Although most people believe renovations to have most to do with aesthetics, this is not always the case. Shortage in resources, financial issues and pollution are the plights of the 21st century, and the proper way of dealing with this problem lies in equipping your home to be more energy-efficient and therefore more earth-friendly, as well. Here are some ideas on how to achieve all of this.
Setting Your Budget
Without doubt, one of the most important things you have to do in this endeavor is set the budget limit. Still, there are a couple of things that you need to keep in mind here. One of those things is a fact that this kind of renovation is not something that you do every day. The second thing is that you should really try is to stick to the budget. Naturally, this is impossible to do all the time, since you never know what may occur in the process. Just adhere to the budget as much as you can and all should be fine.
Proper Insulation
Insulating your home is an excellent first step towards making it more energy efficient. Making your walls more resilient to the outside climate changes can sometimes mean a world to both you and your wallet. Insulating your home may seem quite pricy, but when you look at it in the long run, it is always worth the cost. With the passage of time, cuts on your heating bills alone will more than cover this one-time investment.
Investing in Quality Windows
Needless to say, even the best insulation won’t help you much, if your windows are in bad condition or of low quality. All it takes is for one single hole in the system and all of your hard work will be for nothing. This is why, installing a double-glazing windows on your home might be a great idea. According to the people who own and operate Magnetite, among all the benefits of double glazed windows, the most prominent is the reduction of your heating bills by up to 40%. A savings like this is simply not to be trifled with.
Additional Advantages
As we already said, living in a green retrofitted home brings many advantages to the table. Still, there is one thing that most people tend to forget. This advantage is an increase in property value that green retrofitting brings. Since you are required to make quite an investment in order to make all those upgrades, after they are done, your home will be worth more. For this reason alone, it would be a great idea to make these alterations not only to the home you plan to live in, but to the property you intend on selling as well.
Photo by peregrinebookcompany via flickr used under the Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic
Asking for Professional Help
When planning a green energy retrofit, you’d be best advised to ask for a professional opinion. Even though it might be true that by doing everything yourself you can save a lot of money, this is often not the best solution. Asking for a temporary consultant can be pricy, but it is never a waste of money. Not doing this retrofit the right way and leaving holes in your plan are the only reliable way to really waste both your time and your resources.
The benefits of green energy retrofits on your home are, needless to say, of both practical and financial importance. Even though some may see all of this as simply too much hard work, any effort made in order to make your home more energetically sustainable, is an effort well spent.
Author Bio: If one thing is true about Lillian Connors, her mind is utterly curious. That’s why she can’t resist the urge to embark on a myriad of home improvement projects and spread the word about them. As the Co-Editor at SmoothDecorator, she cherishes the notion that sustainable housing and gardening will not only make us far less dependent on others regarding the dwellings we inhabit and what we eat, but also contribute to our planet being a better place to live on. You can check her out on Twitter and LinkedIn.