Green Home Upgrades
When it comes to making your home more environmentally sound and use less energy, there are several green home upgrades that you can install. Going green is not just good for the environment as it is good for your pocketbook as well.
Weather Stripping
A tube of caulk combined with weather stripping can seal up the cracks around the doors and window frames otherwise your heater or air conditioner is working overtime. In addition, if you are purchasing a new door or window, check its energy performance rating to ensure that it will help you save energy. Many glass doors are very bad at leaking out or letting in the heat, so you’ll want to have the glass covered with a low-emissive coating or have neutral gases between window panels to cut down on the heat transfer.
Buy a Programmable Thermostat
A programmable thermostat is around $30, but it can save you a great deal more money in the long run. This is because you can program the thermostat to reduce the energy usage of your heater and air conditioner at night. They can be programmed to come back to their normal settings before you wake up so that the home will be nice and cozy. Plus, you can program different adjustments for heat on different levels in your house.
Ceiling Fans
There is a pleasing aesthetic quality to having a ceiling fan, but there is also an energy-saving quality as well. Ceiling fans help circulate the air which means that you will use your heater less in the winter and your air conditioner less in the summer. Plus, the fans themselves are very affordable and can be installed quickly which makes them one of the best green home upgrades.
Use LED Bulbs
LEDs use only a fraction of the power compared to incandescent bulbs, so switch them out and save a considerable amount of money. In addition, Compact Fluorescent Bulbs (CFL) is also more efficient, but they do not last nearly as long as LEDs. Add to this the lack of mercury in LEDs and you have far less buildup of heat.
Get an Energy-Saving Dishwasher
If you have an old dishwasher, you might be wasting a great deal of electricity and water. New, Energy Star dishwashers can save on your electric and water bills each and every year while using a fraction of the power and water of your older model.
Use Conserve Power Switches
For appliances in your home that take up a considerable amount of electricity, use a conserve power switch which will read the amount of kilowatt usage. When you see how much electricity is being used, you can then pull the plug when not using these devices so that you can save money.
When using all of these energy saving measures combined, you are saving both your money and making a valuable contribution to the environment as well. When everyone pulls together by using green home upgrades, it helps make our world a greener place.
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