Europeans from owning large vacuum cleaners… […]

  12. ChrisL

    The bad news is that all of this is our own fault. We’ve chosen to lie down and let the government roll over us. The government just does what it always does, trying to eke out a little more and more control, and because we’re all sleeping with iphones in our hands, the government succeeds.

    The good news is, that because it is our fault, we can fix it by simply choosing action.

  13. Environmental Fascism: The Ecofascists Are Slowly But Surely Taking Over America | 3rdeyeviZion

    […] But over in Europe, environmental fascism is actually even worse than it is in the United States.  In fact, one new regulation that was recently implemented bans Europeans from owning large vacuum cleaners… […]

  14. Lars P.

    I really like this concept – ban everything that is unnecessary and wasteful./sarc

    We should start with the eurocrats. Unnecessary and wasteful.

    The ban of the electric bulbs did nothing but helped the industry to cash on CFL and delayed leds with a couple of years. Led would have been the normal evolution from the incandescent bulb, no need to stray with the polutant CFLs.

    Happy are the Norwegians, Swiss, Icelanders and others who managed to stay away. Europe is getting more and more China of the time of the mandarins and
    seems programmed to continue the path of stagnation and de-industrialisation.

    This ban will only make it harder to clean-up the house efficiently. Congratulations Europe!
    On the other side there will be a new market to tune-up vacuum cleaners…

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