Energy Saving Tips from House Smart Home Improvements

Tuesday, September 30, 2014

4 More Easy Ways to Save Money at Home!

Posted by Sound Marketing for House Smart Home Improvements

Choose One Neutral Trim Paint for the Entire House

-Rather than buying a gallon of a particular color for each room and using only a fraction of each can.
You have to forgo the trendy color combinations in the paint manufacturer brochures, but you can save around $50 on paint for three rooms. Crisp white trim is always in style, and you'll never have to rummage around for the right can for touch-ups.

Install a Ceiling Fan

In the winter, run it at low speed in a clockwise direction to recirculate the warm air that rises to the ceiling. This will allow you to lower the thermostat a couple of degrees.
The fan might cost you around $200 dollars, but you will end up saving around $100 per year off your heating bills.Reverse the fan direction in the summer and the airflow creates a windchill effect, making you feel cooler.

Install a Shower Timer for Kids

The battery-operated device limits showers to 5, 8, or 11 minutes.
You can install it yourself for around $120, then save over $200 per year. Speeding your kids' morning routines may also ease the struggle to ensure they eat breakfast, brush their teeth, and make it to the bus on time.

Use Your Laptop

It runs on batteries, which use 80 percent less electricity than a desktop computer. Be vigilant about unplugging the battery charger once your computer is juiced so it doesn't sap unnecessary energy.
You will save around $30 per year off your electric bill.

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House Smart Home Improvements are experienced professionals with an A+ Rating with the Better Business Bureau. When it’s time to replace your windows, doors or furnaces and heat pumps, or to install insulation, and other energy-efficient home upgrades, Give us a call. 604-585-2020. Right now, save 100 per window for a limited time if you live in the lower mainland, BC Canada

House Smart Home Improvements
Phone: 604 945 1904 / Fax: 604 581 1985
Email: info@housesmarthomeimprovements.com

Showroom: #4 120 Glacier St, Coquitlam BC V3K 5Z6
604-945-1904 (office hours) - 604-585-2020 (24-Hour)

Saturday, September 27, 2014

Smart Ways to Save Around the Home this Fall

posted by Sound Marketing for House Smart Home Improvements

Get Fall Deals

Wait to replace your grill, lawn mower, or patio furniture until the fall, when stores mark down their inventory to make room for holiday decorations and snow blower. You can save yourself $150 or more per item. Retailers—especially online ones,—often provide free shipping on leftover warm-weather gear.

Sleep Not Doze

Set your computer to sleep—not just the monitor, but the hard drive, too—so that it automatically dims after 10 minutes of non use. It may doze off when you don't want it to and you'll have to punch a key to wake it up. But you can save up to $75 per year off your electric bills. Like people, screens and hard drives age more gracefully with plenty of rest.

Recharge the Batteries

Buy a deluxe battery recharging station and stop using disposables. A combo unit keeps a supply of AA, AAA, C, and D batteries at the ready.
Save As much as $100 per year on disposables for dozens of tools and gadgets.
Never again will you have to raid your kid's battery-operated toys to power up the TV remote.

Go Low-Flow

Reduce hot-water consumption (and energy needs), federal legislation mandated improved showerhead efficiency for models made after 1994. Replace older models with ones that spray no more than 2.5 gallons per minute. Potential annual savings: $145, plus 370 pounds of emissions

Adjust Your Water Heater

Lower your water heater's thermostat to 120 degrees to restrict heat loss. The exception: dishwashers. Check if yours has a "booster heater" for sanitizing 140-degree rinsing. Your potential annual savings: $450 and 215 pounds of emissions.

Replace Your Aging Water Heater and be Eligible for a Rebate up to $1000

This great Fortis BC Rebate Program has now been extended through 2014!! Replace your aging water heater with a qualifying natural gas ENERGY STAR model and you could save on energy costs, plus you’ll be eligible for a rebate of up to $1,000.

