Our home is our castle, but that doesn’t mean that we should be selfish about the world outside our door. It is up to us to take care of our environment, and that can start in our home. Read on to find some ideas which will help you implement green energy solutions within your home.
While it makes sense to change from traditional light bulbs to energy-saving light bulbs you should wait until your old ones are all burned out. It is not a good idea to throw away perfectly good bulbs in order to make the switch since that would be a way to waste energy as well.
Speak with your utility company about receiving your electric power from a renewable source. Many metropolitan areas get some of their power from hydroelectric, geothermal, solar, or wind powered plants. Often, the electric company can simply apply a certain amount of your electric bill to renewable energy without you needing to make any other changes.
If you are repairing or replacing your roof, and you have good sun exposure, look into having photovoltaic (PV) cells integrated into the roofing material. Modern PV cells are much less noticeable than older styles. If you don’t use all of the electric generated by your home, some utility companies will even let you feed it back into the system for credit against your bills.
Use cold water in your washing machine. Having heated water in your washer can use up to nine-tenths of the energy required to run a washing machine. If your detergent is of good quality, you should have no problems using cold water. Also, be as energy efficient as possible by only washing full loads of clothing.
You should never use a small amount of warm water all at once. Doing this will just gradually increase your overall energy usage. Instead, try using all the warm water you plan on using immediately. For example, you should try having all your family members take a quick shower at once.
As a way to live greener, purchase power strips for your home. In areas where you have multiple electronics, you can utilize these power strips as a central hub where you may shut off all power to these electronic devices when they are not in use. As an example, if you have a home office, by plugging in your computer, printer, wireless router, and desk lamp into a power strip, you can turn them all off with the flip of a single switch when you are finished with your day’s work.
If you want to make better use of energy in your home but aren’t sure where to start, schedule a home energy audit from a professional auditor. These auditors can thoroughly investigate your home, and suggest ways to reduce your energy consumption, with green technology and other improvements.
Buy a programmable thermostat. An Energy Star programmable thermostat will regulate your home’s temperature year-round, both day and night. Always set your thermostat a couple of degrees less than you think the temperature should be, as you won’t really notice the difference in your home. An Energy Star thermostat will save you about 0 a year in heating costs.
One way to help with reducing energy is by using solar panels in your home. Solar energy harnesses the power from the sun which is then used to provide energy to things like getting hot water, drying clothes and keeping your home warm during the winter. Solar energy is also pollution free and helps to lower the carbon footprint along with other greenhouse gases and terrible emissions.
By changing your life at home, you’ll find that it has a greater impact on the world. If every person made the changes listed in this article, imagine how great the world could be! It’s important that you take your first steps towards being more green, so that everyone can benefit from the change.
