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Issue Date: April 22, 2008
The yard, attic and basement offer opportunities for conservation.
Look high and low
Even if you don't spend much time in the attic or basement, both are prime places to conserve energy. And the yard offers lots of opportunities to have a positive environmental effect, too. Here are tips for your outdoor space, as well as the often-forgotten areas of the house.
Install a "cool" roof.
Sometimes this is achieved with color, sometimes with materials, but the result is the same: a roof that reflects the heat from the sun, rather than transferring it into the attic (and the entire home) below. "Light colors help keep the house cool," says green-lifestyle blogger Celia Canfield. If you're planning to replace your roof, research the most efficient materials at coolroofs.org.
This roof will keep your house cool.
Roof: Najlah Feanny, Corbis
Create a habitat garden.
"Animals are on the move now because they're losing their habitat," says landscape architect Jeni Webber. "So we need to do whatever we can to give them space." The strategy is to provide food, water and cover to attract a variety of creatures. You can even register your backyard as a wildlife habitat with the National Wildlife Federation (nwf.org/backyard).
Use organic fertilizers and composts.
They're made from recycled materials like chicken manure, cornmeal, humates (organic compounds) and other mined minerals. "Your lawn will grow more evenly and will require up to a third less mowing as a lawn that has been tended with chemical fertilizers," says Paul Tukey, founder of SafeLawns.org and author of "The Organic Lawn Care Manual." "And the soil will require about 70% less water."
Plant hedges as fences.
"Hedges can provide places for birds to bop around and have little nests," says landscape architect Jeni Webber, founder of Green-Gardening.net and author of "Front Yard & Backyard Idea Book." And wood fences are made with cut-down trees, which isn't so green.
Hedge: Erik Rank, Botanica/Jupiter
Insulate, insulate, insulate.
The basement and attic are notorious for having drafts. This is made even worse in the winter by the chimney effect, which draws cold air in through the basement as warm air goes out the attic. To find out if you need more insulation, schedule a home energy audit through your utility company or your state energy or weatherization office. A professional auditor will pinpoint the energy-wasting spots in your home.
When it's time to replace your water heater, go tankless.
"A standard water heater heats water continuously and leaves it hot, even if you don't need it," says David Gottfried, co-founder of the U.S. Green Building Council and founder of the firm WorldBuild. "The tankless does it on demand. It's [two or three times] more expensive, but it pays for itself over time with utility savings."
BONUS TIP from Martha Stewart
"All of my life, I have followed organic principles, many of which I learned from my parents," says lifestyle guru Martha Stewart. "I've recently finished building an in-
ground solar-heated greenhouse, which will enable me to grow vegetables 12 months of the year."
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