Few things motivate me more than comfort and saving money. When we bought our 40 year old home we didn’t realize how important those two things would become.
Why We Bought an Old House
We bought an old house because we were fresh out of school and had a very small down payment. But, the home had good bones and was free of musty smells. I had checked out the utility bills of the previous owners and found the electric bill was $300 in August…
$300!!
And.. we still bought the house, we just knew we had to hit energy efficiency quick. Which the previous owners had made easy because the water heater was broken and they had stolen the fridge – did I mention it was a foreclosure?
That my friends, is how I became nuts about saving energy.
Saving energy became my ultimate challenge. Within three years we had lowered the high utility bill dramatically. It was now half, not just our original bill, half of the average home our size. We were also more comfortable because the heated or cooled air wasn’t streaming out of our house.
How We Cut the Energy Bill
First, we did all the little things found here in my Saving Energy for $10 or less. Do these first. It will help you get comfortable faster and it doesn’t cost a lot.
We Took Advantage of Energy Rebates
Here are the 5 biggest energy company rebate programs.
To find your particular rebate program ever your energy company name and “rebate program” into the search bar.
Refrigerator
We love our Whirlpool refrigerator and it’s an Energy Star. The old units use so much energy. If you have a fridge going out, upgrade to an Energy Star model. It will work better and save energy.
Thermostat
The Nest thermostats are all the rage right now and many times there is a rebate for them. So far we haven’t made the plunge because they are still pretty expensive.
However a regular programmable thermostat can still save you a good amount of money. Allowing you to automatically turn down the thermostat during hours you aren’t at home.
Energy Home Audit –
This is where I found out how much heat we were losing through our floor joists in the unfinished basement and ceiling joists in the attic. We were also reminded of how much heat we were losing through our windows. Again check out my previous post for inexpensive fixes that paid off big time.
If your energy company offers an energy audit rebate I would highly recommend them.
We Bought a High Rated Energy Star Water Heater
This made a big difference in saving us energy it was also awesome for our 6 member family. We never ran out of hot water, it was able to heat water so fast. When family was in town one summer we had 6 adults and 4 kids shower or bath back – to – back and no one had a cold shower. It was amazing. I would suggest shopping around, but this water heater is close to what we installed.
We Invested in Water Conservation
Low Flow faucets aerators and shower heads, may not look fancy, but they feel just as great. They help you get the feel of more water by aerating and spreading the water over a larger surface. They use much less water and are definitely worth investing in sooner than later.
Water Conserving toilets, I hate to admit, I didn’t even know these existed until we were forced to buy a new toilet. They are amazing and use so much less water than the original designs.
We installed a Rain Barrel (which was also a rebate) and used it for watering our garden when the summer rains had dried up.
Plant native foliage that work well with the natural water flow of the area.
Did Energy and Water Conservation Pay off financially?
Well yes. Actually a big yes.
We were careful to get quotes and decide how much time it would take us to actually save money after it had paid for its self. There were things we didn’t end up doing because we wouldn’t benefit from the investment.
We didn’t get new windows. We didn’t blow more insulation into the roof. But we did find things we could do to still improve the windows and attic without spending a fortune – refer to the previous post.
The bulk of the money we made, which ultimately paid for everything, was advertising our energy savings report when we sold. We had people coming out of the woodwork, writing us letters, begging us to chose them. We ultimately accepted an offer above asking price and well above what we paid for it.
The home also sold well because of the cosmetic updates we carefully chose. Which will have to be for another post.
I am still an avid energy and water conservationist. I’ve personally experienced the financial gain and physical comfort from a conserving home and I’ll keep doing it all my life.
What are things you have done to conserve? What would you recommend for big ticket improvements versus doing a cheaper repair?
I like how you conserve energy and water in your home. I like to do this too. It is important for the environment. I also have a rain barrel too.
I love that you have a rain barrel. They’re great aren’t they? How long have you had yours?
I know windows are super expensive when buying new- so you may want to try out your local Habitat for Humanity Restore. Ours always has tons of really nice windows.
I love the Restore. We have gotten many DIY material items here. Though I didn’t get windows. If you get a chance to check out my earlier post, http://thishomemadehome.com/5-ways-to-stay-warm-save-money-this-winter/
Here I discuss what we did to make our old windows function. We did spend money to update the house, but we had to decide where to put it. I would love your to hear your thoughts on our window rehab.
It’s neat that you still got to buy a house right out of school. It is great that you found different ways to cut your energy bill! There are so many different rebates! Finding different technologies to save some energy is a good investment to make. I like that all of this paid off at the end! Thanks for sharing some of these energy conservation tips.
Nancy ♥ exquisitely.me
Nancy, that is a good point, it was pretty neat we were able to get into a house at all. Fixing it up and gaining that sweat equity set us up for a good mortgage from then on out. I will be forever grateful for that home.