Make Your Costa Mesa Home a Greener Place

Making your house in Costa Mesa, CA green is a lot easier than it used to be. And it's a good plan - you can save time, money, and the planet at the same time, more or less - all without taking on an overwhelming amount of work either. In fact, going green at home has never been easier.

Let's start with the basics. These include getting rid of older, inefficient appliances. This is a good plan for your wallet as well as for the environment. Some people are very surprised at how much they save after they purchase Energy Star rated refrigerators or washer dryers that are more friendly, environmentally and use a lot less power.

And here's an inexpensive and incredibly easy change - just replace your light bulbs. That's right, get rid of incandescent bulbs and replace them with fluorescent lighting, or LED type lighting. Again, savings for your pocket book, and energy savings for the environment.

Another favorite, efficient, cost saving green change is a programmable thermostat? These inexpensive devices make temperature alteration a snap. Using this kind of thermostat allows control of the temperature in each individual room in your home. So your bedroom can be toasty warm, and your living room stay cool all night long. Or, turn on the a/c for that dinner party in the summer, cool off the dining room and kitchen - but moderate the temperature in the part of your home where you're not entertaining.

And then there’s water savings. Naturally, low-flush toilets and low-flow showers are a great idea. But many  home owners are selecting landscaping choices that result in even more savings. Replace those non-native flower beds that need constant watering with native plants that grow beautifully in Costa Mesa, and live longer, too.

The result: time savings for you, healthier plants, less water being used to preserve your landscaping. And that means less cost. Saving time, water, money, beautifying your home with a natural feel - what could be better. And here's another idea, when you do water, employ recycled water sources. Grey water sprinkler systems are such an efficient way to use water. Go grey to green! There, that wasn't so hard, was it, my Costa Mesa friends?