Last year, Italy’s government initiated a reward scheme to help homeowners enhance energy efficiency in homes and reduce the risk of property damage caused by earthquakes. According to a report on euronews.com, the government will pay back each property owner 110% of the building costs to transform their existing houses into eco-friendly dwellings. The scheme dubbed ‘Superbonus’ has a maximum payoff of an estimated €100,000 for every property and its offset against taxation for five years.
Since its introduction, take-up for the initiative has been immense, with the overall project expected to cost €9 billion in 2021 alone. Italy’s government launched the Superbonus because officials thought that homeowners wouldn’t make their homes eco-friendly without it, given that much of Italy’s housing units were constructed before the 20th century. Typically, it takes a lot of work to remodel a functional yet traditional Italian villa into a modern, eco-friendly standard home. Nonetheless, you can make your living spaces more sustainable by following these tips to make your home in Italy more eco-friendly.
Choose Local Building Materials For Home Renovations
Before knocking down walls and installing new flooring, consider where you’re going to source building materials. If you’re like many people, you’ll likely opt for imported construction materials because of their elegant aesthetics. However, importing building elements requires transportation over long distances, resulting in carbon emissions. With this in mind, invest in materials sourced locally to reduce your carbon footprint.
In addition to reducing your environmental impact, there are other numerous benefits of using sustainable building materials like concrete, wood, bamboo, clay, and stone. Some of these perks include cost savings, resource and energy efficiency, and waste reduction. When you use eco-friendly materials for home improvements, you also prolong the longevity of your building.
Make Use Of Natural Light And Heat
While relying on electricity to light, heat, and cool your home might sound perfect, it can be expensive and harmful to the environment. For these reasons, consider making the most of solar energy to light and heat your home. To ensure your home benefits from free, sustainable heating and lighting during the day, make sure your windows are facing the sun’s direction. Alternatively, invest in light window blinds or curtains to increase the flow of natural light indoors. Choosing solar panels for efficiency and durability should be a top priority. Remember, the best solar panels should yield great energy savings for your home. They should also be of high value and come with a warranty.
Improve Insulation
Heating and cooling consume most of the energy in homes, and improper insulation is to blame. To preserve more energy in your home, you need to enhance insulation around the doors and windows. Insulating your home offers many benefits, including improved comfort, increased property value, reduced energy costs, and low carbon emissions. However, insulating older homes while maintaining the beauty of old windows and doors isn’t easy. Luckily, you can keep your Italian home insulated without replacing wood with plastic. Because the winter season in Italy is short, installing shutters, double glazing, and curtains on existing windows can make a huge difference.
Transforming your Italian home into an eco-friendly abode can be costly, but you’ll save a lot of money in the long run. To achieve the best outcomes, you need to invest in locally sourced building materials and insulate the doors and windows. Most importantly, make use of sustainable energy, especially solar energy for heating and lighting.
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