The Benefits of Energy Conservation in a Conservative World
With oil prices Silagra about to rise due to the situation in the Gulf and limited resources on our horizon, let’s take a few minutes to ponder the benefits of conservation.
Energy conservation measures reduce fuel use and save home owners money -often lots of money. For every dollar you spend on energy conservation, you can easily reap five dollars per year in savings, according to the US Department of Energy. You can think of energy conservation as a reliable alternative to the stock market.
Many energy conservation measures increase comfort in our homes by reducing cold spots, hot spots, and chilly drafts. Rather than turning up the heat to overcome a cold, drafty home, a homeowner can simply seal up the many leaks in the building envelope to create a cozier interior while saving hundreds of dollars a year. A tube of caulk costs a lot less than the energy required to pump heat out through the many leaks in the ceilings and walls of our homes day after day after day. (Interestingly, comfort is a major factor when deciding to upgrade the homes of many elderly individuals.)
Here are some great tips to consider:
1. By reducing household utility bills, energy conservation can free up money for other important activities-such as bolstering sagging savings accounts, financing college educations, funding family vacations, and building retirement accounts.
2. Energy efficiency measures in our homes may also qualify home owners for larger loans and, occasionally, for lower mortgage rates. Some lenders, for example, FHA, Bank of America, and Chase offer such benefits Cialis Jelly for qualifying energy-efficient homes. Check them out when buying or building a new, energy efficient home.
3. Energy efficiency can also reduce maintenance. A well-insulated home, for instance, reduces the need for backup heating and air conditioning. This puts less strain on furnaces, boilers, air conditioners, and evaporative coolers, meaning they last longer and require less maintenance.
4. Energy conservation measures are often easy to implement. In fact, it requires very little skill or training to make a home more energy efficient.
5. Energy conservation measures can be brought online quickly. A trip to the hardware store and a few afternoons working around the house can make significant inroads into your annual energy consumption.
6. Energy conservation measures are often free or quite inexpensive. Turning off lights when rooms are unoccupied incurs no expense what so ever, just a little extra effort on your part. Installing compact fluorescent light bulbs costs a little upfront, but as you have just seen it saves enormous amounts of money over the long haul.
7. Energy conservation could increase the value of your home. In a study that appeared in 2008 in The Appraisal Journal, a publication read by house appraisers, the authors report that the selling price of homes increased by nearly $21 for every $1 decrease in fuel bills the homeowners had achieved through energy efficiency. With the average American home currently (2010) using about $1,900 worth of energy per year (up from $1,300 in 2009), a reduction in the utility bill by one half could increase the home value by nearly $20,000. As energy prices escalate, this figure could go higher!
In an energy-tight world, energy conservation could make your home much easier to sell.
Energy conservation reduces fuel use and thus reduces environmental damage resulting from the production and consumption of conventional fuels.
Author Bio: Keith Webb grew up around a construction company and has personally studied a number of different energy saving ideals on his own home.
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