Ikea was curious about what Americans want from their homes. Surprisingly, it has nothing to do with expensive upgrades.

The Swedish retailer’s first annual “US Life at Home Report” uncovered that, above all else, 95% of Americans consider comfort a top home feature. We’re not talking about cushy furniture or other features that makes life at home physically more comfortable. It’s an emotional thing. Ikea found that American consumers want their homes to have a feel-good environment so they can let their hair down and connect with loved ones.

Here are more nuggets from the report:

We aren’t show-offs. In fact, we’re modest (!). Ikea says, “… home in the U.S. is not so much about status or wealth. Or keeping up with the Joneses.” Only a mere 1% wants their abodes to reflect their success.

We love living rooms. Maybe that’s why open kitchens are hot. Homeowners don’t want to be separated from their favorite room. Of those polled, 65% agree it’s the most popular spot in the house.

We feel cramped in the kitchen. We’re starved for kitchen storage. We also want more elbow room and counter space.

We use technology in the kitchen. But this has nothing to do with futuristic home gadgets. A total of 27% listen to music, use the computer, or watch TV while cooking or hanging out.

We stash stuff under our beds. The bedroom is another room that leaves us feeling squeezed for space. Fifty-four percent of Americans use the space under their beds for storage.

We want to save energy. If the opportunity popped up, 98% of us would buy an Energy Star-rated appliance. We’re also starting to shift away from inefficient incandescent light bulbs. Forty-three percent of us have transitioned to LED bulbs and have at least one in the house.

We’re getting greener. A whopping 71% of Americans recycle at home. Twenty-eight percent want to generate their own solar power.

The panel for this study consisted of 4,000 U.S. consumers:

• A combination of male and female heads of household between the ages of 25-54

• Household income of at least $35,000

Falling costs, a host of temporary incentives, and thousands in value-adds make this a great time to add solar power to your home.

Solar power for homes is going mainstream, and if you haven’t thought about adding the technology to your home, you should.

In addition to trimming energy costs and making your house more comfortable, you can take advantage of current rebates and tax credits that practically beg you to get on the solar bandwagon. Those incentives won’t last forever.

Need more convincing? Here are the top reasons to go solar:

1. The Price is (Getting) Right

As solar panels and installation methods get more efficient, the price of residential solar electricity has dropped a whopping 46% since 2010.

Meanwhile, the national average cost of an entire household system — one big enough to power the everyday needs of a family of four — has fallen from about $36,000 in 2010 to around $24,000, factoring in permits and installation.

That still puts solar in the range of a new car — and out of the reach of many — but there’s much more to the cost story.

2. Rebates, Incentives, and Credits — Oh My! (But They Won’t Last!)

Rebates and incentives offered by the local, state, and federal government can total as much as 50% of a system, depending on where you live. Some states even throw in exemptions for property taxes and sales taxes.

The biggest is the tax credit from the Feds. Until Dec. 31, 2016, you’re eligible for a tax credit of 30% of the price of your installed system.

Tip: Make sure your solar installer gives you a rundown of local and state incentives. And double check with your tax adviser.

3. Solar — It’s the Law

One big reason that states offer incentives is the RPS — the renewable portfolio standard. These are mandates some states have imposed on their utility companies, saying how much renewable energy (solar, wind) local utilities must provide their customers by such-and-such a date. Failure to comply means utilities will be fined heavily.

• Hawaii has an ambitious RPS — 40% of the state’s energy must be from renewable energy sources by 2030.

• New Jersey says 22.5% of its energy must be from renewables by 2021.

• Wisconsin requires less but much sooner — 10% by 2015.

Those RPS mandates mean generous credits and rebates on solar, but they’re not here forever. In Wisconsin, for example, they’ll expire after 2015.

4. Payback Times are Shortening

As system prices fall, payback times — the number of years it takes to recoup your investment — are shortening. Payback times are now about half of what they used to be just five years ago; the average payback time is now around 11 years.

Local electrical rates determine how much money you’ll save, and how long it’ll take your energy savings to pay back the cost of a system.

After your payback is complete, years of pure energy savings add up. With annual savings averaging about $600 (and going up 2% to 3% each year), you’ll save thousands of dollars over the 25-year lifetime of a system.

5. You Don’t Need Lots of Sun

Annual energy savings from solar is much more about your local electrical rates than how sunny your locale is. Places with the highest rates enjoy more savings and more rapid payback on their systems.

