Simple measures could substantially reduce the emissions from your home, and save you money as well - you could currently be paying much more than you need to in gas and electricity bills.
1. Does it need to be so hot? Turning the thermostat down by just one degree can save you up to $60 a year on your heating bill and make a real dent in your household's emissions.
2. Set your timer efficiently. If you are working regular hours, avoid wasted heat energy by timing your heating to go off 30 minutes before you leave the house, and come on again 30 minutes before you are due to get back.
3. Insulate your loft. You can cut up to 20 per cent from your energy bill by installing good quality loft insulation; it stops heat from escaping and thus requires less energy to keep your house warm.
4. Beat draughts. They're the most uncomfortable and obvious signs of a badly insulated house and can be fixed easily with either draught-proofing or secondary glazing. You could also fit double glazing and the most popular energy saving measure, although it actually saves less from a typical fuel bill than installing (much cheaper) cavity wall insulation. Make sure that you specify low glazing, which has a special heat-reflective coating that reduces heat loss through the window by nearly half.
5. Watch the floors. Rooms can sometimes feel cold due to strong drafts rising up from gaps between the floorboards or between the skirting board and the floor. This is easily resolved by investing in a tube sealant, such as silicon. Another way of reducing draughty floors is to insulate underneath the floorboards on the ground floor.
6. Dress your hot-water tank correctly.
7. Reflective radiator panels can fit perfectly behind radiators. They are cheap to buy, easy to install and reflect back heat that would otherwise drift through the wall. They can be bought from DIY stores (avoid those made from PVC), or you can make your own by wrapping tinfoil around cardboard.
8. Draw your curtains at dusk. Sounds obvious, but a thick pair of curtains can stop a huge amount of heat from escaping through your windows.
9. Put a lid on it. Saucepans with lids on heat much quicker, using less energy in the process.
10. Use your oven sensibly. Don't keep opening it to check whether your food is ready as this allows heat to escape and will only make your meal take longer to cook, using more energy, And by switching it off just a few minutes before your food is ready you'll find that it'll stay hot enough to finish cooking the food. Don't buy cut flowers. Because of their short shelf life, the flowers are usually flown in which gives them a massive climate change footprint because of the aviation emissions. To avoid this you can buy local grown plants; if you're still going to buy flowers, choose those that are local grown and in season.
11. Turn lights off! For comparison, lighting an empty office overnight can waste the energy required to heat water for 1,000 cups of coffee.
12. Buy energy-saving light bulbs. Some of these can use less than a quarter of the electricity of their equivalents, and can last up to 12 times longer. Just one energy efficient light bulb can save you $20 a year on your electricity bill.
13. Make the most of nature. Light-coloured walls, ceilings and floors, as well as mirrors, reflect daylight, making maximum use of natural light and reducing the need to use artificial lighting.
14. Use infrared. If you have exterior lights, ask your electrician to fit infrared sensors so that the lights only come on when you pass in front of them.
15. Resist stand-by. If all UK households turned off their TVs at night instead of leaving them on standby. That goes for PC screens too.
16. Unplug equipment once fully charged. Mobile phones, shavers and electric toothbrushes keep drawing electricity even when the battery is full.
17. Keep fridge and freezer doors closed. Each minute a fridge door is open it can take three energy-intensive minutes for it to cool down again. Similarly, it can take as much as half an hour for a freezer to regain its temperature once a door has been opened for just sixty seconds. And remember to install the fridge or freezer away from hot appliances and direct sunlight.
18. Keep your freezer full. It takes less energy to keep a full freezer cool than it does an empty one. If you don't have enough food to fill it, use plastic bottles filled with water or even scrunched up newspaper. If you find your freezer is often half empty, you might want to think whether you need such a large model when it is time to replace it.
19. Think how you cook. Pressure cookers and steamers both save energy; steamers are particularly easy to use and very healthy.
20. Chop finely and boil smart. The smaller you make your vegetables, the less time they'll take to cook. Don't forget to boil only the amount that you need, and match the size of the ring to the size of the saucepan or you'll be paying to heat air and keep electric hobs clean so the rings can work more efficiently.
21. Only use a washing machine on full-load. Ninety percent of the energy that washing machines use goes toward heating the water, so switch to a cooler wash temperature: using 40 degrees for all clothes can use a third less electricity per wash. Today's washing powders are just as effective on low temperature programmes, saving both energy and money.
