Lighting and Refrigeration

Two energy hogs for your home are lighting and refrigeration. Though these don't effect you as much as heating does, there are some really elegant solutions to saving on energy cost. I haven't done a payback cost analysis on these, but they are both worth looking into.

First is lighting solutions. There are some fantastic solutions for lighting your home out there. Lutron lighting is one example of whole house lighting integration. This lighting system is set up by the user and has whole house override systems by using the away button to automatically turn off all the lights in your home when everyone leaves for the day. Whole house integration can be installed in new and existing homes with no new wiring. Other lighting systems will measure the ambient light in the room, and dim and raise the lights according to the desired light in the room. If you are watching a movie, you can dim the lights and even lower the blinds with a push of the button. Not only does the system save energy, but it is just plain cool. I haven't prices something like this but I can guarantee it is more expensive than the 99 cent switches and outlets that can be picked up at home depot.

My favorite refrigerators ever, are the Liebherr brand line. There are more energy efficient than any other refrigerator in the US, even the world. They have sleek designs and pay attention to every little detail. LED lighting, precision controls, supper freeze mode to flash freeze any item, it has it all. They come in stand-alone, integrated, and fully integrated built-in. These are also pricy, but if you're tired of the mediocre  line of refrigerators you can find at the appliance store, Liebherr is the Apple of the refrigerator world.