Green Efforts At Home To Create Eco Friendly Home

There has been much media attention within the last year relating to the British government’s new environmentalist initiative, The Green Deal. The deal is due to be launched in October 2012 and promises to provide a significant boost to the energy industry in this country. It is hoped the deal will inject more capital and jobs into the energy sector. In this article we will look at what exactly the Green Deal is and how it will work.

The Green Deal – The Basics

The Green Deal allows UK home owners to apply for a loan of up to £10,000 to install energy saving devices in their homes. The ultimate aim of the installation is to improve the energy efficiency of a property and reduce utility bills. Under the terms of the deal, the loan can be repaid over a maximum period of 25 years. The repayments are added to the standard utility bills of the property. Energy saving devices that qualify for the Green Deal include double glazing and insulation.

How to Apply for The Green Deal

Before UK home owners can be accepted onto the Green Deal they must be visited by an accredited assessor. The Green Deal Assessor will survey the property and deduce whether energy saving devices can improve the efficiency of the house. If the assessor agrees that home improvements can be made, the application will be approved.

At this stage the application will be passed on to a Green Deal Provider. The provider will arrange the finance for the installation as well as the actual physical work. They will also provide a customer care system throughout the process. Providers can choose to outsource the work or carry out each task in house. The first batch of providing companies have recently been announced and include British Gas.

The Golden Rule

The Green Deal aims to reduce the financial burden of installation energy saving devices on UK residents. For this reason, the government has introduced the Golden Rule. This clause protects the applicant against high repayments.

The rule states that the monthly loan repayments can never exceed the expected savings from installing the device. In effect, this means if the installation of an energy saving device is calculated to save the home owner £100 a year then the annual loan repayments cannot be more than £100. The government hopes this will encourage more people to apply for the Green Deal.

Will it Work?

There is much excitement in the energy industry about the Green Deal and companies are clamouring to become approved Green Deal installers or providers. However, some have expressed caution over the system and in particular the Golden Rule.

They argue the Golden Rule is open for exploitation as it is difficult to judge exactly how much money an energy device will save. Others argue that assessors will not be impartial when recommending what devices need to be installed. It appears that it will be some time yet before we are able to evaluate the success of The Green Deal.

At present, people still continue to waste resources and add to the pollution, and these acts are taking their toll on the earth. The earth needs all the help it can get, and if people take steps to live green, their efforts will be rewarded in the long run. Start your environment-friendly efforts at home with these tips.

Water conservation

Turn off the faucet while you brush your teeth.
Take 5-10 minute showers instead of filling up the tub for a bath.
Don’t use the washing machine unless you have an entire load of laundry to clean.
Use a bucket instead of a garden hose when watering the plants.
Collect rain water and use it for various chores, like washing the car and cleaning the garage.

Energy conservation

Turn off the lights when no one is using them.
Replace all regular light bulbs in the house with compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs), which burn less energy while giving off the same brightness.
Choose electronics and appliances that have the “Energy Star” label; this assures the user that their equipment are energy efficient.
If you’re not using your appliances or electronics for a while, it would be best to unplug them rather than putting them on stand-by, as the latter still uses power.
Instead of using a clothes dryer, put up a clothesline outside and hang your laundry out to dry.

Gas/fuel

When cooking, always choose the right sized pot, since using a big pot for a small amount of food unnecessarily wastes gas.
Opt to cook your food by steaming; it uses only one burner and therefore uses less gas
Ride a bike or take a walk when going to a close destination, instead of taking the car.
Slow down when driving; speeding up burns more fuel.
Take your car to the shop regularly to ensure that it is still in good working condition.

Other efforts

Always take a reusable bag with you when going shopping to minimize the use of plastic bags.
Segregate your trash and take things like paper and plastic bottles to recycling centers.
Cook only the right amount of food to avoid excessive waste.

Instead of having an “I’m only one person” way of thinking, adopt a positive attitude and continue carrying out your green lifestyle. Remember, if more people practice these seemingly small act sat home, they would ultimately be doing the world a lot of good.