Looking for a great way to add a comfy lounge area for your yard this summer while utilizing an old trampoline? This is just one of many options how to reuse something your family has outgrown. Great as a reading/resting retreat or perfect for a kids sleepover with more room and imagination building than a tent!
Photo from Facebook page La Roue De Secours En Corse
You’ve heard the pitch, “Save thousands of dollars by going solar!”. But is that true for you and how can you get through the hype and determine the truth.
Below are a couple of things to consider when considering going solar:
This is probably going to be the most important factor that you will be considering since your goal from installing solar is to lower the cost of powering your home. If you look at your current electric bill, you’ll see that your bill is based on the number of kilowatt-hour (kWh) you use. Costs per kWh can vary greatly based on where you live. Make sure when determining your savings you are using your actual cost per kWh and not calculating your savings based on a generalized article or ‘worksheet’ you’ve found online. Obviously those homeowners with the highest electricity rates will most likely save the most by switching to solar power.
When considering the solar company you will use for this major investment, going with the lowest bid just because it’s the least out of pocket, may cost you far more in the long run. You must consider both your short term and long term gains when choosing equipment and the company that will design and install your system. Take your time. Meet with multiple companies and don’t be afraid to ask very specific questions about them, their installation team, their warranties, etc. With all the research and details available online, prepare for your meetings with the companies by creating a list of specific questions you need answers to in order to choose. Take notes. Get all your questions answered. If they are trying to rush through your appointment, rush them out your door!
Don’t be afraid to ask about any incentives or discounts they may currently be offering BUT don’t get pushed into making an immediate decision “or else lose today’s special price”. That’s probably the first company you should cross off your list. note: Odds are pretty high that if you called them the next week and told them you would like to hire them but at the discounted price, they will say yes.
Speaking of incentives….check in your city, county and state to see if there are any energy incentives and rebates available. These can sometimes reduce your net cost by 50% or more. The federal government offers a 30% solar tax credit (search online for details and ask your tax professional for how you personally could benefit). Hard to believe but true…some utility companies even offer rebates to their customers to encourage their switch to solar power. Check your utility company’s website for details.
Only you can determine if the switch to solar offers you enough benefit to outweigh the initial costs. As in any big decision, due diligence is the key!
We’ve talked in past Green Living blogs about how important it is to purchase an energy-efficient toilet in order to save water, energy and money. Older toilet models use more than three gallons of water per flush, whereas low-flow, energy-efficient models use less than 1.5 gallons per flush. But let’s face it. We’re dealing with a tough economic time right now and some of us can’t afford to purchase improvement projects for our homes right now. Fortunately, there are DIY ways to save water, energy and money with the toilet you already have!
Flushes
One old-fashioned toilet trick that still works to save money and energy is the old “brick-in-the-tank” trick. Though, instead of a brick, an updated tip that an article from the Mother Nature Network recommends is to fill an old one-liter plastic bottle partially with sand, marbles or pebbles, and then the rest of it with water. As long as the bottle remains weighed down, it doesn’t matter what material you fill it with. Remove the label and place the bottle in the toilet tank away from moving parts. This will displace water and save you water usage and money without replacing your toilet! READ MORE »
For many of us, the kitchen is the center of our home. It’s where we cook and share meals, it’s where we spend our mornings and evenings, it’s where we congregate when friends come to visit.
So it makes sense to start with the kitchen when you’re looking for quick ways to implement a greener lifestyle. Think about it: if there are a few small changes you can make to improve your home’s eco-friendliness, beginning in the kitchen, why wouldn’t you?
As we’ve said before here at the Buy Owner Blog, green living is not only good for you while you live in your home, but it’s also beneficial for resale. Implement these simple tips to be on your way to a greener kitchen and therefore a greener home!
