Before the rising temperatures and summertime energy bills start to make you sweat, you might want to take a fresh look at your energy consumption. While there are many ways to shave dollars off your monthly bills, such as upgrading to energy saving appliances or selecting high-grade windows, these are certainly not affordable options. Let’s take a look at how you can easily reduce your summer energy bill without shelling out dollars on home upgrades.

Image via: Lucy and Company

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Window treatments

Just like you use window treatments to keep the heat in during winters, you can also use it to effectively lock the cooling from air conditioner during those warm summer months. Hang heavy window drapes to keep the house cool by not letting in the heat. Also, make sure that windows and walls of your house aren’t leaking air. If so, seal up those leaking areas with weather stripping tape.

Ceiling and window fans

When trying to save money on your electricity bill during summers, it’s sensible to limit the use of air conditioners as much as possible. Fortunately, fans can go a long way to reduce the temperature of your house as well as the units of your utility bill. If you do not have them installed, consider investing in them for long-term benefits. Well placed fans will allow you to set the A.C temperature up to 4 degrees higher due to proper air circulation.

Image via: Home Depot

Turn off the appliances

Yes, this one is old, but the most effective. Turning off those appliances will defiantly save you a lot when done right. It means not just putting your P.C on sleep mode, but completely turning it off. Same goes for other appliances such as television, music system, and other home electronics. Unplug them, for better results. If the weather allows, consider opening the windows and allow the natural light to come in, instead of keeping artificial lights on during the day. All this will help you save 10-20 percent energy on your yearly bill.

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Saving energy on your utility bill is easy if you know where to make cuts. Use these simple and affordable tips to drastically reduce your energy bill and your carbon footprint.

For more ways to save energy on Stagetecture, click here.

It feels good when you know that you’re living green; that you and your family are making every effort to conserve the environment. When it comes to matters of being green, many people assume that it is going to be boring and that your kids will hate it. As much as there is some truth in this assumption, you can do it differently in a fun and exciting way. The tips below will help turn your house not only into a happy home, but also into a green one.

Landscaping

It is widely known that proper landscaping will add into your home’s energy efficiency. Simply said, it will provide shade in summer and insulation during the winter months. The EPA recommends planting trees that lose leaves on the southern and western sides of your house.

To make it more fun, take your whole family out and let each member choose the plants that they would like to plant. Everyone should then take care of what they chose and as they keep growing, it will be fun for them when they realize that their home is eco-friendly because of their individual effort.

Image via: Jeffrey Gordon Smith Landscape Architecture

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Tankless water heater

Do you do a little dance as you wait for the shower to heat up? What you should note is that when doing this, you waste the escaping cold water and also waste the energy used to heat and reheat water in the tank.

As a replacement, look for a tankless water heater for your family. This only heats the water that is needed as it goes through a coil. This does not only save you energy; it also saves your whole family that terrible time in winter when they have to wait, seemingly for ages, for that water to heat up.

Eco Challenge

How about doing an “eco challenge” with your family? Here, you inform your family about different ways in which they can make your home more eco-friendly. Apart from the ones above, other methods that you can teach them include insulation, recycling, planting some food and making homemade apple pies among other ideas. The reward for the challenge should be simple’ any money saved will be given to the one who implemented the idea and they can use it to buy cool stuff.

How about doing an “eco challenge” with your family? Here, you inform your family about different ways in which they can make your home more eco-friendly. Apart from the ones above, other methods that you can teach them include insulation, recycling, planting some food and making homemade apple pies among other ideas. The reward for the challenge should be simple’ any money saved will be given to the one who implemented the idea and they can use it to buy cool stuff.

Image via: Natural Balance Home Builders

These tips will help you to have a great time with your family as you maintain an eco-friendly home. Each family member will have a sense of contribution and it will be easier for them to make green living a lifestyle. Not only will they have an environmentally friendly home, they will also have some cool new rewards and a great relationship with each other.

For more green living ideas for your home, click here.

If you are decorating or renovating your home then you should really consider the ways that you can make your home a little greener. Reducing your carbon footprint is beneficial for the whole world, and a nice little bonus is that it will save you money in the long run too.

Image via: Danny Broe Architect

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Here are some top tips to get a green home:

Install solar panels

Solar panels are a great way to be greener as they help you to use the sun’s natural power to fuel your home. This means you use less generated energy which cuts your carbon footprint and saves you money on your bills. An increasing number of people are using solar panels and having them fitted and they are even beginning to be seen as attractive features on a home because they offer so many wide ranging benefits.

