When it comes to being energy efficient, there are many ways that a full house renovation on the Gold Coast can help you reduce your carbon footprint and also help you cut back on energy bills. Let us take a look at just a few of the ways that this can be achieved.
Lighting
A full home renovation is the perfect opportunity to replace those old, energy-intensive light fixtures around your house. Old-fashioned incandescent light bulbs are notoriously heavy on electricity.
To give you an idea, for every 60 W incandescent bulb replaced with a 10 W LED bulb, you save about 50 W of electricity per hour of use for the same amount of light. This means a saving of at least 80%, which is significant if you have many lights. Also, LED bulbs last much longer than incandescent bulbs. An incandescent bulb might only last about 1 000 hours, while an LED bulb can last at least 25 000 hours or more.
Aside from making your artificial lighting more energy efficient, you can also reduce your electricity consumption by adding more opportunities for natural light. This could include larger windows ‒ particularly along the North-facing side of the house, which gets the most sun throughout the day. Strategically placed skylights can also make a significant difference during daylight hours.
Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning
By improving the insulation in your ceiling and walls, you can cut down significantly on heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) costs, as this will help your home remain cooler in summer and warmer in the winter.
To complement the improved insulation, energy-efficient windows and doors are needed to maintain comfortable temperatures and reduce heating and cooling costs as well. Such windows will be tempered and, along with the doors, capable of achieving a proper seal along all edges to eliminate drafts.
An energy-efficient central HVAC system using, for example, heat-exchange technology, can also be installed to reduce energy consumption.
To further reduce HVAC costs, incorporating more natural ventilation opportunities should also be explored, such as large windows and doors that open up wide, allowing plenty of air in. These are particularly useful during the summer months. However, if you choose to go this route, you might want to include some insect screens.
Water Use
To reduce the amount of water that your home consumes, you could use the renovation opportunity to install low-flow taps and introduce pressure valves. Water-efficient toilets and showers can also be installed to minimise water waste.
This is particularly important in Australia, which is considered to be one of the driest continents on Earth, with the Gold Coast, in particular, being prone to regular droughts.
As a result, you could also consider including water tanks and the associated apparatus to harvest rainwater whenever possible. This can be used to water your garden, flush your toilets or top up your swimming pool.
Transform your home sustainably with Varli Building’s expert full house renovation on the Gold Coast. Embrace eco-friendly design for a greener future. Get started by contacting us now!