Minimising the Effects of Carbon Tax on Your Home

The carbon tax is set to be implemented in July 1, 2012 and Australian households are still divided about whether it will be burden on them or not. Putting a price on carbon will definitely raise the cost of living in the country, but the government is aware of that, and doing everything possible to minimise its financial impact.

However, households can also do their part… Obviously the main criteria that will help is improving your home’s energy efficiency. Turning your home into a green hub is not a pain but rather a rewarding thing to do, especially when you keep in mind that you are doing this for the environment while also saving money from the rising energy bills and carbon tax effect.

The government’s implementation of a carbon tax is to encourage the adoption of renewable energy technologies and installing a solar panel system has proven to cut down around 50% of the total energy bill of an average home. The flow on effect of doing so is that you are also making significant cuts to your carbon emissions, and so reducing your family’s carbon footprint.

Solar hot water systems also should be taken into account; hot water is widely used in Australia and a large portion of energy bills are accounted for by conventional water heating systems. A solar hot water system can save you at least 50% on your total energy consumption from heating water, and even more if the climate is favorable.

Aside from making the switch to solar power, there are also simple measures that will help turn your home into a green hub. Studies show that if all households will replace their light bulbs with energy efficient bulbs will save the country nearly $100 million in energy costs. Furthermore you can reduce lighting costs by maximising natural light to your home. If you are planning to renovate your home then you might want to consider the use of larger windows and skylights to will allow sunlight into your home.

Another large portion of Australian electric bills fall to air conditioning systems or heaters. Having a home that is properly insulated is crucial to reduce the requirements for heating and cooling, and is a most cost effective measure to take. Also consider air flow while building your home as a second part energy saving through reducing the need for air conditioners, fans make an excellent low cost option.

Countless of other measures can be done to minimise the effect of carbon tax on your home. You just need to be more disciplined and proactive in applying it and not expect the government take all the blame and work of fixing our environmental issues for the country.