The green movement, without a doubt, has spread like wildfire around the globe. Its positive influence on people belonging to all walks of life cannot be discounted.
In the home, the green movement has also made a great impact. In fact, the trend today is focused on creating green homes or those that are energy efficient. Additionally, research has shown that green homes sell better than those that are not.
A house is considered green or eco-friendly if it utilizes renewable energy as well as appliances and fixtures that promote the efficient use of energy. Worldwide, there are many modern homes today built or renovated the green way. Some have very unique designs while the others are quite simple.
So what are the main features of a modern green home?
Passive Heating and Cooling System
A passive system of heating and cooling make use of natural winds the sun locations. This means positioning your house towards the south to gain the most amount of direct sunlight all throughout the year. It should also be coupled with using certain shading techniques for the windows to prevent direct sunlight from penetrating particularly during the hot summer season.
This type of system is effective in lowering heating and cooling bills for the long term.
Wind and Solar Power
Utilizing renewable energy from natural sources is the best way to go green in the home. Wind and solar power are most ideal as they help reduce your energy bills onwards and your carbon footprint at the same time.
Investing in solar panels is the right step. Installing these panels can save homeowners as much as $3,000 in utility bills each year.
The use of skylights are also efficient in bringing in natural light into the home.
Programmable Thermostats
Thermostats that are programmable allow homeowners to have control over their heating and cooling systems. They can be programmed to automatically change the temperature of certain parts of your home several times during a 24-hour period.
Ideally, homeowners should lower the temperature of their home from five to 10 degrees during winter time and increase it during summer notably at night.
The Department of Energy reports that this kind of thermostat can lower a home’s heating and cooling bills from five to 20 percent.
EnergyStar Certified Appliances
Appliances that are EnergyStar certified save more energy compared to the non-certified ones. If you’re buying new televisions, water heaters, freezers and refrigerators, make sure they are certified to enable you to enjoy continuous savings moving forward.
CFL and LED Lights
Lighting fixtures best to use are the CFL and LED types. They’re most effective in saving energy by as much as 90 percent. In addition, they’re durable as they can last 10 to 20 times longer than the traditional incandescent bulbs.
Another benefit of using CFLs and LED lights is they don’t give off too much heat which translates to a cooler home. This also lowers the need to use air conditioning.
Image via fathomled