Tips to Create an Eco-Friendlier Apartment After Moving
You found a great apartment or flat, perhaps in a city like Denver, Colorado where rent prices have stabilized recently or in a fancy area of town like London’s Notting Hill. And it’s in an excellent location that’s close to your workplace and is surrounded by everything you need like restaurants, clubs, the gym and many cool stores. Perfect, right?
You made a deal with your previous landlord to get out of your lease without a problem, and everything was great until your first utility bills arrived. In your former apartment, as they say in Texas “all bills were paid.” In other words, you didn’t have to even call a utility company for service because your former place was already totally set up and wired for heat, A/C, water gas and even fiber.
Better yet, it was all included in your rent.
This time, however, you had to call two utilities, pay out-of-pocket for trash service, and you had to get a new Internet connection. Going green wasn’t a priority then, but it certainly is now, and here are some tips for creating an eco-friendlier space after you have already moved.
Go LED
Old-school incandescent light bulbs do two bad things. They cost more to operate, and they give out heat. LED replacement bulbs have come a long way since they were first introduced, and you will find that they last longer, cast nice light, give out very little heat, and are a lot cheaper to use.
Turn Down the Thermostat
If your apartment has an older manual thermostat, you can still save money by allowing your apartment to be warmer in the summer and cooler in the winter. Did you realize that just a one-degree difference will cost you more each month?
You could also ask your landlord to install a smart thermostat that will track your heating and cooling habits and automatically adjust temperature settings. You can also control these from your phone.
Energy Audit
The U.S. Department of Energy says:
“A home energy audit, also known as a home energy assessment, is the first step to assess how much energy your home consumes and to evaluate what measures you can take to make your home more energy efficient. An assessment will show you problems that may, when corrected, save you significant amounts of money over time.”
Energy audits are usually not free, but you could talk to your landlord and see if one has been completed recently. If not, you may be able to convince the property owner to have one done.
Water
Many times, water is paid for by the landlord. If it isn’t, you can do things like placing a brick in each toilet tank. The brick displaces water and can save up to one half gallon per flush. Also, make sure that no taps are leaking, as those seemingly innocent drips add up to wasted cash.
Leaky Doors and Windows
This is one area that your landlord can be responsible for — home repairs. If you can feel air rushing in through your outside door, or from windows, tell you landlord and request a repair. Wasted heat or A/C will cost you.
It’s great that you found the perfect place—as least as far as location and amenities may be concerned. Now, work to make it eco-friendly and green, and you can have the best of both worlds.