5
Jan, 2023
sustain

Top 10 Simple Actions To Limit Your Daily Energy Consumption

The energy consumption of heating contributes to the greenhouse effect and the depletion of fossil energy resources. By reducing your heating consumption through the daily practice of small, simple, and easy-to-implement actions, you will be able to make significant energy savings. For example, lowering the temperature in your home by 1 degree can reduce your heating consumption by 7%. So, without further ado, let’s dive into this blog and learn to reduce your energy consumption.

1. Choose The Right Temperature

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According to the building code, the temperature should be 19°C in the living areas and 16 to 17°C in the bedrooms.

2. Heat Only When Necessary

Turn down the heat at night and during the day if you spend it outside. Do not heat permanently the places that are used only for short periods: bathroom, toilets. If you are going to be away for several days, switch to frost-free mode.

3. Air Your Home Properly

Air the rooms, even in winter, for about 10 minutes a day, obviously reducing the heating to a minimum. This action allows the air to be renewed and the water vapor produced by cooking, breathing, etc., to be evacuated. This is a useful precaution because humid air requires more energy to be heated than dry air, resulting in higher consumption.

4. Track Down Drafts

Place seals if windows are drafty. Put plastic film on single-glazed windows until you invest in high-performance double-glazing. Close the fireplace vent when not in use, as it is a cold air inlet.

5. Prevent Heat From Escaping

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Turn down the temperature in unoccupied rooms and close their doors so as not to cool the heated space. In addition, don’t hesitate to insulate certain spaces, such as stairways or hallways, with curtains to prevent heat from escaping to rooms that don’t need heating. Install thick curtains on all windows in heated rooms so that they can be closed at night. Also, remember to close the shutters.

6. Let The Sun’s Heat In

During the day, open curtains and shutters to let the sun’s heat in and take advantage of this free contribution.

7. Keep Your Radiators Working Properly

Remember to dust your radiators. Put a reflective plate behind the radiator if the wall is cold and, therefore, poorly insulated.

8. Have Your Boiler Serviced

Have your boiler serviced yearly by a professional to avoid the risk of breakdowns, carbon monoxide poisoning, and over-consumption. The maintenance visit is an annual obligation for appliances with a power of between 4 and 400 kW (i.e., wood, coal, gas, and oil boilers): a revision at the expense of the occupant for an individual installation and the syndic for a collective installation. Don’t forget to have your chimney swept once a year by professional chimney sweepers: this is also mandatory!

9. Equip Yourself With A Room Thermostat

Installed in a reference room (often the living room), it is used to control the heat production system in the whole house. According to the French Agency for the Environment and Energy Management (Ademe), such a system can save an average of 10% energy. The room thermostat is connected to the boiler by an electric wire or radio link. You can also opt for a programmable room thermostat with an integrated clock that you set according to your daily needs.

More expensive, such a system allows up to 20% energy savings, according to Ademe estimates. The room thermostat is only possible with radiant floor heating systems. However, you should know that there are convectors with integrated electric thermostats. As for the most recent connected thermostats, although very practical, they do not keep their promises in terms of energy savings.

10. Install Thermostatic Valves

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They are used in addition to a room thermostat and are installed on each radiator. They allow you to modulate the heating according to the use of each room, which can result in 5 to 10% less energy consumption. Please note that these valves do not control the boiler and should not be installed in the same room as the room thermostat (if there is one) to prevent them from conflicting. This system effectively achieves the recommended and desired temperatures: 16°C to 17°C in a bedroom and 19°C in the living room.

Sound off in the comments section below, and tell us what you want to read next and if you want to read more about reducing your energy consumption.

28
Nov, 2022
solar

Optimize The Comfort Of Your Home By Choosing Solar Energy

Solar energy is among the list of green energies. In other words, they are renewable energies derived from natural resources, such as wind and water. Note that these types of energy provide not only economic benefits for those who adopt them but also ecological benefits for all. We will show you how you can optimize the comfort of your home while opting for solar energy. So, without further ado, let’s dive into this blog and learn some of the things you need to know about solar energy.

Brighten up your day with a solar lighting kit

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Just like ventilation, light and brightness inside the house are also very important for the well-being of its inhabitants. However, (natural) lighting can be a real problem for houses and/or apartments in which there is a lack of openings. In order to solve this problem, some owners choose to install roof windows and/or roof domes, while others will increase the number of light fixtures. Note that the first solution requires some work and the second is likely to increase the electricity bills in the long run.

