How to Go Green: Heating Your Home

The top priority of a green home is low energy consumption. We use non-renewable energy resources like gas, oil and electricity derived from fossil fuels as a source of energy in our homes, but this has severe negative effects on the environment due to the pollutants that they release while producing energy.

A dramatic way to eliminate this and go green is to use renewable energy sources like solar or wind energy to power your home. But installing a wind mill or solar panels can be quite expensive.

As an intermediate step, even with fossil fuel energy sources, by resourcefully heating your home, you can limit the undesirable environmental impacts while saving money on your electricity bills. The savings can be quite significant because heating consumes 60-70% of your total energy usage.

Here are ways to go green with an energy efficient design in your home.

• Have an airtight envelope all around your home with properly insulated walls, windows, doors and roof. Rigid foam, cellulose, perlite, fiber glass, etc. can be used to provide insulation. But be sure to provide mechanical ventilation to let fresh air inside your home.

• Install energy efficient windows in your home. Energy efficient windows use low conductivity gasses like Argon or Krypton sandwiched between insulating layers. These gases are poor conductors of heat. So they do not let the heat inside your rooms dissipate to the outside. These windows are made of clear glass and efficiently conduct sunlight.

• Use an energy efficient HVAC to heat or cool your home. Plug leaks in your ducts and ensure that there is sufficient insulation around the ducts to prevent heat from radiating out or radiating in.

• Use a programmable thermostat to control the HVAC. You can set it to heat less during the day and more at night. You can set it to lower the temperature when no one is home. Having independent heat control in every room is an excellent way to conserve energy.

DIY projects like installing a thermostat, plugging ducts and sealing windows are relatively inexpensive and easy. Installing energy efficient windows and doors may require professional services.

The government is offering incentives to help you go green - you can get up to $1,500 in tax credits for approved green initiatives. Installing an energy efficient HVAC and energy-efficient doors and windows qualify you for this credit. While these upgrades mean high upfront expenses, they pay for themselves over 3-5 years in energy cost savings.