Home improvement tips for the environmentally conscious

People are becoming increasingly concerned about their impact on the environment. One of the results of this is that homeowners are thinking about ways they can make their homes more energy efficient and by extension more environment-friendly. Even those who may not be as concerned about the environment have an interest in green living because it means tax credits and decreased energy bills. Here are a few tips for homeowners who want to make their home greener.

All the little things add up

Going green doesn’t always mean you have to spend a lot of money. In fact, some things only require a change in habits. For instance, get in the habit of turning the lights off whenever you leave a room. Don’t leave the water running any longer than it needs to. Lower the temperature on your water heater. Let the outside temperature regulate the indoor temperature by opening windows rather than running AC/heat when the weather is nice outside. These are always good things to do even if you are also taking more drastic measures to go green like investing in solar roofing panels.

Do your own research

A negative side effect of the green living craze is that a lot of companies try to take advantage by making claims about their products that aren’t necessarily true. There’s a difference between feel-good green living solutions that people assume are helping the environment and the products or technologies that actually make a difference. Invest your money on the latter. In order to do that, you may need to do a fair bit of research to know which things are actually helping the environment and which things just make people feel good without making any actual difference.

Native landscaping

A lot of wasted water is the result of homeowners choosing plant life for their landscaping that isn’t native to the area. Native plant life is always preferable since they naturally thrive in that climate and don’t need extra watering or special care. You can consult a local nursery to find out what plants and trees are native to the area and get recommendations.

Green upgrades pay for themselves

Check with your local utilities providers as well as the US Department of Energy to find out which green upgrades will earn you tax credits, rebates, or other perks. Even upgrades that don’t directly reimburse you in the form of tax credits and rebates can still pay for themselves over time in the form of energy savings. For instance, the strategic planting of good shade trees will cut cooling costs in the summer. Swapping out lightbulbs for energy efficient ones will cut your electricity bill. Other ideas include solar panels for the roof, new insulation for the attic, and energy efficient windows.

Keeping warm in the winter

If you live in a colder climate, then you already know that keeping your home warm in the winter is expensive. Baseboard heaters are a great way to cut heating costs. Though they typically run on electricity which is a more expensive way to heat the home, they allow you to heat only the rooms you’re using without the need to heat the entire home. They’re also more effective at keeping rooms warm since they’re usually positioned just below the windows and they counteract the downward draft of cold air coming in. Baseboard radiator covers can also make your baseboard heating system look more attractive.

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