22. Turn down your thermostat.
At Work
23. Reduce office paper consumption. A government-funded Envirowise campaign report, says that office paper consumption is rising by 20 per cent per year. On average each worker uses 50 sheets of A4 a day. If you work in an office, add the slogan "Think before you print" at the bottom of your emails. If you do have to, print double-sided.
24. Switch office equipment off at night. A photocopier left on overnight uses enough energy to make 1,500 photocopies.
25. Invest environmentally. For as little as $500 it is possible to join a co-operative which invests in wind energy projects that promote emission-free technology. Or you could adopt a local renewables project.
26. Install your own renewable energy system. Grants are currently available for up to 50 per cent of the capital costs of installing renewable energy. You might even make a profit: if you produce more than you need, you could sell the excess back to your energy supplier.
It's virtually impossible to work happily at home without the cooperation and support of your spouse, so a joint decision will most certainly work better than issuing an edict or even simply making an announcement that you've decided to work at home. Even if you already have an office at home, it's not too late to sit down and talk about whether it's working out.
Be honest about how you feel about using your home as an office and encourage your spouse to be honest too. Discuss your concerns openly. If you're worried that your spouse will never leave the office, say so. If you're concerned that the children will be neglected, say so. The potential problems you identify can help you develop a practical plan to guard against them.
Specific Steps You Can Take:
* Make the decision to work at home a joint one. * Express your reasons for wanting to work at home. * Discuss your concerns openly and encourage your spouse to do so as well. * Thank your spouse for each concern he or she brings up. * Respond honestly to each other's concerns. * Take each concern seriously and get the facts about it. * Think of possible solutions and develop a plan for how to avoid potential problems. * Test out your solutions. See if they work. Revise them when they don't work to your or your mate's satisfaction.
The inevitable changes that take place when you start working from home can strain your relationship. The situation doesn't have to become painful, however. The initial stress can be a sign of new and better things to come. But you must be alert and responsive to difficulties that arise while they are still manageable.
Here are some of the healthy reactions a couple can expect. They don't always feel good, but they are a normal part of the process of changing your lifestyle.
Conflicts with New Identities: The decision to work at home is almost always part of a larger decision to change your life, which changes your identity. People who begin working at home are at turning points in their lives. Assuming a new identity is a major adjustment in itself. Add working from home and the many accompanying changes in daily routine and you can see why people going through so many adjustments may not be easy to live with. You can understand why they may be unsure of themselves, edgy, worried, or struggling to put up a good front. Even when spouses want to be supportive, and actually think they are helping, they may not welcome all aspects of their mate's new identity.
Disputes over Duties and Responsibilities: Working from home usually means changes in household routines. Many arguments and conflicts can arise over day-to-day arrangements about:
1. Cleaning. Living and working at home twenty-four hours a day means more mess and more wear and tear. Who does the extra work to keep the house in order? When does it have to be cleaned up or repaired? Do children now have to be neater because customers are coming to the house? If so, who gets the children to clean up? If the packaging department of your business is on the dining room table, how long can it stay like that, and who puts everything away - the person who made the mess or the person who wants it cleaned up?
2. Meals. Working at home usually means at least one extra meal there. So you need to discuss who plans it, who buys it, who fixes it, who cleans it up. If you have been fixing the meals, for example, will you still have time to fix them all, or to fix the same kinds of meals, now that you're working at home?
3. Space. Working at home can place certain limitations on what your family can do there or even on other things you want to do. If your family room is now your office, where does everyone go to relax? Can they have company while you are working? Can your spouse walk around the house in a bathing suit during business hours? You'll need to consider issues like whether your family can play the stereo or talk on the phone whenever they want, or if such activity infringes on your office space.
4. Children. Children need a lot of attention. They can be a distraction and an interruption that makes work next to impossible. A decision has to be made about who handles this. Does the one working at home take on more of these responsibilities than before? Who keeps the children quiet or out of your office?
5. Time. Once your office is at home, you need to determine who gets to spend time with you and when. If you're away at the office all day, you clearly can't take the kids to the park after school.
Both James Nash & Christopher Jacobson are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
James Nash has sinced written about articles on various topics from Environment, Painting and Environment. James Nash is a climate scientist with Greatest Planet (). Greatest Planet is a non-profit environmental organization specialising in carb. James Nash's top article generates over 368000 views. to your Favourites.