Lighting is an extremely important part of any home's function and aesthetic, and in this day and age, you shouldn't have to sacrifice energy efficiency for great illumination. With the right windows and smart bulb installation, you can be on your way to shrinking your carbon footprint and owning a more sustainable home.
Start by making the investment in Marvin replacement windows in New Jersey, which will beautify your home while making it more eco-friendly.
Using your new windows to save on energy
Marvin windows are sustainable in a number of ways, starting with their source woods and materials taken from responsibly managed forests. Furthermore, having fiberglass replacement windows installed in place of your home's outdated ones will offer you greater comfort and security against air leaks – a huge boost to energy efficiency. Your new windows will keep in the air conditioning's cool during summer months and retain your home's heat during the winter. As noted by the U.S Department of Energy, modern windows can save you up to 25 percent on monthly heating and AC bills.
How do Marvin windows do it? Innovative thinking, such as multiple glass layers or specialty gases injected between panes to add extra insulation. Even basic innovative design or specialty framing materials can help you save on energy, at no cost to your lighting. Even with special coatings that reflect ultraviolet rays, Marvin windows don't dim the view.
Simply put, windows are one of the best ways to light a home. Natural light is full spectrum, offering you the cleanest and clearest perception of colors – from your walls to decor. But when the sun sets or it's a cloudy day, Marvin windows can preserve the view while energy efficient light bulbs take over the rest. Consider these tips for buying smartly to complement your new green windows.
Knowing how to buy better bulbs
Unlike most of our purchases, when buying bulbs, more is not necessarily better. Quality over quantity is important, but so is buying bulbs to fit your needs. As a result, the U.S. Department of Energy recommends buying bulbs for lumens not watts. Lumens measure how bright a bulb is, while watts measures energy consumption – and the two are not always in sync. For homeowners looking to switch over to more energy-efficient bulbs, the source has an easy-to-understand conversion chart from watts to lumens.
The Department of Energy also notes that buying energy-saving incandescent bulbs will save you money and reduce environmental impact. At the top of the light bulb efficiency pyramid are light-emitting diode, or LED, bulbs. While we tend to see these most often in electronics, like hi-defintion TVs, LEDs are also the best way to light your home, using a mere 20 percent or 25 percent of the energy typically consumed by traditional incandescents. Best of all, LED bulbs last up to 25 times longer, which means you have to pull out the ladder less often.
