Figuring out some Eco-friendly upgrade ideas for your home in the fall isn’t always easy. Certainly, not every idea that pops into your head will qualify.

While making your home eco-friendly has small, easy solutions (like using eco friendly dishwasher detergent), some upgrades are time-sensitive, and best tackled during springtime or in early summer. Below are 5 Eco-friendly upgrade ideas to get you started this fall.

1. Replace an Old Mattress with Something Better

An old mattress might capture heat leading to an overuse of fan cooling in the hotter months, which can easily lead to an increase in your energy bill. This is because manufacturers used less breathable mattress materials compared to what’s used today. If you’re looking to replace your mattress, then a model made of memory foam is going to be far more breathable, eco-friendly, and will provide the right amount of support. You can find some great mattress deals on Cyber Monday too.

2. Add More Insulation

If the current insulation isn’t Eco-friendly or it’s simply not enough judging by how cold it was in years past, then the fall is a great time to address this. This way, it’ll prove useful for you almost immediately and will help to lower your heating bills in the wintertime.

It’s possible to add additional insulation to the ceiling and uppermost levels. Heat rises, so preventing it from escaping through the ceiling avoids needing to reheat each room repeatedly when they’ve cooled down. Also, add insulation panels at the rear of wall heaters and in spots that feel especially cold.

3. Solar Panels on the Roof

A solar panel installation that’s substantial enough is the ultimate in green energy. Modern solar performance is excellent from a row of panels in the 100 to 150-watt range per panel. A bank of deep cycle batteries can store the captured energy from the sun’s rays and produce a ready supply of power to the home.

What you can expect from solar depends on the county that you’re residing in. Some states receive more sun than others, but even when not in the sunniest spot, new panels can harness and produce a good amount of energy. With angled roofs, this is especially true because they’re perfectly positioned to capture the most sunlight on any given day.

For energy, it’s difficult for a homeowner to get any greener with their requirements. Wind turbines might even be more eco-friendly, but they’re impractical for personal residences.

4. Give Your Backyard a Makeover

If your backyard hasn’t seen you giving it much time over the weekends, then it may be showing the signs of this by now. However, there’s much that can be done to improve its Eco-friendly status.

Start with mowing the lawn because then you can see what you’re dealing with once this task is out the way. If it hasn’t been done in a while, then it’ll probably require a couple of run-throughs to end up with a good-looking lawn. Next, see what can be collected up for a compost bin. If you already have one, take a look to see if you have any compost ready to use as healthy fertilizer over the plants to enrich them before the colder months are here.

Also, trim any plants and hedges back to remove dead elements. This will allow them to grow bigger and stronger and may provide feed for the compost bin too. In October, collect up the fallen leaves and use them to add to the compost heap. Afterward, the refreshed garden will be ready to make it through the colder months and into spring next year.

5. Give the Exterior Some Love with Eco-friendly Paint

If the exterior of your home is looking a bit shabby because the paintwork is fading and some spots are flaking off, then it’s time to address this before the possibility of a snowy winter is here. The added moisture from melting snow could get through spotty paintwork and damage the exterior structure. So, it’s best addressed now before the weather might worsen. Eco-paints use oils created from plants and resins with plant dyes and minerals as their base. This ensures the paint is soluble for easy painting. There are no toxic elements to worry about either.

By taking a few Eco-friendly steps each season, they will accumulate with time. Eventually, your home will become far greener than when it started.