If you are among those who have opted, are opting, or will opt for the second solution to the lighting problem, we advise you to opt for solar lighting. This way, you will be able to enjoy an illuminated interior as well as a more or less well-stocked wallet. In addition, you can also do the same for the lighting of your exterior at night, especially since a wide choice of solar lighting models are available to optimize the decoration.

In short, solar lighting is a good alternative to the problems of lighting and brightness both inside and outside the house.

Feel safe with solar surveillance cameras

“Nothing” is more excruciating than feeling unsafe, even at home. Besides, we all know that malicious people like burglars will not tell us in advance that they intend to come and rob us at such a time.

Furthermore, while “traditional” surveillance cameras may stop working if the power goes out, this is rarely the case if you have a security device that runs on solar energy. To help you understand and shed light on this new surveillance system, here is what My Solar Panel says: “Wireless surveillance cameras are particularly easy to use and install. This device is completely autonomous, operates with lithium batteries, and is rechargeable with solar energy. Depending on the model you choose, you can have access to different features:

    • Lighting triggered by motion detectors 
    • An infrared camera for night vision 
    • A storage capacity more or less important according to your needs 
    • A waterproof camera filming in high definition. 

According to the same source, a solar surveillance camera breaks down less often: the malfunctions are, in most cases, due to a problem with the wire. With a wireless camera, this will never happen.

In short, in addition to the ease of use and installation of the solar surveillance camera, it provides many advantages, such as the possibility of connecting it to a wifi network, to an IOS or Android phone via a specific application, etc.

Other advantages of choosing solar energy

    • Many appliances and equipment work with this free and renewable energy. We can mention, among others, solar boilers, solar heaters, and air conditioners.
    • You can also install an outdoor shower that works with a solar pumping system

Final thoughts

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By actively choosing solar and other renewable energies, we are taking active steps to save the only habitable planet in our solar system. This is why more and more people are turning towards green energy. Sound off in the comments section below, and tell us what you want to read next and if you want to read more about solar energy.

15
Apr, 2022
waste

Optimize Your Thermal Comfort While Reducing Your Energy Consumption

Regulating the ambient temperature in a home requires various means. The most common are ventilation and heating, both of which require the use of electrical energy. However, it is possible to achieve this thermal comfort without using an exorbitant amount of energy. So, without further ado, let’s dive into this article and learn more about thermal comfort and energy consumption.

1. Insulate the different rooms efficiently

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Insulation is the most common method nowadays to obtain outstanding thermal comfort. This technique allows to regulate the heat inside a room during cold weather and keep it. This is also true in the summer, when insulation is more effective in keeping cool. Even if many people prefer to use air conditioning or heating systems, it must be said that thermal insulation is more advantageous.

The first advantage is that it is a technique that uses very ecological materials to reinforce the impermeability of the walls. It does not require any electrical energy to operate. By preferring sophisticated insulation to ensure thermal comfort, you reduce your energy consumption and save money. Your comfort is even more increased when you use an ecological material for your insulation. You will then be free of any pollutants.

2. Use a combined solar system

If you still prefer to stick with heating to optimize your home’s temperature, there are still ways to reduce energy consumption. Among the many techniques available, there is the combined solar system. It is a technique with multiple advantages that are based on renewable energy. The combined solar system consists in connecting the heating of the house to solar panels that convert solar energy into electric current.

All you have to do is connect the generator of the solar panels to the heating circuit of your house. Once the electrical current from the solar energy arrives at the heating system, it starts up, and the results are just as satisfying. It is important to note that this will not be totally exempt you from using electrical energy, but it will help you consume as little as possible.

3. Use double glazed windows

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A thermal insulation or a heating system will not be successful without windows adapted to play the game. This is why optimization of thermal comfort should not miss this detail. A double glazing system should be installed to prevent heat loss.

Double glazing consists in paralleling two panes of glass to make them more impermeable to air and heat. The result is made possible thanks to a layer of air or gas in the middle of the two panes. As these elements are known to be less heat-conductive, this improves the thermal insulation of the house.

It is also necessary to seal the edges of the window, which could serve as a thermal bridge. Usually, an aluminum spacer is placed on the window frame precisely in the middle of the two panes. You are thus sure that your insulation is perfect and protected from probable heat leaks. The result is also valid for houses that use a heating system.

4. Carry out an energy performance diagnosis

The energy performance diagnostic is a series of tests that are performed in your home to evaluate the energy consumption of all your installations. It allows you to determine which of your appliances consumes more energy than it needs.

