Here are a dozen tips to make your home greener, more durable, safer and less costly.
1. Save energy immediately
Some of the easiest steps can make a big difference.
Turn off the lights when you are not using them.
Change your light bulbs. This is especially relevant because incandescent bulbs will be unavailable after 2014. Compact Fluorescent Lights (CFLs) and Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) use less energy and last longer. Watch for the price of LEDs to come down.
Turn off electronics, rather than just placing them in standby mode. Most electronics keep using energy in the standby setting.
Use automatic lighting controls to save energy.
Install a programmable thermostat. This will help you save about $100 per year.
2. Home testing
Get a home energy audit to identify ways to lower your energy bills at home; the cost ranges from $200 to $1,000.
3. Update appliances
Use energy-efficient appliances, including devices that meet the standards of the Energy Star program, a joint undertaking of the U.S. EPA and the U.S. Department of Energy.
4. Kitchens and baths
Purchase environmentally-friendly products. These include cabinets made from renewable woods, including lyptus and bamboo, water-saving faucets and toilets, and countertop materials, such a composites, glass, paper or stone.
Create a no-curb shower.
Install towel bars that double as American Disability Association (ADA)-approved, strong grab bars.
5. Flooring
Choose floors made from hard surfaces. These are easy-to-clean, durable and safer than many others.
Utilize renewable lumber, like cork.
Look for recycled materials, including tile and carpet.
6. Update heating and cooling
Use appliances powered with renewable energy. This includes high-efficiency, dual-fuelfurnaces and air-conditioners. Each of these works by using an electric heat pump at high temperatures and gas, at low temperatures, as an energy-efficient back-up. The pump moves air of unwanted temperatures outside, and air that has desired temperatures, inside.
Look for solar hot water heaters, which generate hot water for your home using solar collectors and storage tanks.
Consider geothermal systems. These harness energy from the earth.
Add radiant-floor heating systems. These concentrate heat under the floor, pumping heated water from a boiler through tubing in a pattern under the floor. These transfer heat directly from the floor to individuals.
Utilize tankless water heaters to limit the amount of water wasted by heating water and distributing it throughout the house, so that hot water is available when needed. Old-tank heaters become less efficient with age, providing another reason to install tankless water heaters sooner, rather than later.
7. New windows, doors, siding and decks
Note that new windows and doors can reduce 30 percent of your heating or cooling loss.
Consider the popular cement siding. It is durable, fire- and termite-resistant and can include 50-year warranties.
Use composite trim and decks. It may be made from materials including wood, plastic or vinyl. Composite products are extremely durable, low-maintenance and include varied warranties, up to and including lifetime guarantees.
8. Painting
Use paints with low- or no-volatile organic compounds (VOCs). VOCs release toxic chemicals into the air and endanger residents.
9. Add insulation
Check the current state, and amount, of the insulation in the walls, attics and crawl spaces; plug holes first and then add insulation to other locations, as needed.
10. Free solar energy
Use photovoltaic (PV) panels to create electricity. Older solar panels, from the 1970s and 1980s, are also an option. Current rebates cover up to two-thirds of the cost of PV panels.
Incorporate solar-water heating.
Select glass vacuum tubes to collect heat from the sun using solar collectors.
Utilize wind-power generation.
11. Landscaping
Add low-maintenance plants to reduce water usage.
Install drip or underground watering systems for the same purpose.
Use trees and bushes to cool your home and to lower your energy bills.
12. Tax credits and rebates
Visit the Web site,
www.dsireusa.org, to find out what is available. Most incentives have deadlines, so act quickly.