FLIR Thermal Imaging Camera

Anyone who has seen an infrared thermal imaging camera knows how fun it can be. You can find your cats outside. You can see that people’s noses are colder than their cheeks and foreheads. That’s fun, but it can be useful too. For a home, you can easily see where any air and water leaks are a problem, so you can fix them properly. For example, since insulation is typically installed behind drywall, you don’t know if the installer missed an area—and often areas are missed: around outlet plugs, in corners, near crawl spaces, you name it. And the FLIR camera can find it. The older cameras are very expensive and bulky; the newer version is compatible with mobile phones (and is still pretty pricey, at $269.99 on Amazon, but it’s a lot less than older models). If you want to know where insulation is missing and are not a DIY-er, get your home an energy audit.

Sense Energy Monitor

If you take a look at your electric bill, the only thing it will tell you is how much electricity you consume and how much you owe over a one month period. It won’t tell you anything about how you use electricity. Sure, you know that lighting, appliances, and electronics take some electricity to run, but how much, and when? How do you know how to prioritize your efforts in being more energy efficient? The Sense Energy Monitor helps solve this problem by providing insight into how and where energy is being used in your home.  To get started, a licensed electrician will need to install this device onto your electrical panel. You then download the app for iOS or Android and connect the monitor to your home Wi-Fi signal. Over the coming days and weeks, the Sense Monitor will send updates to your phone, letting you know which devices are pulling power in your home as well as revealing trends in your home power use. Besides allowing you to have more control over how energy is being used in your home, this device will send you updates if your oven is still turned on or if the drain pump has been running for several hours. This Energy Tracker Monitor currently costs $299 and will quickly begin to deliver savings by helping you to cut back on your home energy use. 

Looking for something less expensive but along those same lines? The Kill-a-Watt electricity usage monitor, which sells for $15.99, will tell you how much wattage any one appliance uses simply by plugging the appliance into it (and plugging it into an outlet).

TomCare Outdoor Solar LED Torch Lights

For outdoor lighting, there really is no reason to use electricity. Unless you live in Alaska where the sun does not shine for very long during half the year, you can gather enough sunlight during the day to power a simple solar panel that will offer quality outdoor lighting during the evening. For a decorative look, the TomCare Torch Lights would look great on the edge of almost any patio or driveway. You never need to change a battery, and they will go on and off automatically from dusk until dawn.

Organic Cotton Dish Towels

Using reusable dishtowels instead of paper towels dramatically cuts down on the waste of single-use disposable items. And as long as you are going for the fabric option, choose organic cotton towels. Why? Cotton is one of the most pesticide-heavy crops, which damages our ecosystem (you can read more about that here). Coyuchi waffle kitchen towels sell for $48 for a set of six beautiful towels—if your kitchen could smile, it would!

Preserve Plastic Tableware

Ok, sometimes you just really need plastic tableware for picnics, kids’ parties, or casual gatherings with a lot of people. Skip the single-use disposable plates and cups and invest in reusable plastic dishware made by Preserve. Preserve’s products are made from 100% recycled plastic (from #5 plastic—the yogurt containers), they can be put in the dishwasher, and they are lightweight, stackable, and sturdy. They don’t crack or warp and come in a variety of colors and sizes. A set of 8 large plates costs $7.25; cutlery (knives, forks, and spoons) goes for $5.65, and 10 cups sell for $5.85. So, for less than $20, you can get a table setting for 8 that will last for years, and you won’t be filling up your dumpster after a party.

Bottom Line

Gifts for a more sustainable home can help you save money, reduce waste, and be healthier—what’s not to love?