Cut Down Your Winter Bills & Your Carbon Footprint

source image courtesy of Mother Earth News

Cutting monthly bills and reducing your environmental impact often go hand in hand. But this doesn’t mean you have to mean you have to be cold and miserable. The best of both worlds is to properly insulate your home and use energy efficient appliances and equipment. You can then take the next step by investing in renewable energy.

Buy Green Power

Boston residents can sign up to switch electricity power source to wind or solar. There are three different companies that you could go with:

•  NSTAR lets you choose between half or all of your electricity support wind power. The wind is generated in upstate New York and in Maine, and has been certified by Green-e Energy. This means that NSTAR meets standards of environmental quality and it has acquired the renewable energy supply it has committed to deliver. 

• Boston Buying Power lets local businesses to group together to buy green energy.   EPA encourages organizations to use green power, and at the moment has more than 1,400 partners voluntarily using billions of kilowatt-hours of green power annually.

So whether you’re a resident or a business owner, there’s no excuse not to consider using green power.

Make Your Own Energy

There are lots of ways to make your own energy, but the best for households is via solar power. Solar panels can be used to generate electricity, or to heat water. Solar panels have dropped in price over the past five years, making them much better value for money and increasing ROI. Though the upfront price is still a lot, some solar systems can be installed with no upfront cost for installation and ownership by a third party and they can also be leased at a rate that could be lower than your bills. If you want to own it yourself, then you can save money by shopping around for installation costs at companies like The Handy People.

Insulation

Insulation is a really effective way to cut down on your energy bills, as it stops heat escaping and makes it quicker and easier to heat your home.

Renew Boston is a program that offers free energy assessments and then eligible customers receive 75% off for insulation and air sealing. If you’re part of a duplex or an apartment building, and the whole building is buying insulation, then you could receive up to 90% off.   

Author: Tom, The Handy People