Here’s a sampling of annual savings from solar energy from EnergySage.com:

• New York City: $1,091 (224 sunny days per year, on average)
• San Francisco: $916 (259 sunny days)
• Phoenix: $701 (300 sunny days)
• Boston: $641 (200 sunny days)
• Minneapolis: $518 (198 sunny days)

6. You Don’t Have to Pay Up Front

One of the latest innovations in home solar is the leasing plan. With leasing, you pay nothing up front for your solar array. A crew comes over, sets you up with panels, a converter, a connection to the grid, and you’re good to go.

You sign a long-term lease agreement of 15 to 25 years and pay only for the solar-generated electricity, which is typically priced 10% to 25% lower than the cost charged by a local utility provider.

You’ll still pay your utility company nominal monthly maintenance fees to keep the grid up and running, plus charges for any electricity you use in excess of what your solar system can provide. Some solar leasing companies guarantee that whatever you spend — combined — will be less than your old monthly electric bill.

SolarCity, one of the world’s largest providers of home solar, throws in an upfront energy evaluation of your house, acquires all necessary permits and licenses (a big hassle; see “10. Soft Costs are Lowering”), and adds a personal website for monitoring your system and energy savings — all for free.

Leasing is a good way to go if you’re interested in adding solar but the upfront costs are a deal breaker. With leasing, you won’t own the system and won’t be able to reap the benefits of free electricity when the system is paid off, but you’ll still trim your monthly electric bill.

7. Big Builders are on Board

Solar providers are hooking up with home builders in increasing numbers, creating houses powered by the sun and bringing solar power into the mainstream homebuying experience. Solar home builders are some of the nation’s biggest, including Meritage and Pulte.

Shea Homes offers a line of homes called SheaXero that includes solar panels designed to take care of all household electrical needs. The system is standard, rather than an option.

8. Big Box Home Improvement Stores are on Board

Solar panels and systems are no longer exotic specialty items. In fact, you’ll find them at major retailers about as cheap as they can be found. For the DIYer determined to shave up to $5,000 from the cost of solar installation, off-the-shelf panels and converters are available.

Here’s a partial rundown of who has them:

• Best Buy
• Costco
• Home Depot
• Ikea
• Walmart

9. Net Metering Rocks

Net metering is the term for what happens when your solar panels generate enough electricity to send the excess back to the grid — in effect, making your meter run backwards.

The regular, grid-produced electricity you use, minus whatever you generate from your rooftop panels, equals the “net” — what your utility company ultimately charges you. If you make more juice than you use, you typically get a credit that rolls over to next month’s bill.

It’s a terrific benefit for owners of solar installations and one way that solar helps pay for itself.

In an attempt to encourage the growth of renewable energy, almost all states have adopted laws that permit net metering. A 2005 federal law says all public utilities must provide net metering if requested by the state.

Every state has its own approach, and you’ll need to check with your local utility to figure out the net metering rules in your locale.

10. Soft Costs are Lowering

As prices for panels fall, solar energy is increasingly affordable. But prices will only fall so far.

Today one of the biggest hurdles is soft costs – the price of obtaining permits, connecting your system to the grid, and having everything inspected (whether your installation is pro or DIY). On average, soft costs add more than $2,500 to the price of home solar.

Reducing paperwork and cutting red tape helps installers be more efficient and lets them pass savings on to you. In Chicago, for example, recent streamlining has trimmed permit wait times from 30 days to one day — a huge boon for solar installation efficiency.

Trimming soft costs is an initiative of the U.S. Department of Energy, which has a stated goal of reducing the 2011 costs of solar energy 75% by 2020. The DOE is hoping a $5 million research grant will spur the development of “plug-and-play” systems that can be installed in a day.

11. Solar Adds Value

Studies by the Appraisal Institute, a worldwide association of real estate appraisers, say a home improvement that leads to documented energy savings can yield up to a 20-to-1 valuation. At that rate, if your solar array saves $1,000 per year, you can expect a $20,000 increase in your home’s value.

An actual valuation increase depends on the location and condition of your house.

That info is echoed by research from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory that says every kilowatt of electricity your solar system is capable of generating adds about $3,500 to the resale value of a home. For a typical 5 kW system, that’s a $17,500 bump.

