Living Like Ed - (Page 20) Retrofitting an Old House vs. Building New Few of us have the resources to build a more energy-efficient house from the ground up. I didn’t have the money to do that, and I didn’t have the will to do that. Plus I liked my house. So, I set out to make my home as environmentally sound as I could in every aspect. I knew that with insulation, a drought-tolerant garden, doublepane windows, an energy-saving thermostat, and solar panels I eventually put on the roof, I could make this a much more efficient structure. Indeed, by the time I was done, I had made my home nearly as energy efficient as a new one. And you can do the same for your home, wherever you live. The key to saving energy in your home is controlling energy use. Clearly, there are many ways to do this, from simple changes in what you do and how you do it to more intense home improvement projects. Because so much of the energy used in your home is used to keep it warm in the winter and cool in the summer, we’ll start with ways you can control your heating and cooling needs. And there’s another important point I want to mention right up front: You don’t have to own your home to make many of these changes. There’s a lot you can do even if you’re renting, or if you own a condominium or another type of structure where you might be limited as to the kinds of changes you can make. So why bother making these changes? Because they’ll make your home more energy efficient, which means you’ll be helping the environment by saving natural resources. It also means you’ll be helping yourself and saving money—sometimes really big money. So no matter where you live right now, you can make some changes that will make a real difference. living like Ed 20 A Fresh Filter Perhaps the easiest thing you can do today is change the air filter for your heating and air-conditioning system. Many people think, “Filter? There’s a filter?” If that’s you, yours Ditch the Dirty Air Filter COST: about $20 Keeping your air filter clean can reduce an air conditioner’s energy consumption a lot—by as much
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