We have come to realize how important it is to take better care of our environment. One method for treating the environment better and saving money is to convert to green energy in the home. Continue reading to find out several ways to utilize green energy in your home.
Check monthly to determine if your furnace’s filters need cleaning and replace them yearly. Warm-air registers can also benefit from filters. This reduces debris and small toys from falling into the ducts, which will make them less efficient.
Consider installing a solar water heating system. Using a solar water heater to warm your water with the energy of the sun works to save money and energy. Yet make sure that you also have a regular water heater as well just in case the sun decides to not come out for awhile.
Check out all the different resources your community has available for energy. Compare the costs of operating your home using several of these utilities, making sure to take into consideration any legislation with regard to energy costs that has recently been passed. For instance, it might be worth it to switch to gas heat instead of electric, or switch to well water instead of municipal water.
Calculate potential energy generation during the planning of buying home solar systems. That will help you avoid negative surprises in the winter, and it will give you plenty of leeway during the summer. And even more exciting, on some plans, you can receive money from utility companies if you use less energy than you generate.
Solar Power
Take time to read about passive and active solar power. When it comes to active power, the energy is stored for later use, while passive doesn’t need expensive cells in order to store power. To use active power, you must install mechanical systems, cells and solar panels. Passive solar power is more basic and simply uses your home in its existing state as heat storage.
Desktop computers are very power hungry. Try using a laptop as an alternative. That can reduce up to two-thirds of your power usage; that is especially true if you frequently use word processing or the internet. You can also bring your computer anywhere if you have a laptop.
A solar oven can be an easy and free way to bake. You can make these with boxes, old windows or old pieces of foil that can be used for reflection. Solar ovens can get hotter than 300 degrees, and doesn’t use any energy source besides the sun, so you are reducing your carbon footprint and saving money.
Use biofuels as a heat source. These fuels are comprised of oils, woods, vegetable, or animal fats. Typically, if your furnace uses propane, professionals can easily provide changes so you use these fuels. That would be around 20-99% biodiesel. Be sure you discuss any new fuel use in your home with a pro before starting.
Try using a carpool if you want to reduce fuel consumption. Parents can trade off driving duties and carpool neighborhood kids to school together. If you are near friends and family, go food shopping together and take turns driving.
Upgrading your home’s boiler is a smart way to save energy. A lot of the older boilers weren’t made to conserve energy, yet newer ones were made to keep this in mind. Not only can they shave money off your energy bill, but they benefit your health by releasing less carbon dioxide.
Energy Star
Get appliances that have an Energy Star rating. Energy Star appliances are guaranteed to use less energy than those made previously. Appliances like fridges and freezers can use up to 20% less energy, while washing machines can save up to 50%.
A simple way to jump on the green energy bandwagon is through your utility provider. A lot of utility companies, on their websites, provide tools to assist you in seeing what energy you use, in some cases down to an hour; they also offer ways to reduce costs and consumption. Look into programs that help you buy energy-efficient appliances.
Solar panels can be added to your home as an easy green energy source. There is of course an initial investment that is not cheap, however, long term use and the resulting savings, will far outweigh the up-front cost. After your panel is installed, you can get solar energy for free and you could also sell a part of the power to electric companies.
Heat rooms separately to save heating costs. The best way to accomplish this is to get a floor heating solution with a main board that allows you to monitor different areas and choose a specific temperature. Choose this type of solution if you own a large home.
Look at the seals on your freezer and refrigerator often to save energy. A break in the seal can use an unnecessary usage of power, which is a waste of energy as well as money. An easy way to check to see if your seal is intact is to insert a piece of paper in the door of your refrigerator. If the paper can easily slide out, your seal needs to be replaced.
Don’t forget to use ceiling fans just because it’s wintertime. Change to the winter clockwise rotation to return the warm air down towards the room and put less stress on your heater. The little electricity used to run your fan is offset by what you save with your energy costs due to needing the furnace less often.
You can save lots of money with programmable thermostats. These thermostats can be programmed with your own preferred settings to regulate the air temperature in your home year-round. In addition to seasonal control, you can also use them to regulate the temperature at certain hours of the day.
Use the tips discussed here to minimize your own impact on the environment and become energy efficient. It is worth using green energy for the savings alone.