Conserving Energy With Small Renovations
When considering energy conservation options for home renovations, it is sometimes difficult to know where to begin. Though you can save a lot of money over the long term, it is often necessary to spend a little up front. Keeping energy conservation in mind when embarking on home improvement projects can be an ideal way to save money in the long run. However, it often requires some output of finances in the short term. Read on for some easy and affordable ways to get started in optimizing the potential for energy savings in your home.
One place that people tend to overlook when considering energy conservation is their furnace system. Ideally, you will be able to replace older units with newer, energy efficient ones. However, it is not always necessary to do this. Simply replacing the filters on your existing one can make it run more efficiently, which can add months or even years to the active service life.
It is fact that both heat and air conditioning is lost through windows and doorways that are not optimized for leakage. Replacing older windows with double-paned or tinted ones is ideal, but is not always required. You can easily make them more energy efficient by caulking windows and putting weatherstripping around doorways. This includes blocking air coming in beneath the bottom or at the top of the door itself.
It's great to have a powerful shower head, but is it worth the extra cost? There are many water-saving shower heads available in the marketplace today which conserve water while still giving options for flow rates. Choose one that is listed as being conservation friendly, yet allows you to change the pressure and flow. You can set it for conservation, but still enjoy more powerful showers from time to time.
Water heaters are often hidden from sight and forgotten, but even the larger, more energy-hogging models can benefit from being wrapped in insulation. This can easily be done on your own, without the need of professional help. It is estimated that energy savings can be substantial, even up to 45 percent.
Wrapping pipes both inside and outside your home can also help trap in heat, thereby reducing utility costs. It will also be beneficial during the winter months, when pipes can freeze and burst. Replacing pipes that burst can costs hundreds, if not thousands of dollars. This simple prevention technique of wrapping them, and keeping them wrapped year round, can eliminate these dangers and save you some money.
Purchasing some heavy draperies for windows throughout your home is another simple way to keep heat and cooling from escaping from the windows. Keep the draperies closed when you are not at home, and consider bunching the bottom folds of the fabric onto the window ledge at night, to further control the window coverage. Additional information here custom home builder scottsdale az.
These simple precautions can become a normal part of your efforts to conserve energy, not only for your own cost savings, but to benefit the environment overall. Being a responsible homeowner can begin right now.