General interest press release
World's most frugal dryer sweeping the market
The new blueTherm laundry dryer seized 60 percent of the market for premium condenser dryers right out of the gate. The dryer is the energy efficiency champion. It features a unique automatic lint removal system and new heat pump technology. The dryer uses 40 percent less energy than is required in order to qualify for Europe's top Energy Efficiency Class A, uses only half as much electricity as conventional Energy Efficiency Class B devices, and even bests its direct competition by using up to 20 percent less energy than other heat pump dryers.
The new blueTherm laundry dryer seized 60 percent of the marketfor premium condenser dryers right out of the gate accordingto a study by the GfK Group of Nuremberg, Germany. blueThermis the first Siemens product in the market segment for condenserdryers costing more than €900. A total of 100,000 units havealready been sold. The reason: The dryer is the energy efficiencychampion. It features a unique automatic lint removal system andnew heat pump technology.
The dryer uses 40 percent less energy than is required in orderto qualify for Europe's top Energy Efficiency Class A, uses only halfas much electricity as conventional Energy Efficiency Class B devices,and even bests its direct competition by using up to 20percent less energy than other heat pump dryers. All together,this makes blueTherm the world's most frugal condenser dryer,saving the consumer an average of €0.50 per load. A family oftwo adults and two children using the dryer four times a weekwould amortize the added cost over an Efficiency Class B dryer inless than four years.
What makes blueTherm so unique is the automatic lint removalsystem — a sort of shower for the condenser. It saves energy andis user-friendly because the consumer never has to empty the lintfilter. The new Siemens technology pumps the condensate into atank at the top of the dryer, washing away the lint four times perdrying cycle. The lint collects in the water tank and is automaticallyflushed out when it is emptied. This keeps energy consumptionat a consistently low level over the lifetime of the dryer. Withconventional condenser dryers, the user has to clean a lint filterthat is often hard to reach by hand. Lint that has accumulated onthe condenser or in filters impedes the transfer of heat, and thesystem is no longer efficient.
The heart of the dryer is the heat pump. This pump can moveheat back and forth between various reservoirs. The dryer's sophisticatedheat management system temporarily stores theenergy in the hot dryer air and in the steam so that it can be usedlater for heating. Because no heat is lost to the outside, energyconsumption is significantly reduced.
Photo: http://www.siemens.com/ct-pictures/in20090701