5 Best Products to Make Your Airbnb Rental More Energy Efficient

Airbnb hosts do a lot of things to increase their profit. They invest in trendy decor, kitchen appliances, and other guest amenities. But one seriously overlooked factor that goes into increasing your profit is reducing your cost.

One of the biggest costs of running an Airbnb home is electricity. The good news is that there are now more products and devices than ever on the market that can help you improve your home’s energy efficiency. 

After upgrading these items, you can also market your home as environmentally friendly as an added benefit. This will help you not only reduce costs but improve your guests’ experience. 

Check out these five products that can make your Airbnb more energy efficient.

1. LED Lightbulbs

LED stands for “light-emitting diode.” The term refers to a now common technology that uses a semiconductor (the diode) to generate light. The LED process is much more efficient than traditional incandescent bulbs and CFL lighting, primarily because incandescent bulbs push electricity through a wire that generates a lot of heat. 

The result of this more efficient process is long-term cost savings from using LED lighting. USA Today estimates that you can save $3.98 per bulb per year in electricity costs by switching to LED from incandescent lighting. While the upfront cost of LED is higher, these bulbs can last about ten years. 

The electricity costs savings more than makeup for the initial cost, saving about $70 per bulb. The average house has 40 lightbulbs in it, so that is approximately a $2,800 savings over ten years. 

Our Pick

When it comes to LED bulbs, your options are wide open. Companies make them in different colors, brightness, and even make smart LED bulbs. These Sylvania basic bulbs are a good choice for basic setups. But if you want something a bit more exciting, you can opt for these colorful smart LED bulbs by Daybetter. Not only are they dimmable, but they also work with Google Home and Alexa.

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2. Smart Power Strips

Many of your appliances and devices keep using power even when they’re off or in sleep mode. Yes, they never really turn off.

Add up all the different plugged-in electronics in your home, and that can add up to be a major energy drain. We call this situation “vampire load” because these appliances and devices use energy to no benefit to the user. According to The National Renewable Energy Laboratory, the average home sees additional costs from vampire load up to $200 per year.  

Our Pick

This is why there are now smart energy-saving power strips, like this MaxStrip. MaxStrip has five outlets that fully turn off when you’re not using the appliance or device. Two outlets always stay on, good for primary devices. MaxStrips states that using an energy-saving power strip can reduce power-related costs by 15%, so we can assume that the same applies to its product.

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3. Window Insulation Kits

The US Department of Energy estimates that 25-30% of all residential heating and cooling makes up for energy lost through the windows of a home. While upgrading and replacing windows is a major renovation and expense, there are relatively simple and inexpensive products that you can buy that can improve the energy efficiency of your windows without a renovation.

Our Pick

This Duck MAX window insulating film is inexpensive and can be applied and installed without specialized tools or expertise. Even applying weather stripping like this Keliiyo window seal strip over drafty or leaky windows can improve your windows’ insulating ability. 

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4. Smart Thermometer

Your home does not need to be the same temperature all the time. And in an Airbnb situation, the thermostat is at the mercy of the guests. But when they aren’t there, using a smart thermometer can help you reduce energy use. 

First, you can program it to adjust the temperature automatically when you know there won’t be guests or other residents in the house. Second, you can access these thermostats through an app on your mobile device. This lets you manually adjust temperatures to more efficient settings when the house might be vacant for an extended period. 

Our Pick

The most well-known model of a smart thermostat is the Google Nest. A recent white paper prepared by Nest estimated energy savings of approximately 10% for natural gas and 18% for electricity. The estimate when using consistent set points was closer to 20%. Just keep in mind that your energy cost savings may vary depending on the season, climate, and the number of guests.

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5. Smart Charging Stations

Like vampire load, when mobile devices like phones, e-readers, and tablets are plugged into a charging station, they will continue to draw power from the source even if they are fully charged. Even a plugged-in charger without a device plugged into it will use up power. 

While any particular device is only drawing a small amount of energy, it can be a real drain if this is multiplied by a dozen devices.

Our Pick

While you could solve this by problem running around and unplugging devices and chargers every time you finish using them, guests at an Airbnb will not do that. It’s an unfair and unrealistic expectation.

However, if you install a smart charging station like this one, it will turn each USB port on and off once your device finishes charging or you’re not using it. Not only will this power-saving feature save you money, but you also get the bonus of a convenient amenity for guests. 

Small touches like this can significantly improve a guest’s experience, especially since technology no longer stays at home when we go on vacation.

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Conclusion

By making even the smallest component of your Airbnb energy efficient, your energy savings will add up significantly. You don’t have to invest in expensive green technology or install solar panels on your roof to be energy efficient. A lightbulb here and a power-saving charging station there, and you’re good to go! Once you’ve made the switch to energy efficiency, you’ll never want to go back.