65 percent of Americans want the government to do more to address climate change. Pressing the government to act is important, but what are you doing as an individual to help the environment?

It’s not just up to the government to wage this fight. In fact, our individual actions can add up and make a bigger impact on the fight against a climate crisis that’s fast getting out of hand.

Protecting the environment starts at home. There are several home upgrades you can make to help save the environment. Here are a few recommendations for you:

1. Install a Programmable Thermostat

Air conditioning costs account for about half of the average single family’s household energy bills.

There’s a lot of electricity wastage where HVAC systems are involved. Imagine all those times you’ve left your AC running and no one was at home. Or heating up the entire house when you only need the heat in one room.

Thanks to advances in technology, you can install a programmable thermostat in your home to help reduce your HVAC system’s power consumption. This device enables you to set a schedule for turning your system on and off. Some thermostats have smart technology, which means they can study your lifestyle and regulate the HVAC system automatically.

If your home is powered by electricity from fossil fuels, reducing consumption goes a long way in reducing humanity’s reliance on fossil fuels. These fuels (coal, gas, and oil) account for over 75 percent of the world’s greenhouse emissions.

2. Switch to LED Bulbs

Lighting makes up about 6 percent of your power bill. Not as much as air conditioning, but still presents a good opportunity to lower both your bill and your carbon footprint.

If you’re still using incandescent bulbs, it’s time to switch to LEDs. They consume far less electricity than traditional light bulbs and last 25 times longer!

An LED bulb costs about $5, so the upfront cost of switching can be discouraging, considering the average home has about 40 lightbulbs. Still, the return on your investment is worth it. You’ll not only enjoy lower power bills but also reduce your home’s reliance on fossil power. That’s how you help the environment.

3. Make the Most of Natural Light

You’re already doing a good job making the most of natural light when you open your curtains (or other window treatment) as soon as dawn breaks. Natural light is good for your well-being, and it also ensures you don’t keep your lightbulbs and AC on longer than necessary. During hot weather, opening your windows can help keep the house cool.

But, when you’re serious about making eco-friendly home upgrades, you must do more than just open the windows. You can go the extra mile and upgrade your windows.

If your home has single-pane windows, upgrading to double-pane windows will make your home more energy-efficient. Double-pane windows do a better insulation job because they have krypton or argon gas between the layers.

At the end of the day, the net effect of upgrading your windows reflects on your power consumption. The goal is to keep your consumption as low as possible.

4. Use a Tankless Water Heater

Hot water is precious. No one wants to jump into a cold shower early in the morning.

However, if you’re like most homeowners, you don’t give much thought to where that hot water comes from until your heater has a problem. Well, if you’re an eco-conscious person, the type of water heater in your home is either increasing your carbon footprint or reducing it.

Traditional tank water heaters consume a lot more energy since the water is constantly being heated. On the other hand, tankless water heaters only spring into action on demand (when hot water is needed).

So, if your hot water is coming from a tank, you know what you need to do. Play your part in protecting the environment and go tankless.

5. Energy Efficient Kitchen Appliances

Is your kitchen full of appliances you’ve owned since you were a young adult? Maybe you have a fridge that looks like it’s 100 years old but you love it because it never breaks down.

Here’s the thing, though. Older appliances are energy hogs. They’ll skyrocket your energy bill, but since it’s cheaper to settle the monthly bill than go shopping for new appliances, you make do with them.

If you want to live in a sustainable home, you have to upgrade your appliances to those with an Energy Star label. They consume less power and do the job with greater efficiency.

6. Go Solar

The most high-impact eco-friendly home improvement you can make is to switch to solar power. A 100% transition to power solar means your home will no longer draw power from America’s fossil-fueled electricity grid.

Solar power is clean, renewable, and highly reliable. Power outages will become a thing of the past, as will energy bills.

Although the upfront cost of switching to solar is steep, there’s a raft of federal, state, and local incentives that make switching more affordable. There are many helpful resources about solar that will help you understand more about switching.

Eco-Friendly Home Upgrades Are the Way to Go

Climate change might seem a distant threat, especially if you’ve not experienced its effects. It’s real, and it’ll spare no one. Fortunately, it’s not too late to act and stop and even reverse its course.

Doing the little you can lead an eco-friendly lifestyle makes a big difference. Making these eco-friendly home upgrades makes an even bigger difference.

What are you doing to combat global warming? Let’s get the conversation started in the comments section.