Insulate your home

Being green is all about efficiency and insulating your home is a great way to become heat efficient. The less heat you lose the less you have to buy so this is another effective way to save money and energy, thus helping the environment. This means you should insulate your attic and any other part of your home where heat is lost.

Fit draft excluders

Draft excluders are another good way to save heat, energy and therefore money. You can find a selection at www.barrier-components.co.uk that, fitted to your doors, will keep your home green and keep the draft out. This is a simple measure but an effective one.

Image via: FINNE Architects

Buy low energy light bulbs

By simply buying some low energy light bulbs you can make your house a little greener immediately. This is an inexpensive way to help the environment, even though low energy bulbs do cost a little more. The bonus is that they last much longer than the cheaper traditional bulbs.

Invest in double glazing

Double glazing is a slightly larger investment but then again it is one that pays you back. Like solar panels double glazing saves you money over time and because it reduces energy wastage is starts benefitting the environment straight away.

Replace your boiler

If you have an old boiler it could be kicking out emissions that you could cut out by swapping it for a newer model. Nobody likes to buy a new boiler but doing so really does help the environment. And like we said, being more efficient also saves you money so everyone is a winner.

For more green living ideas on Stagetecture, click here.

The prospect of adopting a green lifestyle has become rather trendy over the past several years. The result of this surge in popularity has been promising; more and more people are spreading the word about environmental awareness and urging consumers to take control of their future via the products and services they choose to support. Of course, this has changed the market for such consumer goods, raising production and lowering costs so that nearly everyone can now afford to make at least a modicum of change in their own lives on the eco-friendly front. And when it comes to your home, there is no shortage of ways to cut your carbon footprint and jump aboard the eco-friendly bandwagon. But before you get started, you might just want to take the time to consider what you’ve currently got going on in your home. Here are just a few tips to help you make such an assessment.

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What level of eco-friendliness is your home? 

Your main difficulty with looking for ways to determine the relative eco-friendliness of your home is knowing what is considered green and what isn’t. Often, homes employ some environmentally sound practices without even realizing it. For example, you probably conserve energy to some degree, simply because it is economical to do so. If you tell the kids to turn the lights off when they leave a room and you’ve set your computer to go into sleep mode when inactive for a few minutes, then you are practicing an eco-friendly activity and saving energy within the home. That said, most modern homes are not inherently geared towards environmental preservation. So the first step towards making an assessment could be to start following green blogs so that you can begin to get an idea of the scope of green living.

Conserving Energy & your Carbon Debt

Once you’ve started to understand the many ways in which you could transform your home to make it do more for the world around you, it will be a little easier to make a clear assessment of just how high your carbon debt is. From there you can begin to consider upgrades that will help you to conserve energy (CFLs, programmable thermostat, energy-star appliances, tankless water heater, etc.) and water (low-flow toilets, aerated faucets, drought-resistant landscaping, and a gray water system). And you can start to look at the products you bring into your home every day, like the food and clothing you buy for your family, as well as furniture and housewares.

Image via: Catherine Monaghan of Kitchens Southwest

Of course, remodeling and repairs will also provide you with the opportunity to turn over a new leaf since you can replace outdated goods with greener items. You might install organic or recycled-fiber insulation and double-paned glass to cut down on your need to generate hot and cold air. Or you could use reclaimed hardwood for cabinetry and flooring. Some products, like your furnace and AC unit, may even allow for a transfer of warranty so that the chain of title allows the homeowners after you to continue to benefit from energy-saving models for years to come. Although it’s not always easy to turn an objective eye on your lifestyle, it’s important to do your part to protect the environment, especially when you own a home and you have total control over how eco-friendly your property is.

For more green living ideas on Stagetecture, click here.

Are you interested in cooling and heating your home in an eco-friendly way? Most people have never heard of a geo-exchange, and even those who have may not fully understand how the system works. There are pipes under your house, right? And they bring the air up into your home? That’s the basic gist of it, but the inception is a bit more complex. What you really need to know is that this alternative form of heating and cooling your home is an eco-friendly option that allows you to cut your electrical use significantly. And although it is expensive to install (especially after your house has already been built), it can save you a ton of money over time, all while helping to make the planet a little cleaner. Here are just a few reasons you might want to consider installing such a system in your home.

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Save energy.

The main reason most people opt for a geo-exchange over a standard HVAC system is simple: it cuts energy consumption by a significant margin. In fact, people generally notice that they require only about a third of the energy to run a geo-exchange that they needed for their old heating and cooling system. The reason is because the system rarely needs to heat or cool. The ground under your home tends to remain at a fairly steady temperature thanks to heated ground water, so the majority of electricity used by the system is simply to pump that air into your home. This way you only have to heat or cool your interior air slightly in order to achieve the desired temperature. And the incentive, of course, is that less energy is being drawn from the grid, reducing the pollution and waste that go hand-in-hand with power production.

