Got A Tree Service Project?

Architect Phillip Johnson’s Glass House in New Canaan, CT is a leading real-world example of how trees help to moderate heating and cooling costs. In the warmer months of the year, the trees’ foliage shields the southerly side of the home from excessive solar gain. In the colder months, the trees drop their leaves, allowing a maximum amount of sunlight to reach the interior of the home.

How About Your Homestead? The simplest way to gauge how the trees in your yard are enhancing or detracting from this ageless principle is to first pinpoint “Due South.” If you do not have a manual compass, check your smart phone for a "Compass App."

Here in Avon, CT, at 42 Degrees Latitude, we are 210 Miles closer to the Equator than the North Pole. The hours from 10am - 4pm tend to have the highest solar gain potential.

Standing in your yard, you can guesstimate how the sun travels in the sky day after day, year after year, from east to west (the sun reaches up to 72 Degrees around June 21 and 25 Degrees above the horizon around December 21)

Appreciating how the trees and foliage in your yard are helping or hindering your home’s ability to moderate heating and cooling, this is where trees and foliage can dramatically impact heating and cooling costs.

Should you discover that the southerly side of your home is fully exposed 365 days a year, you can imagine how that will force your air conditioning to work so much harder in the summertime to maintain a comfortable temperature inside, increasing your monthly bills..

In contrast, if the southerly side of your home is shielded by an overly thick layer of evergreens, preventing winter sunlight from reaching your home, this will put extra pressure on your furnace to keep the house warm in the colder months of the year, increasing your monthly bills.

Heating, Cooling and “Curb Appeal" Planted thoughtfully, trees and foliage reduce the costs of cooling in the summer, heating in the winter and improve your property’s “curb appeal,” adding value to your property in both tangible and aesthetic ways.

Your Driveway Trees and foliage strategically planted or removed along your driveway can dramatically reduce your fall and winter maintenance costs by lowering the amount of leaf pickup or allowing more natural sunlight to reach your driveway during the winter.

Spring / Fall Clean Up Thoughtful landscaping can reduce the amount of fall and spring clean up required to keep your property looking its best year around.

Smart Landscape Design - Design vs Best Intentions. On the one hand, many homesteads, originally planted with the “Four Seasons” in mind, have become overgrown and are in need of thoughtful and judicious landscape work to improve their Homes’ performance and aesthetic appeal.

On the other hand, a number of home sites were originally designed without enough thought devoted to how trees and foliage affects their homes’ operating and maintenance costs.

Call Kevin Today For A Free Consultation.  When was the last time you walked Your Lot? Maybe when you bought the property? Do you think your homestead may be in need of an expert diagnosis? Call Kevin today at 860-883-0016 for a free, no obligation consult on ways to enhance your homestead. 

Every home site is unique. If you haven't taken a good look around your property in a while, you will definitely find the conversation enlightening.