GOING GREEN IN THE HOME AND WHAT CHANGES TO MAKE

Saving power and water in the home can be achieved in many ways. The basic forms of power are Electricity and Gas and by reducing consumption of power we are leaving a smaller carbon footprint on the Environment.

SAVING ELECTRICITY

Nowadays white goods come with a rating from one to six stars. The higher the amount of stars the more efficient the appliance can be. You want to find white goods with the highest energy rating for your own needs.

Don’t be easily fooled by a high star rating on white goods though, use them as a basic guide only until you become familiar with that manufacturers way of rating. If for example you see a washing machine that suits your budget and has a four and a half star rating ask to see the power consumption specifications. You may see that it is rated at 800 Watts.

Have a look at other washing machines of the same capacity and similar star rating, you may find one with the same star rating but only uses 580 Watts. Manufacturers use their own standards to rate their products so it makes sense to do some research. If your fridge is getting old but still in perfect working order consider new seals for it and have a technician give it a service.

The rubber seals on a refrigerator go hard over time and allow air to get into the fridge. This in turn makes the compressor work harder and therefore more electricity. Think about what you need from the fridge before opening it.

Standing there with the fridge door open only to lose all the cold air makes it work that much harder. Do less washing loads with more items, there is no sense in doing many small loads. Try and keep slightly soiled clothes separate from badly soiled and do them at different times.

Use cold or Luke warm water on slightly soiled clothes and only fill the washing machine to just above the clothes line rather than setting it on high every time.

Hot water can be either through an electric hot water system or a gas one. Solar hot water really reduces your power consumption. By harnessing the power of the sun a collector on your roof heats your water for you rather than using expensive electricity or gas. Having a solar hot water system pays for itself in no time and these days governments are offering rebates to persuade home owners to take up this energy saving method.

You may get a refund for a percentage or all of the installation cost or you may receive carbon credits. To encourage people to use less power some governments are increasing taxes so home owners will install carbon neutral appliances in return for tax credits. You ultimately pay less tax when the time comes.

People disregard even the most obvious things such as changing light globes to more efficient fluorescent ones, turning lights off when leaving a room and leaving porch lights on so the crickets can see where they are going. Consider installing motion detecting switches.

Put one on the front porch and one on the back but don’t have it set too sensitive or you will find it constantly blinking on at the slightest breeze. There are switches available that are timed. If you need to visit the bathroom usually for a few minutes you push the switch in. It will go off automatically after a short while.

If you haven’t built your home yet carefully consider how you will align your building. You want the windows to let sun in during winter months and keep the sun out in hot summer months, so the way your house is aligned is very important.

How well insulated you house is reduces your power consumption. You need less gas/electricity to warm your home because the warm air is trapped inside the house rather than going out through the ceiling and windows.

Also consider double glazing, air is trapped between the two panes of glass forming a barrier where it is harder for warm air to escape. This theory is the same for cooling but rather than keep warm air in, a well insulated home keeps hot air out.

You can install a vent or Whirligig in the roof which spins from the slightest breeze. Even better is a Whirligig at each end of the roof.

The Whirligig spins and sucks hot air out from your ceiling. These measures alone can give your air conditioning a much better chance of cooling your house down. Set your Air conditioner at 24 degrees.

It doesn’t need to be ice cold in your house, just comfortable. Window room air conditioners are the most expensive to run while split systems are more efficient. Even more efficient again are Evaporative air conditioners at only a couple of cents an hour but they do have their drawbacks.

They use water, not a lot of water but it has to be monitored for cleanliness. Water in an evaporative air conditioner can carry fungi and micro-organisms that can cause illness.

Because an evaporative cooler draws air from outside the house a door or window has to be open to allow air to be expelled and make room for the fresh air. Evaporative coolers do not work very well in humid weather.

Learn more tips here about how to go green at home

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