When we were stationed in Europe back in 2006, I noticed something. I noticed that most of my neighbors had beautiful gardens. I would often get a cup of coffee and stand with the window open, taking in the blissful aromas of strawberries from the farm across the street. It reminded me of home. My father farmed potatoes, greens, peas, watermelons, cabbage, and corn.

After we returned home, I noticed a lot of the beautiful trees that I used to walk through, were no longer standing. For whatever reason, someone had chopped them down, and replaced a lot of the open space with cows. Now that the Democrats are in charge, I think we will gravitate more towards a European way of living when it comes to efficiency. However, with that change comes a few obstacles due to the price that comes from upgrading.

Upgrading will not be an easy transformation for many Americans. No matter how you cut it, energy efficiency requires money. We often hear people talk about solar panels as a means of controlling electric bills. While they look cool, and the idea rocks, solar panels are expensive. Solar panels will run you anywhere from 7500 to 9000 just for the solar panels, and maybe a generator. We are not even talking about the installation process or replacing a roof because it is not in compliance with the installation.

The entire installation can run as much as 24000 in some cases. Panels might not be an option for some residents if they live in areas with rules preventing the solar panels because of HOA’s. In some of your historical districts, solar panels are not allowed at all because they want to keep the areas authentic. Other things could hinder the installation of panels could be trees. Solar panels have to access direct contact with the sun. Cost isn’t the only issue with solar panels. Solar panels have been known to hurt habitats due to the destruction of trees and cause harm to farmland.

So, if panels seem a little too iffy, it might help to look at solar windows and screens. I have 23 windows in my house, and if I were to go solar, the cheapest replacement would cost me 2392.00 for all windows. Blinds are another story! For some reason, blinds are expensive. For all 23 windows in my house, it would cost us 2691.00 which, means we would have to pay at least 5k for upgrading our windows and blinds. I went with the cheapest windows and blinds, by the way.

If you are looking to learn about pricing. Try stores like Home Depot, shopsolarkits.com, Lowes and other stores that focus on home repair. It is a good idea to start looking now because the future is fast approaching.