Conserving energy is something we can all do – but why do we actually care? For the average homeowner, energy is something that’s available as often as they need it – sure, bills might be a little higher, but very few of us have to worry about running out of it.

Here are three reasons to stop for a few moments and reconsider that view.

It Helps The Environment

Now, we’re not going to go into a big discussion of how helping the environment is good – we’ve all heard about this before, and there’s no need to repeat it.

What many homeowners don’t realize, though, is just how much of the environment is involved with the production of power. Consider, for example, the dams of the Tennessee Valley Authority – part of a power-production system over six hundred miles long.

Dams aren’t the only things taking up a lot of space, either. From massive wind farms to heavily-stacked solar power collectors, power production takes up quite a lot of land that most people never end up going to visit. Even reducing our society’s energy usage by a few percent could open up a lot of space and help reduce our society’s impact on the land.

It Makes Your House More Comfortable

It’s true! Conserving energy in your home can actually make it more comfortable. How, you ask?

The key to this is efficiency. An efficient house doesn’t change temperature too quickly, regardless of how the weather’s like on the outside. They stay warmer during the winter, cooler during the summer, and require less energy to accomplish either goal.

One common misconception is that conserving energy is only about things like turning lights off when you’re not using them. That helps, but it’s even more important to be sure that your energy is being used effectively. You don’t have the AC on and your windows open – if you do, the energy is just lost as it dissipates outside.

In the same way, setting your house up to be efficient can conserve energy and make it more comfortable to be in at any given time.

It Lowers Your Energy Bills

For most homeowners, this is the real value of conserving energy. We mean that in the most literal sense – conserving energy actually lowers your bills and allows you to spend that money on other things (saving for retirement, paying off debt, paying off your home, improving the quality of your meals… whatever is most important to you right now).

How can conserving energy do that? Let’s take a look:

• Energy Efficient Lighting: In recent years, LED lights have become affordable for the average homeowner. Functionally, these lights provide the same quality of light for a lower overall price – and while one or two changed lights won’t make much of a difference, switching over every light in your house could result in a major reduction in your electricity bill.

• High-Quality Insulation: In the previous section, we talked about how conserving energy can help make you comfortable. Well, it’s also good for your wallet – good insulation means it takes less energy to reach your desired temperature and less energy to keep it there. Imagine having all of the benefits of heating and A/C without having to wince every time you looked at your utility bills – that’s what conserving energy can do for you.

• Innovative Products: Looking to conserve energy also drives the invention of newer, better products that can be brought to the market. When manufacturers know that you’ll be looking at systems that require as little power as possible, they’ll build things to make the most effective use of every bit of power… and competition between manufacturers helps drive prices downward.

Improving your home and lowering your bills isn’t hard – anyone can do it. In the end, what it comes down to is identifying areas that aren’t using energy efficiently, then doing whatever you need to in order to fix that. The sooner you start, the better – the savings on your bills will really add up over time.