From Guest Blogger Amelia Atkins: How to Remodel Your Home and Remain Energy-Efficient

Home remodeling usually has one or two main goals. The first is to renovate the home and make it seem fresh and different once again. The second is to repair all the small imperfections that have been bothering you and that can’t be fixed on a free weekend.

However, there’s one more thing that can be accomplished during a well-organized remodeling that usually gets overlooked or pushed to the side. Remodeling can (and should) be used to make your home more energy-efficient and help you reduce energy bills for the years to come.

Insulation

Insulation is the simplest way to reduce energy bills without making any significant changes to the aesthetic of your home. Old properties, in particular, tend to lose a lot of air and that can increase the heating and AC bills significantly.

If your home has a double row of bricks on the outside wall, that can be a great place to start without changing the structure of the walls you have in place. It’s also a good idea to focus on the roofs and the basement because that’s where a lot of hot air gets lost and this doesn’t have to be the case.

Doors and windows

Doors and windows should be airtight in order to keep your home energy-efficient and as cool as you want it. Most of the time, homeowners don’t pay that much attention to them and, after years of use, they start leaking a lot of air.

A new set of doors and windows will always fit better than the old, worn-out ones, but that’s not enough. It’s best to invest in double glazed windows, especially if you live in an area with harsh season changes and don’t have that good of an AC system.

Storage space

Storage spaces are often a waste of energy because they are usually large and empty. That makes them hard to heat regardless of how you heat your home. This is especially the case if the storage is located in the attic because, that way, you’re also losing air through the roof.

There are a few ways to improve attic storage efficiency and they mostly depend on the size of the space. For instance, installing a ceiling fan will provide better climate control which isn’t only a savings method but it can also help with storing some items more safely.

Lighting

Lights are considered to be a small part of home remodeling and most designers just glance at them when making plans. However, if you’re doing a home remodel to save energy and change your home aesthetic, lighting can play a big role.

There’s no amount of artificial light that can replace sunlight and this is especially true for those who have a home office. It is a large project, but if you don’t have one, you should try to install a ceiling window in order to use natural light longer during your workday.

Furnace, AC, heating

Heating usually wastes the most energy even if the heating system is new. It may take some time and tinkering with it to find the right temperature that will keep you comfortable but won’t consume too much electricity.

Replacing the furnace requires a bit of work, mostly as it relates to moving it and attaching a new one, but it needs to be done roughly every ten years in order for it to remain functional and safe. The AC, on the other hand, just requires regular checkups and it can work for much longer than that. It’s best to do this during the remodeling and thus have everything set up in your new place.

Remodeling a home can be a good time to make it more energy-efficient. Some of the changes needed to accomplish this may require a bit of extra work and that’s why it’s easier to do it as a part of a larger project that will improve both the functionality and the aesthetic of a home.