Who doesn’t want a beautiful abode and who doesn’t want to save energy? Fortunately, both can be achieved simultaneously.
Energy is a big deal. If you look at some statistics, the world's electricity consumption is on the rise.
One of the reasons for this is people are getting richer and they have now more money to consume energy every day. And with the rapid advancements, electricity is now available to a larger portion of people. We are able to lit, beautify and make our life feasible with a variety of products and appliances.
A glad thing though, but it does arrive with some caveats. As per EIA, the world's energy demand is expected to increase by 48% before 2040. This raises the risk of energy scarcity, and the adverse environmental impacts from power plant facilities also need to be considered.
The solution? We also need to conserve energy while meeting our electrical energy needs. Creating a balance between our needs vs the supply will keep the ball rolling for us. Efficient energy management will not only trim our electricity bills, but will also contribute to a healthier, greener, and safer earth.
So moving ahead while keeping above things in mind, this article will share you 5 home interior design ideas that’ll help you to meet the bottom line you carve for.
1. Use latest energy-efficient appliances
Using energy efficient products and appliances can save a lot in energy costs.
Start replacing your old incandescent bulbs with the LED one’s, the cheapest retrofit option in the product list. Not only LED bulbs save energy, they also run longer and are brighter than CFL or incandescent bulbs. And yes, the beauty which they add to your home is worth mentioning.
Now, if you are having a budget, then you may optimize your kitchen with smart and energy star appliances. Kitchen is the most active room inside any home, so not taking heed is losing a lot of energy opportunities.
Let’s talk about, say, dishwashers. Using a standard size dishwasher with Energy Star accreditation will cost you just $35 per year to run it. And it’s not just about energy and their bills, they can also save you will gallons of water wastage. On an average, an Energy Star dishwasher can save around 3870 Gallons of water(that’s a huge number) over its full lifetime. Day by day, as they are getting smarter with their cleaning technology, you'll have less energy and water bills at your hands, plus neat and shiny utensils inside your kitchen adding to its beauty.
Same goes for washing machines inside your house. You can save around $34 on e-bills as compared to standard one’s in the market, and 2000 gallons of water each other. Of-course, manufactures are keen enough to care for the design part so that it doesn’t look like a big box asking you to cover it. So, utility and beauty goes hand by hand.
Your refrigerators can also be a saving point. You can save around 9% on your monthly electricity bills and savings goes more than $200 over the complete lifecycle of your Energy Star product.
And finally, there’s one more glad news. Saving from appliances in a longer run is on one side, but you don’t want to wait too much, then you may become eligible for a rebate from your state for purchasing these aesthetic and energy saving appliances!. Make sure you check out the website of Energy Star to get more details on this.
2. Window Treatments
We all use various window treatments just for decorative purposes, we’ll have to admit this. But, you can achieve more than this, and the complete bottom line. And what’s more, it comes quite inexpensive.
With a variety of colorful window treatments, you can control how much air or light you need inside your home. Not allowing too much light which ultimately means heat inside your home will help you to save your AC/HVAC bills in summer. And doing contrary in winter will give you feasible energy bills on your room heaters in winter seasons.
So, go with thin and light clothes if you want to warm your house in light winters with a breath of fresh air and natural light. Use shutters, blinds and drapes for a cooler environment with your AC turned on, which also turns out to work well if you want a warm air-trapped environment with your home heating appliances.
3. Ceiling Fans, that reverse too!
Hang ceiling fans inside your home, if you aren't using them till now. Now also comes ceiling fans with reverse direction flow. So better to opt these one. Why? We're going to know soon.
You’ll need to invest one time on their cost while purchasing that comes around $200 on an average. And guess what? It just consumes energy equivalent to a bulb for its running!. They can help you to save around 40% on your electricity bills in summer and 10% on an average in winter.
In summer seasons, it works by pulling the hot air above the ceilings and the cool air needed downwards. Using a combination of your fan and AC is also a good idea to save energy costs due to electricity. And in winter, you can make it to work by changing its direction of rotation, where it’ll push hot air downwards and cool air in reverse direction.
Finally, as ceiling fans come with a variety of designs and style, something eye-catching inside your home would definitely make your visitors give a glance at it, at least once.
4. Smart landscaping ideas
Go green with your home landscaping. Planting small easy to maintain trees and herbs not only add beauty to your house yard, but the greenery also helps in sustainability. If you want to feel it, then visit a green area in summer and you’ll find it cool and soothing to your nerves.
5. Aesthetic Home Insulation
Which means home insulation keeping house aesthetic in mind.
Insulation is important to maintain house temperatures. If your house doesn't have any, then you have it. You don’t have to worry if you were, or now thinking it means like living in a plastic bag, which actually doesn’t. Consult a Home Insulation Contractor to audit your house and you’ll get the assistance you need.
So, a home insulation with style and sustainability will save your bills and make your house more adorable.
Finally
So, these were some design ideas for your home to save your bills on utilities with goals of sustainability in mind. Some are quite easy, (Do It Yourself)DIY and some require expertise and substantial costs. But most importantly, all are worth in the long run. So, make sure to start your planning for the implementation of all these ideas. And for DIY activities, like replacing bulb fixtures and drapes for your window, start doing not from tomorrow or today, but NOW itself.
