Making your home more energy efficient can sound like an expensive and complicated task, but in reality there are many easy steps homeowners and renters can take to convert a dwelling from an energy waster to a sustainable homestead. Below we have outlined ways to help you pay less and reduce your home’s carbon footprint.

TGH — Efficiency graphic

Green Your Roof: Covering your roof with a “carpet” of soil, rocks and small plants insulates against heat and cooling loss and absorbs rainwater that would otherwise contribute to polluted stormwater runoff. Environment Canada found that a green roof on a typical one-story building would lead to a 25 percent reduction in summer cooling needs.

Be a Fan of Fans: Turn off your AC and install ceiling fans to cool your most-used rooms in the summer, saving up to 40 percent on your bill in the process. Running fans in the winter helps to circulate warm air and reduce your heating bill.

Drawing and graphic by Jil LeeSources: U.S. Department of Energy; GreenAmerica; Resnet; This Old House

Get with the Program: A programmable thermostat allows you to automate when your heating or cooling systems turn on and off. Also, heating or cooling rooms no

one is using wastes energy and generates needless emissions.

Saved By Shrubs: Not only can landscaping beautify the environment, it can reduce energy used for heating and cooling by as much as 25 percent. The proper placement of just three trees will save an average household between $100–$250 in energy costs annually. Strategically planted trees and other plants can shade your windows and help reduce your cooling costs. Trees and shrubs can also act as wind blockers to stop chilling gusts in winter.

Shed Some Light on It: Replacing incandescent light bulbs with CFL (compact fluorescent) or LED bulbs can save you $30 or more over the bulb’s lifetime. Utilize natural lighting by adding skylights or light tubes, and turn off lights you’re not using at night.

Window of Opportunity: About 15 percent of wall space in the average home is taken up by windows — resulting in heating loss in winter and warming by the sun’s glare in summer. Seal leaks around windows and doors with weatherstripping or no-VOC caulk, and install insulating curtains or apply low-e film to prevent heating and cooling loss. For greater savings, replace old windows with double-pane, gas-filled or Energy Star triple-pane windows.

Phantom Menace: Electronics, such as TVs, DVD players, computers, and printers use electricity even when they are turned off. Turn off power strips and unplug devices when not in use. At least five percent of the average household’s monthly utility bill is generated from powering devices that are not even on.

Get an Energy Checkup: Energy audits by a certified consultant can help you locate and reduce energy waste. Using infrared cameras, blower door tests and electronics, a complete audit will pinpoint energy leaks in your home. From this information, they’ll recommend next stepsyou can take. Call your utility for a free or reduced-rate energy audit, or look up an energy auditor in your area, checking to ensure their credentials match your needs.

In Hot Water: In a typical American home, about 13 percent of the energy consumed is used to heat water. Fix leaky faucets and install low-flow toilets and showerheads. If one out of every 100 American homes switched to water-efficient fixtures, it would save each household up to $145 a year in electricity costs and prevent 80,000 tons of greenhouse gas from being released into the atmosphere. Take it a step further by upgrading to a solar hot water heater. Or you could retrofit your existing heater by insulating the pipes and tank and reduce heat losses by 25-45 percent — an upgrade that typically pays for itself in less than a year.

Insulate, Insulate, Insulate: A properly insulated attic can shave as much as 50 percent off your heating bill. Loose fill insulation is great for irregular spaces and will provide better coverage when installed properly. Batt insulation, which comes in rolled-up sheets, will work with most standard attic spaces and is typically less expensive than loose fill. Remember to seal your attic’s air leaks before adding insulation.

Get Paid for Doing Your Chores: Many households spend more than $100 each year just to dry their clothes. Consider these energy tips for taking care of your weekly chores:

• Wash clothes with cold water.

• Consider skipping the dryer and hanging your clothes on a rack or clothesline. Avoid wrinkles by running the dryer for five minutes, then hanging clothes to finish drying.

• Turn off your dishwasher’s heat cycle and let dishes air-dry.

• Run your dishwasher or washing machine at night to avoid peak times and reduce demand on power plants.

• When it’s time to replace your appliances, look for the most efficient models. An Energy Star-rated refrigerator can save more than $70 a year on energy costs — and you may be eligible for a tax break.

Home Energy Savings Tips

AppalachianVoices.org/EnergySavings