When you Google search, notice that a lot more DIY websites are popping up? DIY, or do-it-yourself, sites provide you with directions on how to build, install, remodel, landscape and fix without hiring professionals. If you have the skills, DIY work could save you loads of money. Especially if you’re fixing something that you already have instead of replacing it.
Fixing items around the house could save you ample amounts of money while also saving the environment from access waste and toxins. Fixing items around the house used to be second nature, and now that people are pocket pinching, the method is coming back in style. According to The Daily Green, a rule of thumb to help you decide whether you should fix or replace something is to fix it if the repair costs are less than 50 percent of the original price.
For more tips on what to repair instead of replace, read The Daily Green article here.
About 60 percent of a home’s water usage comes from the bathroom. Want to incorporate green living into your bathroom but not sure where to begin? There are numerous ways to conserve water and energy in your bathroom; thanks to an interactive diagram provided by National Geographic’s Green Guide, you can view exactly where you can conserve and go green in the bathroom here.
For more in-depth tips, here’s a breakdown of the areas to focus on in your bathroom:
For more interactive diagrams and exact ways to cut costs in other rooms, click here.
All of these statistics were taken from National Geographic’s Green Guide.
Wondering how the Internet has been buzzing with green information over the last month? Check out this roundup of great articles, filled with information and stories about green living as it relates to real estate and home building!
Experts say that one of the easiest ways to spruce up a room is to repaint it. Even if you choose neutral colors, the fresh coat will brighten the walls and hide any signs of wear and tear. As long as you’re making a change, why not make it as green or eco-friendly as possible? Because so many types of paint are available, we’re here to assist you in choosing the safest and greenest type for your house!
Tips to follow when choosing paint:
Deciding which type of paint to use will depend on what room you are painting and what purpose you have in painting it. Once you decide on a type, make sure to keep the room ventilated while you apply it, no matter how eco-friendly the paint is. Afterward, donate or recycle your leftover paint and enjoy your freshly painted room with low levels of toxins!
You may have heard about the recent investigation conducted by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) on Energy Star rated appliances, which found that the Energy Star program is vulnerable to fraud and abuse.
This Energy Star program began in 1992, managed by the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Appliances with Energy Star ratings are said to use less energy and release less pollutants. Because government tax credits are available for consumers who purchase Energy Star products, $300 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is expected to be used for this purpose.
To test the reliability of the Energy Star rating, GAO submitted 20 fictitious products with energy-saving claims. Of these 20 products, 15 were accepted by the Energy Star program, proving that the program is vulnerable to fraud and abuse. The program does not verify energy-saving data submitted by manufacturers, which means manufacturers are basically self-certificating their products. To read the entire report from GAO, click here.
What does this mean for consumers like you who are trying to make your home more energy efficient? It means that you should still strive to purchase products with Energy Star ratings. Though the program might have certified products that aren’t truly energy efficient in the past, the program agreed to strengthen the program with a more rigorous screening process. To read how EPA and DOE plan to make the program more efficient in the future, click here.
This investigation is wholly positive for consumers like you, because from now on, you can rest assured that a close eye will be kept on items that pass with an Energy Star rating. The program will be stronger than ever, as will the energy efficiency levels of the products. If you still have a hard time trusting the program, research a product before you purchase it to find out the average energy usage that it uses per year. Don’t give up on saving energy and receiving tax credits for doing so!
Image Credit: TreeHugger.com
Performing a personal energy audit is a great way for you to review energy usage in past years, discovering where you can decrease usage in order to decrease bills. Plus, it’s also a great way to promote your energy savings to potential buyers when selling your home!
To begin, follow these first steps to create a do-it-yourself energy audit:
Once you have your past energy bill costs laid out in an organized fashion, begin investigating your home for areas that need energy-saving improvements.
Creating an energy audit will not only help you keep track of your savings, and figure out where you use the most energy, but it will also help you sell your home when that time comes. By having all of this information available for potential homebuyers, you can prove that your energy-efficient upgrades have decreased energy bill costs for them in the future.
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