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Why Go Green? Many countries now give houses energy efficiency ratings which affect their rates and subsequently their value. Houses that are more energy efficient receive better ratings and are more attractive to buyers. With the rising cost of fuel and electricity the world over, more and more people are starting to add energy-saving features to their priority lists when looking to buy a new property. Installing energy saving devices is not always cheap but is becoming increasingly necessary in the modern environmental and economic climate. People recognise this, making them prefer houses that already have these features installed. In turn, make installing these energy saving mediums is also an excellent long term investment for you using them will save you money in the long term or selling your home with them will fetch a much higher price. Tips for Creating a Greener Home Take it Slow - The first thing to bear in mind when trying to make your home more environmentally friendly is that it is not something that can happen overnight. The process of going green cant occur instantaneously and if you try and do too much at once, you will ultimately become overwhelmed and give up. Try doing one more green action a week and slowly build up to becoming a soldier for the environment. Lighting This is what uses up a lot of energy in a home, but there are many ways to combat this problem. If you can, install skylights and large windows in the darker areas of your home, lessening the need for artificial lighting. This is an expensive structural change and many people rather chose to install energy-efficient CFL lights. These lights last 6 to 10 times longer and produce significantly less heat than normal light bulbs. Another option is to install timer-switches that ensure the lights are switched off after a reasonable time. Make use of the Sun The sun is a free and powerful source of energy and making use of it is not as hard as it may seem. The simple way to start doing this is to install an exterior washing line. Drying your washing outside saves the energy of using the dryer and also lets the moisture safely back into the atmosphere. A more expensive, but worthwhile, option is to install solar panelling. These panels can store a large amount of energy and are great for effectively warming geysers or powering lights. While expensive to install, this long term investment guarantees sustained and significant savings. Smaller and cheaper options are also available and for a reasonable fee you can install exterior panels that power all your outside lights. Make use of the Rain In the same way that you can harness the power of the sun, you can also make use of the rain. Hundreds of litres of rain simply run off your roof and into the sewerage system each year. Installing a water butt catches much of this water which you can use for everything from watering the garden to washing the car. This saves a fortune on water bills and water wastage and goes a long way to elevating your green status. Water butts now come in a variety of shapes becoming attractive features in your garden or can be installed underground to be kept out the way. A Shallow Bath We all know that showering uses less water, but we all also occasionally indulge in a guilty bubble bath. It is also often necessary to use the bath for smaller children who are too young to shower unsupervised. The green solution to this is to install a shallow bath tub. If the bath itself cant hold that much water, you wont be tempted to overfill it and waste water. Turn off the Taps While it is up to us to switch off the taps when we are done, fitting an aerator is a cheap and effective way to control how much water comes out the taps in the first place. These nifty little devices manage to restrict the flow of water from your taps without affecting the water pressure. This means that they are still pleasant to shower under or effective to rinse your hands with, but use up to 50% less water each time you turn them on. And best off, they are incredibly cheap and easy to install. Light a Fire None of us like having cold toes in winter and are quick to flick on the heater, but are slow to consider lighting a fire instead. This is a beautiful and eco-efficient way to heat your home nothing quite beats being curled up in front of a roaring fire. Such methods of heating require no electricity, but some people are put off by the wood and the effort involved. A happy compromise is an automatic-pellet feed stove. With one of these, all the work is done for you and with a seven-day programmable timer and a remote controlled temperature adjuster, going green is suddenly as luxurious as it is environmentally friendly. Hug a Geyser A geyser is the one feature that is present in almost every home and also the one that uses the most energy up to 40% of the households total use. It is often the case that the temperature of the geyser is simply set too high and can be adjusted to around 58◦ C. Alternatively, you can install either a timer or a geyser blanket or both. The blanket encompasses the geyser and some of its piping, preventing any heat loss into the atmosphere and keeping the device warmer without the use of excessive electricity. A timer will switch your geyser on only around the times when you are most likely to need hot water, which is a great way to save electricity as the device is not needlessly kept heated all day, every day. Close the Gap Taking a day to ensure that your house is well sealed and that all the cracks are filled will stop any drafts from coming in. This DIY job can be done by you and for a minimal amount of money and aids in reducing your need to heat your home, saving on electric and heating bills. Make your own Compost The amount of waste that we create each day can be greatly reduced thanks to a compost system. Purchasing a ready-made bin contains all the mess while it is turned into useful compost. Having a useful and established compost system can save you money when taking care of your garden and help in selling your house. By implementing one of these easy go green tactics each month, not only will your house be a much more environmentally friendly place, your home or property for sale will increase in value exponentially. What can be better? A sound investment along with a clear conscience!
Article Source: http://www.bharatbhasha.net Article Url: http://www.bharatbhasha.net/environment.php/142383 Article Added on Wednesday, July 8, 2009 | ||||||||
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