Reduce Your Energy Bill

Heating and cooling costs can represent 54% of your energy bill. The older your home the more money you spend to maintain a comfortable temperature in your home. Why, because older homes were built with less energy efficient methods and materials. Homes built between 2000 and 2005 used 14% less energy per square foot than homes built in the 1980s and 40% less energy per square foot than homes built before 1950.

Energy Consumption

Improvements in the products that go in your home and how your home is built have kept energy consumption per square foot about even for the last 30 years. Inflation and increases in the average size of homes means the average home owner is spending more on energy every year. It’s easy to see why upgrading areas of your home to more modern and efficient products can save you money.

Insulation
When your home was built it probably only included standard insulation. If this is true consider adding a radiant energy reflection insulation like Esheild 11000 to your home. It reflects back 97% of radiant heat hitting it. Radiant heat accounts for 93% of the heat energy coming into your home via the attic during summer and 50% of the heat loss via your ceiling in the winter time. It is installed on the underside of your roof to keep the heat out and on the floor of your attic to keep heat in.

Windows
Older less well made windows are another area your home allows outside weather to affect your home. Window technology has come a long way. Glass can be coated with filter films to protect your home from sun damage while reflecting other spectrum’s of light that heat up your home. Multiple panes of glass with inert gas sandwiched between the panes increase the insulation value drastically over just a single pane of glass. In addition to more energy efficient windows consider adding storm windows. Storm windows are added to the exterior or interior of your existing windows. Storm windows aren’t normally left up year round. When not needed they are removed and put in storage.

Storm Doors
Any entrance/exit to your home is a location for heat loss or gain. Doors don’t have the same insulation value that a wall has and it has seems that can allow air in or out. Adding a storm door to the exterior or your door will boost the insulation and provide a better air seal. In addition you gain the added ventilation or light options a storm door brings.

Insulated Siding
If you are considering changing your siding then it’s time to consider spending more and getting insulated siding. What’s in your homes walls can’t be easily changed without a lot of effort so it’s an ideal opportunity to increase your homes overall energy efficiency while increasing your homes beauty.

Give K-Designers a call 800-728-3902 or visit us online www.k-designers.com and we’ll walk you through all of these options and more.

Don’t Let The Weather Win

It’s that time of year where rain or snow will start to move you indoors for the winter. But maybe you don’t need to move indoors just yet.

Solid patio covers like America’s Dream Kookshade can truly extend the length of time you can enjoy your outdoor spaces. Koolshade is a coated aluminum product that comes in a lattice (or beam) variety and in solid sheets. This means you can mix the two coverage types giving you 100% shade and weather protection in one area and use the lattice in another area to provide shade or in the case of an attached patio cover still allow light in through covered windows or doors.

Another way to make those outdoor spaces usable for longer is an underdeck system. Underdeck systems like Ultimate Underdeck are installed under an existing raised deck. They create a water barrier that channels water from rain and snow away from the area under the deck. Now light fixtures and less weather resistant materials and products can be used without worrying about a sudden rain storm.

Of course the temperature is also a factor in staying outside so adding a heat source of some sort will fully enable extending your use of that outdoor space.

If you are interested in America’s Dream Kookshade or Ultimate Underdeck or any other remodeling project contact K-Designers 800-728-3902 or www.k-designers.com. We can help make your home more enjoyable.