Home Energy Efficiency - And You

With an appreciation for how the house works as a system, you will gain an understanding of ways to improve energy efficiency, comfort and air quality. 

Here’s an insider’s look at the six main factors that play into home energy efficiency:

• Insulation  The amount, type, location, installation methods, and quality of your home’s insulation all affect how well it performs.
• Air sealing  Gaps, cracks, and holes in your building shell mean that warm air escapes, and cold air sneaks in. In a leaky house, you are paying to reheat the same volume of air - over, and over again. This reduces the effectiveness of your heating and cooling systems—and wastes costly energy.
• Ventilation  Good mechanical ventilation is vital to avoiding moisture problems and maintaining safe, healthy indoor air.
• Appliances and lighting  Household appliances, electrical devices and lighting all play a key role in your home’s energy efficiency.
• Mechanical systems Every time your heating system turns on, you are converting dollar bills into BTUs. The efficiency and maintenance of your heating appliance, hot-water heater, space heaters, and other mechanical systems affect their performance—and how much energy they use.
• Consumption habits  The ways you use and maintain your home affects how much energy is needed to operate it.

The truth is that most Americans don’t have particularly energy-efficient homes by modern standards. Improving the energy efficiency of our homes will help all of us:

• Save money  It’s a simple fact: You’ll spend less on heating and cooling.
• Be more comfortable  You’ll enjoy a more stable, pleasing home environment by day, at night, in winter, and in summer. Often, you can also solve common household problems that seem unrelated to energy consumption—such as mold, mildew, condensation, indoor air quality, and ice dams.
• Live greener  Your energy-efficient home will save resources and generate fewer pollutants, helping to minimize greenhouse gas, smog, and acid rain.
• Sell your home  At resale time, good energy efficiency will help make your home a more attractive prospect for future buyers.

So how do you get a truly energy-efficient home—and start saving money? Begin with a home energy audit from Horizon Residential!