Ways to Make Your Home More Energy Efficient

Today people are getting more interested in making energy-efficient houses for many different reasons but ultimately to save money. There is one thing that has stopped many people from making their house more energy-efficient. They wonder if doing it will cost them too much money which would defeat the purpose in the first place.

Sure, if youre planning to install a solar water heater or rebuild your house to be more environment-friendly, you can take out your wallet and make sure therere no holes inside, but really, making your house energy efficient is neither too expensive, nor too time-consuming.

In fact, some simple steps that you can take will easily do the job for you.

Turn off lights and fans/A/Cs when youre not in the room.
Set youre A/C temperature at 78 fahrenheit. That is cool enough to keep you comfortable. Keep it at a temperature that wont use up too much electricity. Also, if the weather outside is pleasant, opt to open a window rather than turning on the A/C.
Plant trees and shrubs outside your house. Another thing you can do is to extend your window sill on whichever side youre more comfortable with, and place pots there.
Replace incandescent light bulbs with CFLs. CFLs are not only more energy-efficient, they also last longer. In fact, CFLs are so energy-efficient that if you leave the room for short periods of time, leaving the light on will consume less energy than turning it off. Sometimes, however, people are not comfortable with the light that CFLs give out. In such cases, just remember that yellow light takes up a lot more energy than white light, and that tube lights are also a healthier option than bulbs.
Make sure your walls are properly insulated. This prevents the heat outside from filtering in on hot days, and the heat from inside filtering out during winter. If your house has no wall insulation, blown-in insulation will help save enough energy to be cost-effective.
If you are changing your windows, consider replacing them with energy-efficient models. If replacing your windows is not an option, consider installing a UV blocking window film.
Repair all leaking faucets and pipes. This should save you quite some water. Remember to turn off the tap when youre brushing your teeth or washing dishes, etc. Also, install energy efficient shower heads.
Make sure your air conditioner is always running at peak efficiency. Clean air filters at least once a month; dirty filters consume a lot of energy.
And lastly, schedule an energy audit for expert advice on your home. Conduct a home energy audit to determine the largest savings potential for your house. You can either conduct one yourself, or call an independent auditor for a more detailed examination.

Paul Chehade – Save A Lot Of Money With This Green Energy Advice

Paul Chehade – Save A Lot Of Money With This Green Energy Advice

There is such an overwhelming amount of information regarding green energy online so locating reliable information is quite challenging. The following article is going to give you simple advice to bring green energy into your home.

Making small adjustments to the way you use energy every day can ultimately reduce your consumption. Unplug appliances when you’re not using them. Try turning off the TV and lights when they’re not in use. This is an easy way to save cash as well.

The government has made grants for investing in renewable energy available to the public. Talk to your local government and figure out what programs are in the area. Who knows, you may qualify for low or no-cost wind or solar installation. Even if you don’t qualify for a grant, you can still use these items as a tax deduction.

During the summer, you should try drying your clothes out in the sun instead of using a dryer. The sun will make your clothing smell great. They’ll smell so much better than if you shoved them into a dryer! As well, you save quite a bit on monthly utility costs.

Try to turn off things you are not using. When you leave an area take the time to turn off lights, televisions, stereos, computers, and other electrical items you are not going to be using. A power strip offers a handy way to shut down multiple devices at once, and it prevents passive electrical use due to standby modes.

If you clean your dishes using a dishwasher, don’t run it until it’s completely full. Your dishwasher consumes the same energy and water, even if it is half full. When running the dishwasher, turn on the setting for energy conservation.

When planning a home solar system, calculate the potential energy generation of the system using hours of sunshine in the winter. This prevents unpleasant surprises in the winter, and it saves money during the summer. Also, if you make use of the net usage plan from your electric company, you will get returns from your utility company for generating energy during summer.

Take the time to properly maintain your refrigerator. Since refrigerators tend to eat up a great amount of power, it is crucial you keep it in perfect working order. Be sure that you’re regularly cleaning the dust that builds up near the heating coils. Don’t forget to be certain to keep the seal surrounding the door tight and clean.

Learn about the differences between passive and active solar power. Passive solar power doesn’t require the costly power-storage cells that active power does. Active solar power requires a lot of involvement in the form of installation, mechanics, and power cells. Passive energy is using the sun’s thermal energy to heat your house.

Pay attention to any federal or local rebates offered for making alternative-energy updates to your home. In some cases, the local utility company will offer rebates for the cost of the upgrades. You may also get state and federal tax deductions for making your home more energy efficient. These credits and rebates will ultimately cut your costs of bringing green energy technology to your house.

