Powering your log cabin using renewable alternative energy is a daunting challenge but it could offer you countless rewards if you successfully reach your goals. Technological advancements make it possible to use alternative energy to power up your log home and help you save on your utility bills. Renewable energy resources are eco-friendly because you do not use fossil fuel and other resources that cannot be easily replenished.
Five Ways to Use Renewable Log Cabin Energy
Limited resources that generate power dramatically hurt the environment and take their toll on nature over time. Replacing these limited resources with renewable alternative ones is the best way to protect the environment and reduce your carbon footprint. There are five effective ways how you can actually use alternative energy for your log cabin, whether it is a residential or vacation home.
1. Solar Power for your Log Cabin
One of the most popular and effective ways of powering up your log home with alternative energy is the use of solar power. The government supports and encourages the use of solar power through offering incentives or rebates to individuals who make this eco-friendly and healthy switch. Hire a contractor that specializes in solar lighting systems that can be integrated into your log home to generate energy.
Solar lighting systems utilize PV or photovoltaic panels in order to produce power or energy. The most common solar lighting system for log cabins or garden buildings is a network of 3 to 6 low energy DC 12v CFL bulbs. A battery supplies the energy which is connected to the photovoltaic panels. The pre-charging of the panels takes place during the day or hours of sunlight in order to provide power for several hours.
Solar power products are typically low-maintenance features with easy installation requirements. On top of providing electricity to your log cabin, you can also use solar power in supplementing heat to the building, creating good air pressure, and warming the external air.
2. Seal Up the Leaks
A healthy and eco-friendly alternative energy source for your log cabin is possible to achieve with proper sealing treatment for the log home. The loss of cooling and heating energy in the log cabin often takes places due to air infiltration particularly the outside air leaks. You can always do the sealing on your own but you may need the help of the experts if you want a thorough sealant treatment to ensure the energy efficiency of your log home.
Seal up the holes and leaks that allow air and moisture to seep into the log cabin, affecting the overall temperature during different seasons. Make sure you carry out comprehensive troubleshooting for the treatment so that you can immediately address the problem areas. Professional contractors take care of the wiring that runs through the walls, the pipes, and the leaks on the ceilings and floors.
3. Replace Your Windows and Doors
There are ordinary log cabin doors and windows and there are those that have high Energy Star standards, making them energy efficient and great alternative energy for your log home. Doors and windows are the main points in your log house which could determine its energy efficiency. Go for modern products such as low-E or low emissivity and double-paned doors and windows in order to ensure the insulation and regulation of your indoor temperature.
The modern window technologies for log cabins and garden buildings show great improvements such as the use of special glasses with triple-paned designs. Modern windows may also have suspended films placed between the glass panes and layers to guarantee the prevention of heat transfer. You need to know the possible drawbacks though because energy efficient doors and windows may sacrifice other features such as the reduction of natural light inside the cabin.
4. Utilize Wind Power Technology
On top of solar power products, wind power technology is another of the alternative energy sources that could generate power to your log cabin. Wind power technologies are initially expensive and they are mostly available for large-scale systems. However, you can find wind power products with minimal features and requirements to provide energy for your log cabin or cottage. These are minimal power systems that are more affordable than the costly and large-scale products.
Use a net-metering process in order to link your wind-power product to your local electric utility grid if you are planning to sell the excess electricity that you can produce from your alternative source. You can also use net-metering to have ready access to additional power in case the need arises.
5. Switch to Heat Pumps
Retrofit your log cabin with alternative energy through using heat pumps instead of a conventional heating system. Heat pumps are economical and compact units that you can utilize for your log cabin as a source of heating or air conditioning energy. Heat pumps are all-in-one products that offer heating and cooling system power. The alternative energy functions as an air conditioner through the extraction of heat from the cabin interior and transferring the heat to the outdoor air.
A heat pump serves as a heating system during winter as it takes the heat from the outdoors and brings it inside the house to provide a warm temperature. One of the remarkable features of heat pumps is that they are much easier to set up or install and that they are also ductless. You can retrofit your existing log cabin with heat pumps without any inconvenience at all. On top of having an alternative energy, heat pumps could help you switch to a more energy efficient source and allows you ready access in a log house with hard to reach topography or landscape.
The five essential alternative energy sources for your log cabin will help you experience the perks of living a rustic lifestyle without the inconvenience. Switch to an eco-friendly energy source and see how it can affect your health, disposition, and your finances, because alternative energy sources are undeniably cheaper and more practical than conventional power sources.
