4 Totally New Ways of Upgrading Your Home.

Your house may be be "lived in," brand new, or under construction; in any case, you should be mindful of what you can do to bring/keep your home up-to-date with the current styles, products, and efficiencies. Starting from the outside and working our way in, we'll touch on 6 New Ways to Upgrade your home.

1. Programmable Water Sprinklers.

Programmable timers allow one time programming for automatic watering.

Most are electronic, running on AA or 9 volt batteries and some can be hard wired into your home or plugged into an outlet.

There are several types of programmable sprinkler systems. You should ensure your needs will be covered by the programmable spinkler system. Some details to focus on are:

• Daily, alternate day, weekly or other repeat mode.
• Range of on-time duration (minutes).
• Number of on/off cycles per day.
• Misting feature, great for keeping animals cool (provides brief on/off cycles every few minutes).
• Rain sensor to cease watering if it is raining.
• Manual hold to temporarily pause the watering cycle (a must if you host lawn parties and don't want to tinker with the program to keep your guest from getting soaked).
• Manual override to water on extra dry days; once again, without changing the program.

Advantages

• Flexible. Complex on/off timings can be programmed.
• Automatic. Can be used for long periods of unattended operation: especially useful during vacations.

Disadvantages

• Can cometimes be confusing to program. Make sure yo read the manual...you don't want to waste any water by accidedentally setting an all-day on cycle.
• In battery operated models: batteries need to be replaced every few months (Valves may lock in the open position if the batteries die during an on-cycle.)

2. Windows and Doors

Not only do your windows and doors bring natural light into your home but they can also save you money!

On February 17 2009, President Obama signed into law the American Recovery and Reinvestment Tax Act of 2009 which extends and modifies the tax credits for windows, doors, and skylights established in the Energy Policy Act of 2005.

• To qualify for the tax credit, windows, doors, and skylights placed in service after February 17, 2009 must have a U-factor and Solar Heat Gain Coefficient (SHGC) less than or equal to 0.30. You can find the U-factor and SHGC on the National Fenestration Rating Council (NFRC) label. NFRC is the only federally recognized organization for determining the energy performance of windows, doors and skylights.
• Qualifying products purchased between February 17, 2009 and December 31, 2010 are eligible for a tax credit equal to 30 percent of the product cost. The maximum amount of homeowner credit for all improvements combined is $1,500 during 2009 and 2010.
• For products purchased between January 1, 2009 and February 16, 2009, the terms of the tax credit are less clear. The Internal Revenue Service will likely clarify these terms in guidance documents, which are expected to be released later this year.
• On April 22, 2009, the Internal Revenue Service issued a news release about tax credits for home energy efficiency improvements.

Your money isn't only saved via the Recovery and Reinvestment Tax Act...don't overlook the savings you may find on your electric bill from having properly sealed windows and doors with energy efficient glass.

3. Insulation

Similar to the savings resulting from energry efficient windows and doors, properly installed insulation can be a realy money saver.

4. Programmable AC Units

Turn your AC up when you aren't home. You can purchase a programmable unit that only turns on down you'll need it. Set it and forget it.