5 Green Home Improvement Tips

Rising in popularity in recent years, green home improvement is an inexpensive and environment friendly way for you to increase the value, durability and even appearance of property. Green home improvement is being adopted by both homeowners and commercial property investors alike, with eco-friendly renovations applied along with the right strategies giving you an improved ROI or return on investment.

There are a few things to take into consideration when looking for the best return on investment strategy with the most important being: the work and maintenance types needed for the structure, the neighborhood that the property is part of and the best options available in your area. To help you out we have prepared five green home improvement tips worth knowing:

1. Use light bulbs that are energy efficient

With an estimated savings of over $30 on the electricity bills in the course of its lifetime, an energy efficient light bulb might seem a little more expensive at first but in reality it is not. Therefore, one of the simplest and most effective things you can do is to switch from the standard light bulbs to the high efficiency ones.

2. Replace old appliances

Another really good way for you to achieve green living and help the environment is by replacing your used appliances with new ones. These days every newer appliance from air conditioning to radiators, water boilers, dishwashers and washing machines are built with energy saving in mind, so it is really easy for you to find these products and purchase them. Besides energy saving functions another way to consume less is by buying a smaller appliance that can still get the job done just as well while also using less power and reducing your bills. While you might think the costs are high you can always consider replacing old appliances in stages, starting with the bigger and most used ones. Investing some money now will save you lots of money in the future.

3. Add insulation to your house

Energy saving insulation can come in different forms but no matter what option you choose it is one of the easiest and least costly improvements you can make to your home while also helping the environment. Exterior insulation includes panels that can be used to cover your house or cork wall tiles that can also protect your property from the outside environment. Interior insulation options cover wooden flooring or insulation window frames. Other small things you can do to achieve energy saving is installing blinds, curtains or shutters as well as using window treatments to improve insulation.

4. Conserve water

Using as little water as necessary is also important and there are plenty of ways to achieve this. You can purchase various fittings designed for shower heads or taps as well as water conserving toilets. For the outside there are irrigation systems for the garden that are designed to save you more water.

5. Increase the value of your property

With costs dropping as more and more contractors emerge on the market, green home remodeling is becoming the best way to improve the value of your home and see an amazing return on investment. You can consider other eco-friendly options like bamboo floors, or even alternative energy sources like wind or solar power, all providing long lasting and sustainable enhancements to your home.

This article has been contributed by Aishwarya Vohra from Offshore Ally.  She is apart of the company’s team of dedicated virtual assistant and link builders. She loves to read and blog on various subjects including music, food, green lighting and travel. Connect with her via twitter.

Source: Talking About Green

These green home improvements cost money but they will save money in the long term.  If your old appliances are still working, rather try to use them in more efficient ways before buying new appliances.  When you are ready for a new washing machine, be sure to check out the water- and energy efficiency ratings of the various models available- there are some surprising differences, even amongst the so-called greener models.  See Washing Machine Water Efficiency.

Water conservation is very important in this age of water scarcity.  Rainwater harvesting systems and greywater recycling greatly reduce your water footprint and you can attain a degree of water self-sufficiency.

There is a very good case for fitting high quality water saving systems and energy generation systems such a PV solar panels and solar water geysers- these not only save the environment and save you money in the long term but they also drastically increase the value and saleability of your home (see Solar Energy Increases Home Value).

If you live in South Africa and need environmentally friendly water conservation and solar energy solutions, contact us for a free quote.  Our WWF award winning water systems include, rainwater harvesting systems, grey water irrigation systems, grey water recycling systems, swimming pool backwash recycling systems, toilet flush mechanisms and other water-saving devices (see product demo).

We are also authorized South African  JoJo Water Tanks dealers and offer the full range of JoJo water tanks and JoJo tank stands.  Yes Solar offers high quality solar water heaters to reduce your electricity bills by up to 40%.  Offset your carbon footprint by switching to green insurance cover, now available in South Africa!