Make use of a solar oven for baking needs. You can make one using supplies you may already have on-hand like old window panes, boxes, and pieces of aluminum foil. The internal temperature of these easy-to-build ovens can top 300 degrees, and they do not require any energy besides the sun’s rays.

Get started with some great tips in this article today! All these tips make using green energy technologies simple and affordable for the average home or business owner. Your family and your environment will thank you for it!

Paul Chehade

AAA Construction & Development

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Candle Low Energy Bulbs – A Frugal Solution to Elegant Home Lighting

Nothing really expresses elegance and class in a home quite like chandeliers, candelabras and window lights. However, a lot of people consider these types of lighting fixtures energy inefficient and costly. That’s no longer the case. The new candle low-energy bulbs available on the market today make using elegant lighting fixtures throughout your home affordable ways to save home energy.

The candle bulb is not really a new idea. However, until a few years ago, the typical, decorative candle light bulb was incandescent and used too much electricity. Poor lighting quality was also an issue with the older bulbs. But things have changed.

Today, these decorative saving energy lights are not only pleasing to the eye, but using them can substantially lower your average home energy costs. To accommodate a variety of home lighting fixtures, candle energy-saving bulbs are available as halogen-tungsten, LED and fluorescent compact bulbs.

Here are 10 Benefits of Candle Low-Energy Bulbs:
Remarkably, the new energy-saving candle lights use 80 percent less electricity, and yet these saving energy bulbs produce a brighter light than the old incandescent candle lightbulbs. This benefit alone makes these saving energy bulbs an appealing light bulb solution worth considering.

The typical candle energy-saving bulb is more durable and lasts ten to twelve times longer than its older counterpart. This results in major energy light savings in terms of money and time when it comes to replacing bulbs.

Another great feature of the modern candle low-energy bulbs is that they do not produce a lot of heat. This makes them cool to the touch and ideal for use with lighting fixtures that use lampshades and other decorative, yet flammable coverings.

An incandescent candle light bulb emits a yellow light similar to the light emitted by a real candle. Yellow light can cause eye strain. The new fluorescent candle energy-saving bulb produces a bright, white light minimizing unnecessary stress to the eye. These saving energy light bulbs not only help you save home energy, they also help save your sight.

Making the switch to candle low-energy bulbs is actually very easy because they fit in standard light sockets. This allows you to start saving home energy and money right away without having to change your existing light fixtures.

Real candles have always been considered an elegant lighting option for the home. Unfortunately, the ambient flicker of a real candle presents a very real fire hazard, particularly when used around children and pets. Once again, the low-energy candle bulb comes to the rescue as you can easily find ones that flicker.

Real candles not only pose a fire hazard, but they can also cost you more money over time than candle energy-saving light bulbs.

Typically, candle energy-saving bulbs cost more than incandescent candle bulbs. But don’t let this keep you from switching to saving energy bulbs because your energy light savings over time will offset the cost of purchasing the newer bulbs.

A big advantage of candle energy-saving bulbs is that they are available in a variety of colors, finishes and styles. This allows you greater creativity and flexibility in the design of the elegant saving energy house you’ve always wanted.

Low-energy dimmable candle bulbs, which are often used in chandeliers, wall sconces and candelabras, are also available in a variety of colors and styles including bulbs that imitate the flicker of real candles. Now that you know the many benefits of candle low-energy bulbs, you can introduce elegant lighting fixtures throughout your home that not only add class but help you save home energy and money.

EDF Energy Suppliers Supplying Energy with Perfection

EDF Energy Supplier is a name to reckon with in UK’s utilities industry. It enjoys a satisfied consumer base and gives a host of services to its users to achieve this level. It is one of the major players in the industry among the other ones namely British Gas, nPower, Scottish Energy. It has also handled its responsibilities regarding environment with near perfection.

EDF Energy Suppliers is the UK’s second largest company and one of the prominent names in the Energy supplying industry. As UK’s market is cluttered with numerous energy suppliers and there is a lot of competition as well. There are very few suppliers which give quality and cost effective service to the users. EDF is a supplier which constantly works on improving its services. EDF group was actually an umbrella which incorporates various small organisations namely, London Energy, SWEB Energy and Seeboard energy. Later on it dropped these organisations to retain a single entity.

This giant company employs approximately 11000 people and distributes gas and electricity to over five million customers world over. It serves a quarter of the population’s needs for gas and electricity
and it is considered one of the largest regulated private sector firm in the country. The moment the energy is produced, it is harnessed and then it is distributed to the users via pipelines and other mediums. EDF Energy supplier takes care of generation,distribution and supply with pure finesse. Thats not all, its also one of the largest developers of offshore wind generation in UK.

