Owning a cabin in the woods or mountains is a great way to add more peace and quiet to your life. With a cabin, you will always have a serene retreat where you can escape from the hustle and bustle and enjoy nature up-close. Many cabin owners are also interested in being self-sufficient and minimizing their carbon footprint. This is easy to do by following these four steps to make your cabin more green:

You have probably read some articles about solar energy or seen something about it on television and how people are choosing to go down this path. You still may not be able to decide if this is something that is right for you. There are many benefits of going solar that you may not be aware of. Below are four of these benefits to help you decide if this is something right for you.

If you have a propane tank, it is important that you take care of it properly. Below is some information about this so you can ensure your tank lasts as long as it can, and stays safe for you and your family. Why You Should Use a Cover Not keeping your propane tank covered will cause rust to build up on the outside due to wet weather, such as rain or snow.

If you drive a big rig, one of your primary concerns is likely how to get the best deal on the diesel fuel that powers your truck.  In efforts to get better fuel efficiency you may have even tried to drive more slowly, since industry officials say that slowing down from 75 mph to 65 mph can increase your fuel mileage by just over a mile per gallon.  However, there are other techniques you can use to save money on diesel fuel.

Whether you are using a small propane tank for your barbecue or a larger one for your home, understanding how your local climate can affect your tank and the propane inside it is vital to both save money and achieve the best performance from your fuel. Propane is a type of natural gas stored as a liquid through pressurization, meaning even slight variations in temperature can have a dramatic impact on its density and efficiency.

Having solar panels installed on your home is an excellent way to save some money on your monthly electricity expenses, lower your household's carbon footprint, and even increase your overall property value. It's important to have a professional contractor install your solar panels to ensure that nothing important is overlooked and that everything is properly connected for optimal performance long term. So you can be sure that they'll meet all of your specific needs and preferences, make a list of questions to ask potential solar contractors before choosing which one to hire.

Saving money on your utilities doesn't mean having to go out and spend thousands of dollars on new appliances for your kitchen. Although this would be one way to save money in the future, not everyone has the thousands of dollars to spend to upgrade older appliances. Here, you will learn affordable ways to reduce kitchen energy consumption today. Refrigerator Your refrigerator can suck down quite a bit of electricity in a day.

In the past, most citizens were forced to purchase electricity from one company; there were no other options and no right to choose where one obtained electricity. The electric companies had a monopoly and the only other option aside from the local electric company was to install windmills or solar panels in the backyard. However, many states have gotten away from this ancient practice and are giving customers the right to choose which company will supply electricity to their home or business.

Saving energy is something that can be done with many home improvement projects, which can anything from the simplest DIY project to complicated energy systems that are professionally installed. Before you get started with a list of energy improvements you want to do for your home. This is done by doing an energy audit, which can be done by a professional service or you may choose to do it yourself. The steps to doing an energy audit for your home are as follows:

When you find yourself in need of a replacement for your current home water heater, you will likely find yourself with a wide variety of options. However, one that you will come across that may be unexpected is a propane water heater. While you may be quick to dismiss the idea of a propane water heater, thinking it will be too much work, you should not be so quick to do so.

Because of rapid advances in lighting technology and stricter government energy standards, your light bulb choices have never been better. Every bulb now sold  is more energy efficient than those previously used in homes and businesses. Here are three types of light bulbs. Incandescent bulbs These are the traditional round bulbs used since light bulbs were invented. An electric current is passed through a filament made of tungsten until it heats enough to produce light.