Lower utility bills.

As a nice bonus to decreasing your energy consumption, you’ll notice that your electric and gas bills drop, as well (depending on the type of heating and cooling systems you had prior to switching). When you only need about a third of the energy you were using before to heat and cool your home, your monthly utility bills will reflect the change.

Stop CFCs.

Chlorofluorocarbons are created by the products used as refrigerant in most AC units, and they are responsible for creating holes in our ozone layer. Luckily, the government has limited the use of these harmful products, but if you want to cut back even further, a geo-exchange gives you the opportunity to drastically reduce your contributions to depleting the ozone.

Image via:  Lazar Design+Build

Regulate temperature more easily.

Ground temperatures vary from place to place, but they tend to fall somewhere in the range of about 45-75 degrees Fahrenheit. What does this mean for the temperature in your home? The geo-exchange pumps this air into your home to set the base temperature. Suppose, for example, that it’s below zero outside and you’d like your home to be a balmy 70 degrees. When you’re heating your home from a base temperature of 50 rather than 0, you can see how it would take a lot less time and energy to do so, and how it would be easier to maintain. In addition, you won’t suffer the same spikes and drops as with a regular HVAC system, leaving you hot and cold in turn.

Reduce particulates.

No matter how often you replace filters in your furnace and AC unit, you’re still blowing air through ductwork that gathers dust, spewing all kinds of potential allergens into your interior space. By using a geo-exchange you can limit your use of standard heating and cooling methods. If this reduces allergy symptoms for you and your family, it may be worth it.

For more eco-friendly ideas on Stagetecture, click here.

Whether it’s a stifling heat wave or just general summertime heat and humidity, let’s face it – your air conditioning unit has helped you through some rather sticky summer situations. Putting your AC unit to good use certainly makes your indoor living quarters seem like your own little slice of paradise, offering a refreshing contrast to the harsh outdoors – but how exactly are you ensuring that your unit is being maintained correctly?

Image via:  Resolution: 4 Architecture

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Is the air which you are breathing in healthy? Even if the answer is a definite yes, precautionary measures should still be taken. Sure, professional upkeep is necessary at certain times throughout the year, but there are some things you can do yourself for maintenance. Follow these tips to help you maintain your beloved AC unit, in order to keep it running at the highest possible standards:

Debris Removal:

Logically, the harder your AC unit works, the more debris are subject to being unwillingly sucked in the unit, leading to eventual clogging of your unit, and in some cases, polluted air. Luckily, this is easily preventable.

To do this, a monthly or bi-monthly trip to your outdoor unit is necessary. Start by removing any debris from around the unit, such as any random plant parts, grass, dust, or pollen. To stay even more efficient, methods of hosing down the filters, usually located on the sides of the unit, should be taken – after all, it’s the ideal breeding ground for clusters of dust and debris. Apply a low pressure water flow directly to the filters, but be careful about getting too much water inside the unit.

Always remember to turn off the power to the unit prior to starting this process.

Image via: Studio H Landscape Architecture

Going Inside the Unit:

In some cases, obtaining access to the insides of your unit is necessary. To do this, first refer to your owner’s manual, as most AC units differ in their own way. Start by removing the top head of the unit using specific screwdrivers. Once the head is removed, you can proceed to remove any unwanted debris. This is extremely useful if anyone in your house suffers from allergies.

In the end, these methods are the best possible D-I-Y remedies for your polluted AC Unit. Remember, if you do not feel confident in your ability to complete this yourself, it’s better to call upon a professional Blue Bell AC repair company than to end up damaging the costly unit. Stay cool!

For more cleaning & maintenance tips on Stagetecture, click here.

Anyone who enjoys a warm climate knows that it doesn’t come without its costs, and this is never more true than during the summer months when temperatures hit the triple digits and force you to crank up the air conditioning. Sure, it’s nice to have balmy winters with temps no lower than the 50s and blizzards nothing more than something you see on the weather report for other parts of the country, but you certainly pay during the summer. Unless you like the feeling of sweat running down your spine or you enjoy tossing out moldy bread every couple of days, you’re going to have to turn on the AC at some point. And that means crazy utility bills that are double, triple, or otherwise significantly higher than what you pay throughout the rest of the year. That said, there are a few ways you can economize without resigning yourself to a summer of sweaty misery. Here are some great tips to improve the efficiency of your air conditioning in order to save a little money while keeping cool.