In its journey to become one of the largest companies in UK , it has acquired many companies in the process namely, SWEB Energy and Seeboard Energy, the Sutton Bridge, West Burton and Cottam power stations, and the TXU and Seeboard networks businesses.

EDF Energy Supplier provides various services as well to its customers which are really beneficial for them as to paying their bills. Some services are also helpful for consumers to keep a track record of how much energy they have consumed. The provision for entering the meter reading online is one such service that this supplier provides. In this, a consumer can take the meter readings of gas and electricity and then enter that reading online and based on that read, he/she will be billed. They can get to know about their current usage pattern which helps in keeping a check on the consumption if they are consuming high amount of energy.

Another eminent and the most popular service used for the payment of bills is Direct Debit. In this case what happens is that a consumer can pay the bills in installments throughout the year and the installments are fixed based on their previous usage pattern. So in this case they budget their bills for some fixed amount every month. This also helps in checking their usage as the consumer will consume cautiously as high consumption will lead to an increase in the direct debit installment amount. The next option is the prepayment option in which customers will pay as the same amount as their quarterly bills.

Another feature that shows that it cares for its consumers is the insurance plan in which it gives insurance through Direct Assist and Homeserve companies that insures the boiler through boiler care plan and it also takes care of the electricity and the plan covers electric heating, electricity breakdown and any other electrical emergencies. Priority services is one more laudable feature in its kitty as it gives priority services to the customers with particular requirements like elderly people, disabled or chronically ill people.

It is also making genuine efforts to contribute towards the betterment of the environment and to reduce the carbon emissions, that is the reason they have set up an offshore wind energy plant in UK. Thats not all, it also has a green tariff and if a consumer applies for it then he/she will help in supporting th renewable sources of energy and contribute in setting up of renewable projects in UK. EDF Energy suppliers also does a free energy usage audit. So EDF energy suppliers are a pioneer company that not only provides quality service to its users but also handles its moral responsibility to save the environment as well.

Present Day Solar Powered Energy Put to Practical Use

If you’ve at any time come across a field containing a large number of big magnifying mirrors directed in the direction of the sun you have been observing a solar powered energy system. These kinds of systems work to center the sun rays to one area and use it to heat up the liquid that runs through the pipes they are focused upon.

Such a mechanism will be able to heat oil which is flowing through pipes which will then be employed to heat up water and build steam. Oil is used as it can by nature preserve the heat very effectively and as a final point the steam produced may be used to pump an electrical generator in order to create electric power.

These categories of systems perform so well is mainly because the magnifying mirrors are created to harness the sun’s energy while focusing that power on to particular parts identified as receivers. The receiver absorbs heat and exchanges it into a substance like oil which helps to run the generator.

Pressure involved with heating the liquid may also be used to directly furnish propulsion to a motor. The action of heating causes the fluid to increase in size against the pistons of the powerplant which yields mechanical power. This style of energy may be used to drive such things as generators directly that will provide a source of electricity.

Some of these devices might also utilize salt water instead of oil particularly when there can be forecast gaps regarding the point in time of becoming heated and the occasion the het energy will be released. One of the many unusual attributes of salt water is its facility to keep thermal energy.

When the salt water reaches boiling point it can easily produce electrical energy by using a steam power generator and the salt can store the heat for a few days before it will have to be transformed into electric energy.

Considering that these systems use such large numbers of parabolic mirrors they are specifically used for commercial solar power where large areas of property might be dedicated to an array of reflectors. There can be enough electrical power within these types of systems to create electricity for a few days or higher. Given that these systems are so extensive they are able to allow the heat energy saved to be transmitted days later.

Through the use of these particular projects and other solar power projects we can start to recognize how solar powered energy operates and can be employed. If we observe how much power is saved making use of these mirrors we can also understand exactly how much energy is lost on a daily basis as we do not thoroughly use it properly.

Making use of focusing solar powered energy systems are beneficial to the operations that exploit them and useful to everyone by conserving various other sources of energy. Industrial solar energy can attract and capture large amounts of heat from the sun throughout the day, by employing specially manufactured mirrors which will magnify that sunlight.

Within our very own lives making use of solar power continues to be an expensive concept to put into operation. The setup expenditures remain quite high and whilst they are generally balanced out across the functional life of the mechanism if you do not possess the resources to install it then that doesn’t in fact mean anything.

Recently a lot more people have been becoming attracted to build-it-yourself residential solar energy products. The technological know-how of what it really requires to build and deploy these types of units is considerably more openly obtainable and the truth is ,building and putting in your very own solar technology system is not truly that tough if you seek out the proper advice.