For homeowners, the home is the biggest investment one usually has. In today’s economy, hanging on to that investment and making the best of it is considered to be good practice. Rather than building a new home, many are looking to retrofit, or upgrade, their existing home, or to purchase fixer-uppers. For those who are considering making changes or upgrades in their homes are often looking for ways to make the home more comfortable and livable, while also looking for ways to trim the costs of maintenance and upkeep. Retrofitting green is a great way to go when considering changes to your home, not just because it is good for the environment, but that these changes often pay for themselves while providing for continued savings for the life of the upgrade.
Insulation
Many homes that have been built in recent decades have been built with cheap material and cost cutting measures used wherever possible. This often means that the level of insulation the house has can leave a lot to be desired. Insulation is a lot more important that many people think. This is the buffer between your home and the outside elements. It is also a relatively simple and inexpensive upgrade that can make a significant difference in the comfort of your home as well as the cost of your utility bills.
Double or Triple Paned Windows
Old windows often leak like a proverbial sieve and make our homes inefficient and thus more costly to heat and cool. This wasted energy is not just money out of our pockets, it is energy that was wasted, pure and simple. This energy often comes from polluting and non-renewable resources such as coal or natural gas. Double or triple paned windows, with argon gas in between the panes, is a great investment for the home. They are incredibly efficient and will also help to reduce utility bills.
Alternative Energy Solutions
Other retrofits such as switching to radiant heating as opposed to the traditional forced air furnace make significant differences in the amount of energy used and the amount one has to pay for utilities monthly. Solar water heaters, solar panels for the roof, energy efficient appliances, all of these things add up. All of these things also pay for themselves and then continue to offer saving throughout the lifetime of the product.
The ideas mentioned above are by no means an exhaustive list of green retrofits you can make to your home, but they are among the most common and can glean you a significant amount of savings in both the short- and long-term. Going green is not just good for the environment, it can also be very good for the pocketbook as well.