Choosing the Right Green Energy Options for Your Home

You can’t get away from the fact that all around the world people are, to varying degrees, worrying about climate change and how it might impact their lives. Added to that concern is one about energy security; if one country depends on a source of energy from another country and there’s some kind of political upheaval, the country supplying the energy could increase prices beyond reasonable levels, or even cut off the supply.

These aren’t happy thoughts, but there is a way to insure yourself against energy security problems and do your bit towards reducing greenhouse gas emissions while saving yourself some money in the longer term. Green technologies are continually evolving to become more sophisticated and as they develop and sell in increasing quantities, so the cost of installing green technology in the home drops. The question is, what are the best options to consider in your home?

Solar power

Using energy from the sun is an obvious solution to both emissions and security because the sun is a constant source of free energy available all over the world. The most obvious places where it makes sense to adopt solar technology are the countries that have the most sunshine per year, as the more sunshine there is, the more energy and the more reliable the supply.

If you live in a colder climate, you may not think there would be enough sun year-round to provide your energy requirements, but as the technology becomes increasingly sophisticated, so the level of sun needed to create sufficient energy to make solar power worthwhile continues to fall. For example, you could install a highly effective solar water heating system in Swindon, a British town that has a typically unpredictable UK climate with cold, wet winters. Solar has got to be top of the list for domestic energy supply, as it’s one of the easiest and most cost-effective systems to install.

Other sources of green energy

·         Wind turbines aren’t going to be suitable for most domestic homes, as their size is too dominating to fit comfortably in an urban landscape or city, so they remain a commercial solution rather than one that would work in your home. Mini turbines are available and may be worth considering if they’re going to produce enough energy where you live.

·         Hydropower could be a workable option if you have a fast-flowing watercourse running through your garden, but for city dwellers, access to rivers is going to be limited!

·         Air and ground source heat pumps are viable as alternatives or additional sources of power for private homes, providing you’ve got the space to fit the pump, as they are pretty bulky. They work well in climates that have changeable weather conditions, and many people have found combining an air source heat pump with solar panels gives them year-round energy even in the cooler climates of the northern hemisphere.

Green energy has many benefits for you and your home, regardless of whether climate change concerns you or not, so have a look at the options that would fit well into your home and free you of worries about energy supplies and increasing costs.