By performing this diagnostic, you can determine the state of your heating system with respect to energy consumption. This gives you the opportunity to carry out repairs and thus regulate the energy consumption in your home.

Sound off in the comments section below and tell us what you want to read next and if you want to read more about energy consumption and reduction.

8
Apr, 2022
solar

Reduce Your Energy Bill By Up To 50% With Solar Panels

A solar panel is a device that converts a portion of the sun’s rays into thermal or electrical energy with solar collectors. The more solar energy the panel captures, the more electricity it will produce. This device is very profitable and beneficial especially in sunny areas.

It is economical because it saves on electricity bills. On top of that, it is easy and quick to install. What are the different types of dynamic panels? What are the advantages of photovoltaic solar panels? So, without further ado, let’s dive into this blog and answer these questions.

Types of dynamic solar panels

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Renewable and available energy, green energy and environmentally friendly is what solar energy is. There are three types of solar panels responsible for energy conversion. We have:

Thermal solar panels or still called solar collectors are used to capture the heat of the sun’s radiation and transmit it to a heat transfer fluid. We also speak of solar thermodynamic plant for a device more

Photovoltaic solar panels or photovoltaic modules convert part of the sun’s radiation into electricity.

It also consists of a grouping of several solar panels in one place called solar photovoltaic power plant.

Hybrid photovoltaic solar panels, this is a cogeneration. They are a combination of the two previous technologies. Thus, they produce electricity and heat at the same time with an improved version of the yield of photovoltaic solar panels without overheating the modules.

In fact, the solar panels are the necessary components for the solar energy collection system. It is recommended to use the expertise of professionals for an optimization of the energy consumption of your house.

The advantages of photovoltaic solar panels

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The photovoltaic solar panels are a source of renewable, free and available energy. Thanks to the sensors located on the panels, they can convert daylight into electricity and thus save on electricity bills. Here, we are looking for radiation and not heat, so it is an inexhaustible source of energy.

Thus, thanks to the sun’s rays, these panels provide energy supply. Photovoltaic solar panels have many advantages, both ecological and economic or thermal. Among others, we can note:

  • A very good profitability and a fast amortization
  • A possibility of reduced VAT rate to 10% in 2021
  • A safe long-term forecast of the investment and the return
  • The increase of the value of a house
  • Their recyclable character
  • Photovoltaic solar panels contribute to the reduction of polluting emissions and the preservation of the environment
  • Photovoltaic solar panel installations are robust and require little maintenance
  • Intelligent systems and impressive technical progress for energy self-consumption in 2021 with a significant evolution
  • Reliable and stable solar photovoltaic panel systems, easy to install and simple;
  • Increased profitability of photovoltaic for self-consumption with sale of surplus electricity.

With the thermal regulations imposing the development of renewable energies, the use of photovoltaic solar panels is of paramount importance. They are very profitable, beneficial but above all ecological. They are made of silicon to allow the transformation of light into renewable energy.

Also, these solar panels are guaranteed for more than twenty years and recognized for their resistance to weather. The photovoltaic solar panel is the choice for an ecological and economical approach to energy.

Return on Investment

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The price of a solar panel installation is often one of the main reasons for the reluctance to take the plunge into photovoltaics. However, the profitability of an installation is no longer in question. The fall in prices in photovoltaics and the increase in electricity tariffs make photovoltaics and, in particular, self-consumption more and more interesting financially.

An installation costs between 2,200 and 2,800 dollars per kWp and generates significant reductions in electricity bills each year. Either directly through self-consumption or indirectly through the sale of the production to an electricity supplier.

State aid for the installation of photovoltaic panels, such as the self-consumption bonus or the EDF OA feed-in tariffs fixed over 20 years, further improve the profitability of solar panels. Depending on the geographical area and the solar installation cost, the return on investment is reached between 10 and 15 years.

A civic gesture
solar

Today, it is difficult for government representatives to adopt (at least publicly) a position that would not be favorable to the energy transition in the United States. Nuclear power is the object of all the wrath; renewable energies have the wind in their sails. In 2020, they will account for 19.1% of the US’s gross final energy consumption, of which 3.4% will be produced by photovoltaic solar energy.

The 2015 law on energy transition for green growth aims to raise the percentage of renewable energy in the US energy mix to 32% by 2030, which is 5% higher than the European aspirations for the same date. Thus, by installing solar panels on your house, beyond your personal convictions, you are taking a resolutely civic approach through your contribution to greening the US public electricity network.

Sound off in the comments section below and tell us what you want to read next and if you want to read more about solar pannels.