Image via: Schwartz and Architecture

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Energy film.

While you can certainly get shaded film that will cut the glare of the sun, you may not realize that energy film is specially designed to help reduce your interior temperatures, sometime by several degrees. And considering there are options that allow you an unobstructed view out the window while providing screening that stops outsiders from looking in, you can get a lot of value from this energy-efficient purchase.

Plant a tree…or three.

Trees do more than just beautify your landscape and provide you with oxygen; they can also offer shade for your home that helps to keep the interior cool. So plant a few around the perimeter of your home and watch the savings add up. You can even opt for drought-resistant plants in order to conserve water, as well.

Install a programmable thermostat.

If you’re still dealing with an old-school dial it’s high time you made the switch to a digital, programmable thermostat that can offer you precise temperature control. In addition, you can set a schedule that allows for minimal usage (maintenance) during peak hours when the family is at work and school anyway, while reaching optimum temperature before you arrive home.

Image via: Nest

Energy-Star HVAC.

Learning how to replace an HVAC filter on your own could allow you to improve your AC efficiency slightly while saving you some money on installation, but it won’t show a significant reduction in costs. What will help you to save some serious dough when you cool your home, however, is upgrading to a modern, efficient, Energy-Star model air conditioning unit. These are designed to help reduce refrigerant use while optimizing output, giving you the cool air you need without jacking up your energy usage or your utility bills.

Energy audit.

The first thing you should do if you think you’re overpaying for AC is call your local power provider (or an independent organization) to schedule an energy audit. A professional will come to your home, perform a complete inspection, and deliver a report outlining the areas in which you could improve your home in order to maximize energy efficiency. Often this entails tasks like adding weather stripping or increasing insulation in certain areas (around windows, doors, and ductwork, for example).

For more green living ideas on Stagetecture, click here.

Running an efficacious hotel requires more advanced approaches with the emergence of different economic as well as environmental concerns in hospitality industry. Energy management solutions have been proved as the key component when it comes to addressing several requirements without compromising the quality of the amenities and services that a hotel offers.An effectivesolution will help the hotel in achieving several objectives instantaneously such as energy efficiency, and lowered carbon emissions. However, it is all about finding the perfect technology as well as supplier.The perfect example for such solutions is the key-card system that enables guests to initiate control over several other systems like HVAC. However, there are several energy saving modes that allow for remote management of temperature and lighting, which again allows an engineering personnel to maximize the energy efficiency completely for guest comfort. In order to reduce the power consumption, you need to learn to clean the HVAC systems for improved energy efficiency.

Image via: Holger Hobenaus

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There are other energy management solutions in the market that can provide you 30% to 50% savings in terms of utility costs. Delivering outstanding service to guests is immensely resource-intensive.

Save Energy Cost through Best Energy Management Solutions 

With the rise in cost related to electrical energy and reduction in non-renewable energy sources, energy management solutions have gained good enough prominence. Whether you live in New Yorkor London, dealingwith energy cost and expenditure will help you in saving your money and allows you in contributing to the best eco-conservation.

With the appropriate usage of technology and power saving tools, you can also optimize usage of limited resources that can help you in meeting all the business objectives in a friendly manner.

Smart Power Distribution Units

Services related to the energy management consultants will definitely not solve the issues and purposes you are looking for. Therefore, it is up to people’s interests in UK and London to make use of the services related to the best energy management systems that can provide you SmartPower Distribution Units (PDUs) as well as smart meters.

Monitoring the Power Usage

You can also get info about the consumption of energy in your building via energy monitoring products that can help you in providing data for accessing the running costs and electrical usage with respect to Power Factor, VA, AC voltage, and Watts.

With the help of smart, energy efficient, and 24×7-technical support from the engineers in UK, it is pretty easy to manage energy consumption, save money and precious time. After all, it is easy to address all energy needs in a cost-convenient and streamlined manner. It is also vital that you contact the company online and also get expert services for installing sound energy management system.

Image via: The Anderson Studio of Architecture & Design

How Do Energy Management Solutions Help?

Today, energy management solutions have been designed for offering several options to hotel managers without taking all the luxuries away. At times, all these options are considered as basis between service and savings. These energy management systems are also considered as an integral part of the business plan of a company.

An energy management team with enough experience and good training will be responsible for policy development and other practices. Whenever the management systems work efficiently within the organization, the top-level management will seek strategies to implementinto business plans, which are suggested by the team.

