Many households find that a large portion of their expenses go toward paying for energy. This can include HVAC costs, the costs associated with lighting and common appliances and fuel costs that are tied to operating their vehicles. If you’re getting ready to build a new home, it’s possible to cut down on your recurring energy costs. The longer you wind up owning your home, the more your savings will tend to compound.
Eco Friendly Options For Your Home
There are several things you can do to make sure that your home is as efficient as possible. Installing LED lights can cut down on your energy usage. Another option that can help you cut down on your use of energy is the installation of a highly efficient HVAC system. If you’re looking to go this route, you’ll want to gravitate to those units that have a higher SEER rating. This rating is tied to the relative efficiency of the HVAC unit. Making sure that your new home is properly insulated can also help you cut down on the amount of energy it takes to operate your home.
Alternative Sources Of Energy
Depending upon where you live, there are a couple of different ways that you can access energy outside of the traditional grid. One is water power. If you live in a relatively rural area and have a creek or stream nearby, you could set up a system that takes advantage of water power. As long as your water source is fed by a spring, it should continue to provide clean power. If you don’t have access to water power, you can also install solar panels to provide the energy you need.
Benefits Of Using Solar Energy
While using solar panels might not cut down on your overall energy usage, the energy you use will come from a renewable source. As long as the sun shines, you’ll be able to harness this source of clean energy for your home’s use. In recent years, solar panels prices have come down, and there are also tax benefits that come with installing an array. Over the past few years, battery storage has improved. Therefore, your array can provide energy even on cloudy days.
Benefits Of Using Renewable Energy
There is no doubt that renewable energy sources can cost more on the front end than more traditional sources. However, there are long-term benefits. After the initial cost of setting up a solar array or a hydropower system, the maintenance costs should be minimal. You’ll pay little to the local power company, and some localities even allow homeowners to sell their excess energy to the regular power grid. Additionally, outside of the initial hit to the environment that comes from producing and disposing of these systems, the use of renewable energy will have a lower environmental footprint over time.
What To Consider When Installing Solar Power For Your New Home
If you’re looking to install solar panels to operate your new home off the traditional power grid, you’ll need to take the orientation of your array into account. You’ll ideally have your home set up so that one side of your roof faces south. During the winter, the sun is low in the southern sky, and you’ll need your solar array to face that direction if you intend to power your home with sunlight. If you don’t want to place solar panels on your roof, your array needs an open view of the sun throughout the year to make the system work.
Installing solar panels for your energy needs comes with two important benefits. You’ll cut down on your need for fossil fuels and your energy costs at the same time.
