Landscape Summary
Introduction:
You might not know it but the landscape of your house is one of the
factors that can deternine your energy bill all year round. Trees
can help lower the cost of your energy bill when placed properly
around your home.
Summer
Saving Examples
Example1:
Its summer in and you and your friends are burning up inside
your house. You spot a big tree in your front lawn and you decide
to rest underneath it instead of staying inside and cranking up
the
air conditioning. It is a better idea to spend a hot day outside
in a shaded area where can you can relax while looking at the landscape
around you than sitting on the couch waiting for the air conditioning
to explode.
Studies show that the area near trees is slightly cooler by at
least 9
degrees Farenheit. According to conducted research at the
Lawrence Berkeley University states that neighborhoods shaded by trees
will decrease in temperature by at least 2 degrees Farenheit, compared
to virtually treeless surroundings in the city.
Example 2:
Every summer in Florida, you’ll probably be sitting inside and
asking yourself “Why is it so hot today?” Well, one of the reasons it
is so relentlessly hot is because of the color of the objects inside or
outside your house. Sometimes on hot days surfaces will absorb
the thermal energy that manages to get into your house.
Unfortunately, for you, the darker the objects, the more heat it will
retain. You’ll feel like you’re in a sauna, unless you do the
smart thing and make sure that most surfaces inside your house are
light-colored. It can’t hurt to keep an eye on the amount of heat
being absorbed by your windows. Lucky for you, the houses in our
community are guaranteed
to not retain too much of the Florida's sunshine, which means less
money to waste on air conditioning and possibly air conditioning
repairmen.
Trees
Our community is full of a variety of plant life from trees to
shrubs. Did you know that some trees can actually help you by
reducing the cost of your home’s
air conditioning costs. For example, if you plant trees
around your house at good positions, then those trees will direct the
wind to hit your house, which cools it during the insufferable Florida
heat waves. One thing to remember is that trees create a cool area
around them, which can come in handy when looking for a way to cool
your yard. If you acquire shade-casting plants you can position
them near your air-conditioning compressor which is guaranteed to keep
the device from overheating. If you set up vine trellises around
your windows, your house is guaranteed to be cooler in the summer which
will mean good news for you when it gets too hot outside. All
of these energy smart trees are guaranteed to adorn your new
house in our model community.
Sites to visit:
1. www.pioneerthinking.com/landscape.htm
2. www.healthgoods.com/Education/Healthy_Home_Information/General_Efficiency/lee_landscaping.htm
3. www.wec.ufl.edu/extension/gc/Madera/energy/landscaping.htm
