When most people think about renovating their home, most of them will only consider making changes to the inside of the house. After all, it can be ever so easy to update a property’s interiors and, more often than not, a quick lick of paint and a new carpet can do wonders for a house. These small changes will help to bring the whole interiors up to date in no time at all. If you make some interior changes to your decor, your property could still be left feeling a little flat, though. If this is the case with your home, it could be time to turn your attention to the exteriors. There are a few modern features you could add to them to help bring the entire home into the 21st century.
Some people can be a bit worried about making changes to the exterior of their home. They believe that the changes and work carried out will be extremely expensive, and it could take a very long time to carry out. That isn't always the case, though, especially when it comes to the following suggestions. These are all reasonably priced, but will make a big difference to your home overall.
Solar Panelling
These days, the majority of homeowners want to create a property that is environmentally friendly and won’t increase their carbon footprint. In order to do that, you will need to make sure your house is carbon neutral. So, that means trying to drastically cut down on your energy and gas consumption. Sound difficult? It doesn’t have to be if you install solar panelling onto your roof. These will use the sun’s rays to generate energy for the household, so you won’t be so reliant on other, less eco-friendly forms. What’s more, these panels are great at storing energy, so you don’t have to be without power on cloudy days as they will have stored a lot on sunny days.
Opening Roofs
If you like to entertain in your garden, then you might be interested in adding an opening roof to your home’s exterior in the back garden. Ideally, you should place this over an area of patio so you will be able to sit underneath it in the summer. The best thing about an opening roof is that you can bring it out whenever you need it. Does it look like it is going to be a hot day? Simply hit the switch and the roof will extend out. Is it going to be slightly cloudy but you want to ensure as much natural light gets into your home as possible? Hit the switch again, and the roof will retract.
UPVC Windows
If you live in a period property and the windows are the originals, there’s a good chance that they will be quite drafty. As a result, your home will be badly insulated and you could find that you need to leave the central heating on for longer than you would like. This could be making your energy bills very expensive! There is one solution for this, though; you just need to replace the original windows with some modern UPVC ones. These are double-glazed windows that are very effective at shutting out the outside cold air. As a result, they will greatly minimize any drafts and your home will end up being a lot more insulated. You will certainly feel very cosy thanks to your new UPVC windows!
A Secure Front Door
Do you remember when the last time you replaced your front door was? If you haven’t for a while, or can’t even remember when it will have been, it’s best to think about doing so as soon as possible. It will make your home a lot more secure, that’s for sure! Modern front doors come with much more sophisticated locks, so they will be a lot harder to break into. Not only that, though, but they will have been made with much hardier materials, so it won’t be as easy for burglars to kick them in. As well as all this, they are usually very well insulated, so you won’t have to worry about any pesky drafts coming in from under the door.
A Porch
Porches might be thought of as being quite traditional, but you might be surprised to hear that they are actually about to go through a renaissance. Yes, that’s right - more and more people are now adding porches onto their home and many designers believe they are going to become a very stylish and sought-after addition. Just remember to get your porch built with modern materials or else it could be quite drafty and cause a problem for your home’s insulation. Once your new porch is on your home, you will find that it provides you with a great place to watch the world go buy from, whatever the weather.
An Environmentally Friendly Pond
If you have quite a sizeable front garden, then you could think about adding a pond. This would make an excellent water feature, and would also encourage a lot of wildlife to your garden which will help support the local ecosystem. If you do decide to add a pond, you should try to make sure it is eco-friendly. That means you won’t be able to add a pump to it to keep it clean, but you will still be able to clean it by hand every few months. Ideally, you should only use organic and natural products when cleaning it so that you don’t harm any of the wildlife that lives in it. It’s also advisable not to fill your pond with water from the tap, as this water will be rich with a lot of nutrients that fish, frogs, and newts aren’t used to. Instead, once your pond is in place, you should wait for the rain to come so that it can fill up naturally with water that is completely natural and safe.
So, which of these features will you add to your home’s exteriors?
P.S. This post is a collaborative post and not written by Hand On The Hip.
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