Future equipment purchases, budgeting policies, and business expansion are influenced greatly by the recommendations and activities of Energy Management Systems within the organization. Click here for the top of the line energy management solutions.

Air quality is of the utmost importance in the home. Poor indoor air quality can have a number of negative health effects, like chronic lung disease, asthma, nasal congestion, headaches and fatigue. For people who already have trouble breathing or have chronic lung disease the risk is even greater. This summer when you blast the air conditioner to stay cool it is important to take into consideration what some of these risks are. Moreover, making sure that the air circulation in your home is clean and running efficiently will have a number of other benefits too.

Image via: Winder Gibson Architects

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Here are 5 benefits of cleaning the air ducts and vents in your home.

1.) Your heating and air conditioning system will last longer.

Keeping up with basic maintenance, like cleaning and making sure that the filters in your air ducts and vents are free from dirt, dust and grime is the number way to keep your system from breaking down. In fact, 9 out of 10 heating and air conditioning systems break down as a result of people not taking the proper steps to clean their air ducts and vents. Parts and labor can be expensive and over time can really start to add up. In addition, having to replace the entire system can really set you back financially.

2.) Cleaning the air ducts and vents will also increase energy efficiency.

They say that even minimal removal or vacuuming of dust can increase energy efficiency by up to 20%. This can, effectively, save you a tremendous amount of money on your next utility bill, but can also hugely reduce your home’s impact on the environment.

3.) It’s good for your health.

Making sure that your air ducts and vents are free from common indoor air pollutants, like pollen, pet dander, mildew, mold and more, will improve your home’s air quality. Basically, if you don’t clean out your ducts and vents, all of these pollutants can be sent into the air of your home. Not only does poor indoor air quality have disastrous effects on your health, but your home too. Excess moisture from an inefficient AC system can cause structural rot in the walls, window frames and even roofs.

Image via: Summit Design Remodeling, LLC

4.) Cleaning can lead to a better smelling home

Routine cleaning and removal of pollutants in your air ducts and vents will also make your home smell better. No air freshener, incense, floral candle or cookie baking is going to remove the smell of mildew or mold that emanates from an unclean air duct system. If you want to go ductless you could go with a mini-split system to avoid the unnecessary expense and effort of having to clean your ducts and vents (visit FloridaACDealers.com to learn more).

5.) Maintain your property value.

Lastly, cleaning out your home’s air ducts and vents will maintain the property value of your home. Letting your air ducts and vents get too dirty will cause serious problems for your home, like yellowing of walls and peeling of paint. Cleaning out your heating and air conditioning system should be an essential part of your home’s basic annual maintenance and should never be ignored, because a clean home is a happy home.

For more cleaning & maintenance tips on Stagetecture, click here.

As a sizable chunk of the time we spend in our homes is spent in the land of nod or our bedrooms, reducing the energy our homes use during these hours is key to reducing our total energy use. Your home could be kitted out with every energy saving mod-con available, but if it refuses to go to sleep when you do, it is wasting vital energy.

Image via: The Anderson Studio of Architecture & Design

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Ceiling fans may be your answer

During the winter months, I have been guilty of leaving my heating on overnight, like many people, I’m unable to sleep if there is the slightest bit of chill. I’m not sure what the weather is like where you’re reading this from but, here in the U.K, there is still snow on the ground as we enter April, playing havoc with all our energy bills! While keeping the heat on a low setting seemed like the responsible thing to do, the room temperature come morning made it impossible for me to escape my 13 tog duvet.

The answer to my problems came from the most unlikely of places, the ceiling fan. Using more energy to power something designed to keep the room cold may seem odd, but it’s not as ridiculous as it sounds.

As you may already know, fans in the summertime can be more of an irritation than anything else. Yes, they may offer a refreshing breeze in your face, but they have an annoying tendency to just waft hot air all around the room. It’s time to put this irritation to good use in the winter.

Image via: Steve Passmore 

As you will certainly know, heat from the radiators rises, that’s why we install loft insulation to trap it in. This process means that the hot air in your bedroom is most likely to be found hanging around by the ceiling. By replacing your bed with a bunk, you can spend the night basking in warm air, however, if you are above the age of twelve, you may not like the idea of this.

Most ceiling fans have a function that allows them to spin two ways. If you have one, set it to spin downwards at a slow speed. This will help recirculate the warm air around the room, making your heating system far more efficient, allowing you to leave it on a lower setting. I now wake up to a room which is warm and inviting, although vacating my 13 tog duvet is still an uphill struggle.

Joe is a blogger who writes about property, interior design and green living for Force 8.

For more energy efficient ideas on Stagetecture, click here.