The concept of our human carbon footprint and its general impact on the environment is a multifaceted and often fascinating topic.  While a historically contentious political topic, most if not all scientific evidence points to human-caused global warming as a result of the consumption of fossil fuels charged through our dependency on carbon-based energy.

Fortunately, not everything has to be doom and gloom when it comes to reducing your carbon footprint, and in many scenarios, reducing your home’s carbon footprint can be done fairly affordably and will ultimately save you money for years.  Here are some of our tips for reducing your home’s carbon footprint.

Insulation for Energy Savings

For almost every home, your greatest expense and biggest use of carbon fuel will be your heating and air conditioning system.  While you can certainly spend thousands on upgrading your HVAC system to something more energy-efficient, you’ll likely get far more bang for your buck with better, modern insulation in your home.

If you have an older home, especially, insulating your home (specifically your attic) can save you hundreds if not thousands of dollars on your electric bill throughout the year and will certainly reduce your carbon footprint.  That said, it’s important to choose insulation (whether loose-fill or batt) that also lessens your carbon footprint.  Insulation can be a DIY project (with adequate preparation) or can be done professionally.

Switch Your Electricity Provider

Electricity is the greatest part of your home’s carbon footprint as we’ve already mentioned, but you can do a great deal to reduce that carbon footprint by switching your electric plan to a renewable energy provider.  Electricity is regulated by each state, but there’s certainly a resource available to you to both shop for rates and by the energy source to lower your bill while also lowering your carbon footprint.

Consumer electricity advocates such as Energy Ogre help consumers find the best rates on their electric bills while taking each end user’s usage and desires into account when helping you choose a new plan.  With renewable energy becoming more available, more affordable, and easier to access, prices can often be less expensive than fossil fuel-based electric plans.  It helps to shop in order to reduce your carbon footprint.

Update Your Appliances

It may not be the sexiest way to reduce your carbon footprint and arguably isn’t the most “efficient”, but updating your appliances is a great way to reduce your energy consumption and therefore reduce your carbon footprint.  Naturally, updating your HVAC system to a modern system will save you the most and reduce your carbon footprint the most; however, for many folks, that isn’t the most cost-effective option.

Instead, look at replacing old or aging appliances such as microwaves, televisions, your stove, or washer and dryer.  Switching to newer or at least updated Energy Star Qualified appliances is a great way to lessen your impact on the planet.  Granted, these appliances can be costly, but there are ways you can use your current home’s equity to make these purchases and significantly update your home.

Find Funds for Reducing Your Carbon Footprint

While virtually every major appliance superstore and manufacturer offers financing on big home appliances, why not use the money you’ve already worked hard to put into your home to make those changes?  Get in touch today with Tidewater Mortgage Services, Inc. and talk to one of our loan experts who can help guide you through options for using your home’s equity as a way to lower your carbon footprint.  Ask us about cash-out refinances or see if there are programs available to you to help save money!