Not sure which water heater is right for you?

House Smart Home Improvements offers FREE In-Home Consultations!

Call House Smart Home Improvements Today at 604-585-2020

with excerpts from http://www.bhg.com/home-improvement

Tuesday, September 23, 2014

Fall Home Maintenance - Four Tips

posted by Sound Marketing for House Smart Home Improvements
with excerpts from http://www.bhg.com/home-improvement

Fireplace Tune-Up

Proper inspection of a fireplace is vital to ensuring its safe operation -- even if it is rarely used. An experienced chimney sweep will check wood for flammable buildup (known as creosote) and chimney blockages such as bird nests. A chimney or fireplace professional should also check for these red flags: improperly functioning dampers, damaged brickwork and masonry, and missing or damaged flue caps (the screen covering the top of the chimney).

Touch Up Paint

No time for a full-blown exterior painting project? Hit the trouble spots, such as the cut ends of all boards, especially fascia boards, where paint peels first. If you have a little more time, apply a coat of fresh paint to all trim pieces.

Clean Your Carpets

If your wall-to-wall carpeting
harbors dirt and musty odors, here is a homemade environment-friendly solution you can make to clean them:

Non-toxic Carpet Cleaning Solution Recipe (my second favorite carpet cleaning recipe)
1/2 part Vinegar 1/2 part Water 5-6 drops essential oils, or more as desired (optional)

Add to your carpet cleaner machine and shampoo. It will smell like vinegar pretty strongly while you shampoo them. But after it dries you will be left with a nice clean smelling house.
Throw open the windows to let it dry before the weather gets too cold. Also consider renting a steam cleaner to get out ground-in stains and odors for as little as $25 per day.

Manage Drainage

If you live in an area that gets more rain than snow during the winter, dig a French drain to prevent a downspout-fed lake from forming in your yard. A hole that's 4 feet deep and 4 feet wide should do the trick. Dig it under your downspout, line it with heavy plastic sheeting (or whatever your local building code requires), and fill it with gravel.
You can add plants on top of the French drain, but cover the gravel with landscape fabric before adding dirt. Another option is a trench-type French drain, which will move water away from your house rather than directing it deep into the ground.

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Monday, September 15, 2014

Styles of Home Windows from House Smart Home Improvements

posted by Sound Marketing for House Smart Home Improvements

Casement

Have a crank out hardware mechanism to open and close the windows
One key feature to look for is a multi-point lock that will lock your window in multiple locations, ensuring a tight seal.

Awning

Similar to casement, these windows have crank out hardware, but are hinged at the top
Often used in places where it’s difficult to push or pull open a window, for example, above a kitchen sink

Bay

Come with a seat or walk-in option (you walk into the bay area)

Bay/ Bow

Bow windows are similar to bay, but have softer angles

Bow

These windows have sliders that are either vertically or horizontally placed
Two formats; single and double hung
Single hung:has a fixed sash on one side and an operating sash on the other
Double hung: two operating sashes
Often these windows lift out or tilt out for easy cleaning

Picture/Fixed Windows

Don’t open or operate
They come in many different formats

At House Smart Home Improvements, We Use Energy Star Windows! Energy Star Windows come in all styles, are of the highest quality, offering you the greatest comfort with less energy used.

ENERGY STAR® windows offer these benefits:

Double glazing with a sealed insulating glass unit, not only reducing energy costs, but also increasing comfort.
Low-emissivity (Low-E) coatings, which are like insulation and sunscreen on windows. This thin layer of transparent protection, applied in the gap between window glass panes, improves your family’s comfort by reducing the quantity of heat passing through the windows.
Inert gas, such as argon or krypton, sealed between windowpanes results in reduced heat transfer and minimized condensation, increasing the windows’ insulation U-value and energy efficiency.
Low conductivity spacer bars that prevent heat loss and minimize drafts.
Lower overall heat loss ratings (U-values), meaning greater comfort with less energy used.
Heat transfer between the inside and outside of a home is slowed.
Heat reflection that keeps the sun out during summertime and keeps rooms from feeling drafty
during the winter.
Reduced fading of fabrics and wall coverings.

