When Property Brother Drew Scott sat down with H&G, one thing was at the top of his agenda: creating an eco-friendly home that's both healthier and more efficient. The realtor, best known as a Property Brother, recently teamed up with Qulit (the design-forward home climate system), and with the collaboration came the opportunity to discuss how we can save money on our energy bills.
Naturally, investing in the Qulit system is a failsafe starting point, but there are some ways that are just as impactful in every kind of home. First up – strategically decorating our windows.
'Your window coverings are actually a huge help. Many people don't have the most efficient windows, so depending on the time of year, there's a lot of heat or cold air loss. Just closing your curtains makes a surprisingly dramatic difference in helping keep the hot air in in the winter and the cold air in the summer,' Scott says. 'It's just an extra barrier. It’s just a thin curtain, so it seems silly, but it adds some extra insulation from the outside.'
Rethinking our window treatments is simple, versatile, and (in many cases) stylish. However, it's not the only way to take control of our climate. Scott encourages us to shift our mindsets and use modern technologies to our advantage. 'There are so many things available now that can make life so much easier,' he says.
'The little things, such as switching to LED bulbs, are so important. I have a light fixture in our dining room that I hadn't even considered before. When it was incandescent bulbs before, it used 50 or 60-watt bulbs, but it's a light fixture, a very beautiful modern piece that is about 50 bulbs. If one light fixture uses 50 or 60-watt bulbs, it’s a lot of draw from the house’s energy. Switching that over to LED actually doesn't make a dramatic difference to how it looks.'
These 60-watt replacement light bulbs use only 9 watts of energy and cost only $1.08 per year to operate. Compared to the incandescent equivalent (based on 3 hours/day, $0.11/kWh), this can lead to a saving of $55.87 in energy costs over the bulb's lifetime.
We can also make impactful changes in the kitchen – starting with a swap to an electric induction range.
'Induction is far superior when heating or cooking compared to gas. We are often made to think that gas is the only way professionals cook, but it’s actually not. They often use induction,' Scott explains.
'You can boil a pot of water in half the time with induction. There are so many things that people can do to create a clean, healthy environment for the family and control their energy usage. It's more about families; it's more about what creates a healthier environment for your family. If you have a gas-powered appliance, such as a gas range for cooking, that is pumping emissions into your house, it's not healthy. Do you want to circulate air through your house with a system that's run on gas?'
For yet more simple swaps, Scott recommends these quick buys from Amazon below. We particularly love the handy wifi plugs that are controllable from beyond our home.
These plugs support Bluetooth or WiFi connections. With no disconnection worries, we can control all our home appliances and devices from wherever we may need.
These lights feature independently adjustable light and panel, so we can adjust the solar panel up and down at 90° to capture sunlight easily.
Featuring four premium panels, this bank has 7X higher solar charging efficiency than the normal single-panel solar battery pack.
Lastly, incorporating the Quilt system is one of the most impactful yet aesthetic ways we can improve climate control in our homes. It's designed to feel (almost) too sleek to be practical, so of course, it's easy to see why Scott rates it so highly.
'Not only is it using cleaner energy to heat and cool your home, but there are so many other benefits – there are multiple cherries on top. Firstly, it's aesthetically pleasing in a room. Some of these old ductless heat pumps that you put on the wall can be an eye sore, no matter how beautifully designed the room may be,' he comments.
'With Quilt, we have something that’s absolutely stunning. It's low profile and workable in every type of room.'
