Energy Efficient Home Design Tips

energy efficient home

Making an energy efficient home design can be challenging. This is especially among typical homeowners. However, it is well worth the effort. Having an energy efficient home will save you money and time by keeping energy costs at a minimum. You will also minimize your carbon footprint which is great for the environment. The following tips will help you when designing your dream home.

Insulation

wall insulation

Sufficient insulation is at the heart of every energy efficient home. Exterior walls, basement walls, floors, and atticshave to be adequately insulated. This will help you maximize energy efficiency and consequently cut down on the heating and cooling expenses.

Stormwater Control

Controlling where stormwater can be of great benefits as it allows you to diminish runoff. You can even use the stormwater for landscaping purposes. This way your water consumption can be significantly reduced. Also, the electricity used up in electronic sprinklers can be saved for other needs. A rain garden designed to trap rainwater and let it soak into the ground can prevent rainwater from becoming run-off and carrying

Window Options

There are numerous energy saving windows available in the market today. These windows are becoming more popular and affordable. The number of windows and the type you use in your home will significantly affect your cooling and heating costs during summer and winter months.

Solar Panels

Utilizing solar panels to power your home will help you both environmentally and economically. To entirely depend on solar energy also allows you to entirely or partially move off the national power grid.

Positioning Windows and Doors

home windowThe way you position the doors, and the windows will also affect the energy efficiency in your home. Windows and doors need to be placed in a way that they take full advantage of natural light during the day. This means having fewer windows on the north side of your home and more on the south. To disseminate direct sunlight, you can use windows that filter UV rays or solar screens.

Skylights

Skylights that are well-positioned will allow natural light into your home. This, in turn, reduces your dependency on artificial lighting more so during the day. Artificial light can be used only at night.

There are many energy efficient home design tips. These are just some of the tips that you need to incorporate into your home design to productively lower the carbon footprint and also save money. Energy efficient and use of alternative energy sources is the sure way of bringing an end to reliance on fossil fuels.…

Good ideas for landscaping

big house

Homeowners want to design their properties to make it look more appealing. Everyone intends to have the best yard on the block. You can find great ideas by looking on the internet. But if you want that professional look, then you should look into a landscaping company to do the work for you.

Here are some tips that you can follow.

Hire experts

If you are in Florida, landscapingservices will go over some different designs with you so you can pick the one that best fits your needs. These experts will provide you with unique designs. They will also help you maintain your landscaping every month to ensure the best service they can offer you. They also have the right tools to do the job right the first time around.

Pick different types of plants and flowers

sun flowerThe best way to have a beautiful yard is to have different kinds of plants growing. By doing so, you will be able to make your yard attractive, and it can even help with pest control. Some flowers from the plants will repel pests.

Like what was mentioned above, flowers are very attractive. They have a wide variety of colors which can make your yard appealing to others. The landscaping service will use these colors to create unique looks to your properties. Landscaping will use warm colored plants to mix with the flowers.

Landscaping with lights

Apart from plants, people can also use lighting fixture to complete their landscaping. For example, people can install lighting to their sidewalks around flower gardens, gazebo, and bbq area. Having the lights around your flower gardens at night will allow the colors to mix. You will have to choose the right color of lighting to help enhance the appearance.

Large rocks

This is a good idea for having it line up your driveway to your house; it also looks good around flower gardens. A lot of people have been piling up large rocks and having their address engraved on the rocks.

Pond

Having a pond or even a waterfall is an excellent idea for homeowners. Some people even go as far as putting fish and building a bridge to go over the pond and adding a lot of different colored lighting to show off the pond at night. Having the sound of a waterfall will put your mind at ease.

Integrate hardscapes

blue chairs

Having seating on your property will provide people to enjoy your yard. This will also make it easier to have parties. It’s a good idea to have a walkway, so people don’t hurt your lawn when they go through your yard.…