No excuses: we should all try to reduce the size of our carbon footprint.

It’s clearer than ever that selling a home is about more than just a great location and pretty paint colours. Being green is a major selling point, too. There’s no way of escaping it: wherever you go, you may unintentionally be adding to your carbon footprint, illustrating how wasteful and unsustainable your lifestyle is. From the type of car you drive to your choice of grocery provider, you wear your green credentials on your sleeve.

But however guilty you feel about your turbocharged SUV and penchant for using plastic bags, the likelihood is that your home is your most carbon-rich, energy-burning crime. So, if you’re really serious about being eco-friendly, the best place to begin your quest is at home. Eco-friendly houses don’t have to be weird-looking and expensive. Anybody who is serious about reducing their carbon footprint can start making changes immediately.

Read on for the savvy technology that you probably never thought about and snag some of that green living for yourself.

Solar Systems

We’re living in an age of profound change, when things are rapidly evolving and constantly variable, from the way we drive our cars to how we travel, eat and everything in between. The world is full of innovative human and technological advancement. Among these great wonders of progress is the way we power our homes. While governments are becoming more and more environmentally conscious, the individual need to be responsible when it comes to renewable energy is all the more crucial. Enter solar energy.

“Now, more than ever before, customers are looking not just for a solar system, but a fully integrated home solar and energy storage solution with back-up power,” says Chris Williams, CEO and founder of Natural Solar. “Smart battery solutions such as the sonnenBatterie give households far greater flexibility as to when and how they use their electricity, while at the same time hedging against future electricity price increases and adding considerable asset value to their house. In the past 12 months, with the end of gross feed in tariffs and a 20 per cent price hike from energy retailers, we are seeing savvy Aussie consumers research solutions that not only save them money, but are also at the forefront of technology.”

Solar energy is environmental friendly, safe and in abundant supply. After all, the sun makes a regular appearance every day. Moreover, solar systems are far better for the environment and can help offset energy costs for homeowners. Yes, costs. That’s what it all comes down to in the end, doesn’t it? “In some cases, the best return on investment may be a solar system only but, in most cases, households benefit more by being able to store the excess daytime solar production in their batteries and drawing this power back from their battery when coming home from work,” explains Chris. “It is all about maximising self consumption and avoiding sending power back to the grid for peanuts.”

One way you can incorporate solar into your home is with an Enphase system. The Enphase home energy solution comes with storage added, allowing users to generate, store and manage their home’s energy by tracking production and consumption. “Tightly integrated by a single provider, the Enphase home energy solution gives you assurance that all its applications work well together,” says Olivia Smith, Enphase communications manager. “It adapts to changes in your household and changes on the electric grid over time, so you’re never caught off guard by your power bill.” With no single point of failure, accessible monitoring via the MyEnlighten app and increased performance thanks to higher energy harvest gain, the Enphase system is a worthwhile investment.

Tesla is also offering the best of the best with the Powerwall 14kWh lithium-ion battery pack with liquid thermal control system, integrated inverter and intelligent software that dispatches electricity. The 120kg battery can be wall or floor mounted (inside or out) and features a fully integrated Tesla inverter. The Powerwall is also integrated with the grid to export excess energy, maximising the opportunity for economic benefit. Like Enphase, Tesla’s Powerwall comes with an app that monitors and manages the system and allows users to reserve a percentage of their Powerwall energy for emergencies or power outages. With a usable capacity of 13.5kWh, 5kW continuous power and 7kW peak power, the Powerwall is ideal for use in our sunburnt country.