5 Ways To Make your Home more Energy Efficient

Today, finding an easy way to help out our rather struggling planet, without making one’s own life difficult, can be challenging. One of the easiest ways we, on the individual level, can try and do so is by improving the energy efficiency of our homes. Not only does this improvement produce cost savings for us as the homeowners, but while doing so, it simultaneously helps the health of our environment! Energy efficiency of a home can be achieved in many different ways, and here are the five simplest (and cheapest) ways to make a difference.



1, Temperature Control - Nobody likes having a chilly house during the winter, and sometimes blankets don’t really do the trick. Insulation is a great way to warm one’s house. Apart from making one’s home cosier during the winter, it also gives the bill at the end of the month a cosier touch! Heating and cooling one’s home is one of the most expensive and highest energy-consuming activities. Having an adjustable thermostat means reducing energy usage and, likewise, the costs involved. Furthermore, your front door must be well-insulated and properly sealed to prevent cold air from entering your home. This is because insulated doors help save energy and maintain a comfortable indoor temperature. You should always consider replacing your front door if it shows signs of wear or damage that compromise its effectiveness. Within the same vein, damaged and worn down windows can also cause a draft so it's really important to make sure your windows are well maintained or replace any damaged windows. This will make a big difference in keeping your home draft-free.



2. Turn your gadgets off -  Another way of increasing one’s energy efficiency at home is to simply unplug; unplug the chargers that are not being used and turn off the unnecessary gadgets. Of course, this doesn’t mean one needs to shut everything off, but unplugging any appliances that are momentarily not being used can really boost the energy efficiency. Even when not in use, chargers and gadgets that are plugged in consume energy! Simply unplugging the laptop and/or phone chargers can help with reducing the home’s energy consumption.

3.  Use appliances and electronics responsibly - Taking the time to choose the most energy-saving appliance is already a step in improving your home’s energy expenditures. An unexpectedly simple way to manage energy efficiency at home is by managing the electronic appliances in a smart way. For example, putting all of them on power strips will make it easier to switch all of your electronics off when you are not using them. Another important point would be ensuring safety in your home by choosing a high quality circuit breaker, which will help to prevent fires caused by wires overloaded with electricity.

4. Water Settings - Being able to relax in the bathtub or take a long shower is definitely one of the best luxuries your home has to offer. However, water usage can also cause high energy usage and can be wasted easily. An efficient way to save gallons of water and thereby improve one’s home efficiency is to install low-flow showerheads and/or low-flow toilets. Both installations manage the water usage automatically, and regulate it so that the flows are just what one needs.


5. Solar panels - Choosing to install solar panels as an energy provider can definitely help increase one’s energy efficiency. Having the panels means producing one’s own electricity, consequently cutting down on the electricity bill. Unfortunately, solar panels at this time are still pretty expensive, so maybe covering the roof with them is not the most financially feasible choice. However, keeping the option in mind (and waiting for the costs for their commercial use to decrease further), and starting slow – potentially with one panel at a time – definitely gives a push in the right direction.

Fortunately, today’s world is recognizing the importance of having an energy efficient home, and steps are universally being taken in that direction. Great advancements are in the making that will allow many homeowners to sustain a pleasant, eco-friendly, and cost-reducing life. Living in (and in some weird ways with) a home that cares for the planet will soon be a reality!

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