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Thursday, August 28, 2014

Organizing Tips for Your Home!

Posted by: Sound Marketing for House Smart Home Improvements

WALLS OF STORAGE:

Turn an open wall into storage central. In this kitchen, custom built-ins along a wall in the breakfast area store kitchen items that aren't used every day, such as special cookware and cookbooks. A buffet in the center functions as a bar or serving station. If built-ins aren't in your budget, but you still have a blank wall to fill, consider freestanding options that will achieve the same function.

IN THE LIVING ROOM:

Unlike a kitchen or mudroom, living rooms -- designated for relaxing and conversing -- often encompass more form than function. But even these livable spaces are required to have a little storage. Utilize large baskets or decorative bins to conceal blankets, toys, or media. If your front door opens directly into the living room, set up a console table with baskets tucked beneath for storing outerwear accessories, umbrellas, dog leashes, and more.

CONTROL THE EXTRAS:

Keep only movies, games, music, and books that you use and that realistically fit on your shelves. Labeled photo boxes are stylish and the perfect size for stashing on shelves in an entertainment center.

SIMPLE TOY STORAGE IDEA:

Pockets on over-the-door shoe organizers are just the right size for storing small toys. Label each pocket for specific dolls or action figures and for accessories.

IN THE KITCHEN:

Group items in your kitchen by their function. In this kitchen, a stand mixer tucks in the corner by the refrigerator and shelves above house mixing bowls and baking necessities. On the opposite side of the refrigerator, a breakfast prep zone has all morning must-haves: shelves with bowls and glasses, coffee mugs, and canisters of cereal.

This information from: http://www.bhg.com

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Tuesday, July 29, 2014

5 More Ways to Save Money at Home

Posted by: Sound Marketing for House Smart Home Improvements

1) Use your laptop. It runs on batteries, which use 80 percent less electricity than a desktop computer.
Cost: Being vigilant about unplugging the battery charger once your computer is juiced so it doesn't sap unnecessary energy.
Savings: $30 per year off your electric bill.
Bonus: You can relax on the sofa while perusing coupon sites.

2) Get your chimney swept in the summer for an off-season price.
Cost: Just a little forethought.
Savings: $50 per flue.
Bonus: Get the job done at your convenience because sweeps' schedules are wide open.

3) Replace central-air-conditioning filters every month during the summer to keep air flowing freely through the ducts and reduce strain on the blower motor.
Cost: About $11 for three filters.
Savings: $40 or more on cooling costs.
Bonus: New filters keep dust and mold from collecting on condenser coils, extending the equipment's life.

4) Turn down the thermostat on your water heater. It's probably set at 140 degrees F to shorten the wait time for a steamy shower. But 120 or even 110 degrees is plenty hot.
Cost: A few minutes with a screwdriver in the utility room.
Savings: $30 or more per year on gas, oil, electricity, or propane.
Bonus: Your kids are less likely to scald themselves if the max water temperature is 120.

5) Insulate hot-water lines. Preformed foam tubes fit right around the pipes, thanks to a slit along their length.
Cost: 29 cents to 35 cents per foot of insulation, depending on pipe dimensions, at Energy Federation.
Savings: $50 per year on energy.
Bonus: Halving the wait for hot water to reach upstairs faucets.

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Tuesday, July 1, 2014

How Do I Know if I Need New Windows?

Posted by: Sound Marketing for House Smart Home Improvements

Six Signs You Need New Windows:

Condensation between panes of glass

Wood windows have rotten frames

Drafts coming in through windows

Bugs coming in through frames

Windows that are broken or not functioning

Leaking or moldy windows

Here are Some Different Styles of Windows