6 "Green" Home Improvement Ideas that Can Save You Can use
6 “Green” Home Improvement Ideas that Can Save You Can use
More and more homeowners are interested in being eco-friendly. Besides the great environmental benefits of living greener, making a few “green” improvements around your home could save you a healthy bit of money. Here are some easy ways to make your home more efficient, more environmentally-friendly, and cheaper to run.
1. Efficient Lighting
Compact fluorescent lightbulbs are here to stay. Don’t be turned off by past experiences with fluorescents; modern CFLs are silent, efficient, and produce beautiful full-spectrum light. Replace your old incandescent bulbs with CFLs immediately.
2. Motion Sensors for Outdoor Lights
Having bright lights outside your home is a great idea for safety, security, and beauty. You can reduce the cost of lighting up the night by installing simple motion sensors on your outdoor fixtures. These will automatically shut off your exterior lights when there’s no one there to illuminate, reducing your energy costs dramatically.
3. Weather Stripping
Humble, ordinary weather stripping makes a big difference in how much it costs to heat and cool your home. Inspect your doors and windows to make sure you have functional weather stripping. This stuff is cheap, so don’t hesitate to replace any damaged or degraded stripping you find.
4. Lighten Up Your Roof
This is the most expensive suggestion you’ll find here, but it can really pay off in the long run. The next time you replace your roof, pick the lightest possible color for your new roofing materials. A lighter roof reflects more heat and makes it easier to regulate the internal temperature of your house throughout the year.
5. Fix Plumbing Issues ASAP
If you’ve been putting off minor plumbing repairs, now is the time to attend to them. Little issues like leaky faucets or dripping tubs are easy to ignore, but they waste a shockingly large volume of water. Attend to your plumbing repairs and watch your water bill drop significantly!
6. Compost
Start up a compost pile in your yard. If you’re a gardener, (or want to become one) composting will save you money by producing plenty of high-quality fertilizer for free. Even if you don’t put your compost pile to work, composting your organic trash will reduce the total amount of garbage your home produces. This reduces your environmental impact and can also save you money if you pay for trash pick-up by weight or volume.
Although some new homes are built from the ground up with eco-friendly principles in mind, you don’t have to get a whole new house to start living in a more environmentally healthy way. All of the suggestions provided here can make your home less of a burden on the planet and reduce the burden on your wallet at the same time!