Tip: To get your marketing edge, document your energy bill before and after your solar installation.

Bonus: You Can Save the Planet

Add “save the planet” to the list of benefits and you’d be right — lowering reliance on fossil fuels reduces pollution for everybody. But if you’re like most people, that’s not a big motivator.

When asked what was the most-convincing reason for installing solar power, only 3% of respondents said “reducing environmental impact,” according to a survey from national polling firm Zogby Analytics.

The most popular answer from homeowners was “low upfront costs,” followed closely by “save money on monthly utility bill.”

Saving money is good. And while you’re at it, you can add “saving jobs” to the list of bennies.

“Solar energy is a tremendous driver of economic growth and jobs,” says Jonathan Bass, vice president of communications at SolarCity. “Right now we’re hiring upwards of 400 people per month.”

A New York City designer shares secrets to making a small bath both functional and beautiful.

Got a small bathroom to renovate? Go wild with texture and colors if it’s a rarely used guest bath, but stick to clean and simple in a master bath.

That’s the word from designer Jamie Gibbs, who transforms incredibly small New York City bathrooms into beautiful spaces. “I liked being shocked by details in a little space, especially if it’s not going to be used much,” Gibbs says.

His small-bath secrets:

1. Avoid textures in bathrooms that get daily use. In a heavily used bathroom, anything with texture becomes a collection spot for mold, mildew, and toothpaste. Say no to carved vessel sinks or floor tile with indentations.

2. Be careful with no-enclosure showers with drains right in the floor. These Euro showers allow for a feeling of openness, but the average American contractor doesn’t know how to waterproof the floor for them, Gibbs says. The tile seals can be compromised if not installed correctly, causing the materials to decompose, and water to leak underneath.

3. Use opaque windows and skylights to let light filter into all parts of the bath. A long skinny window with frosted glass means you don’t have to burn high-wattage light bulbs. Make sure water condensation will roll off the window into an appropriate place (i.e. not the framing or the wall) to avoid future maintenance issues.

4. Look for fixtures that have a single handle rather than separate hot and cold taps. “Space-saving gearshift faucets are a very good choice in small bathrooms,” says Gibbs. You’ll also save money by not having to drill holes in the countertop for the hot and cold taps.

5. Save space with wall-mounted toilets and bidets, but be aware that the water tank goes into the wall. That’s fine if space is such a premium that you won’t mind going into the wall to make any repairs. But if you share a wall with a neighbor, that’s a different issue.

6. Use a wall-mount faucet to make a reduced-depth vanity work in a small space. “I can get away with a 22” vanity instead of a 24” vanity with a wall mount faucet,” Gibbs says.

7. Check the space between the handles and the faucet of any space-saving fixtures. “If you can only get a toothbrush in it to clean, you’ll save space, but it’s functionally stupid,” Gibbs says. Make sure the sink is functional, too. If you’re using a vessel sink, make sure it’s large enough and not too high. “If it’s too high, you’ll knock it so many times that the fittings will come loose,” Gibbs says.

8. A pedestal sink is all form and no function. “It’s a great-looking sink, but there’s no place to [set] anything,” Gibbs says.

9. Wall-mounted vanities seem like they’re space savers, but they create dead space between the vanity and the floor — a space that often accumulates junk and never gets cleaned.

10. If you’re comfortable with it, go European and put up a glass walls between the bathroom and bedroom to create the illusion of space. Or put bathroom fixtures in the bedroom just outside the bath.

If you prefer a drier cool, as opposed to the misters we mentioned yesterday, read on to find some quick ways to make some shade. Plus, get some tips on getting shade with some quick-growing trees.

Immediate relief

Umbrellas, awnings, and quick-assembly patio tents are quick, although sometimes costly, methods of creating shade instantly.

The ubiquitous patio umbrella—found even in grocery stores for $30—can either stand alone upright or offset, or slip into a hole in your patio table.

Choose an umbrella that tilts, so you can block the sun at any angle. Or get one that’s fabulous, like Frontgate’s Rimbou Lotus Shade, which looks like a giant palm frond. (Cost: $1,795.)

Retractable awnings, a permanent feature of older southern homes, are traditional shade makers for outdoor areas up to 12 feet from your house. Motorized awnings take the fuss out of opening and closing. Depending on size and what kind of bells and whistles they come with, awnings typically cost from $400 to $3,000.

Portable awnings are my favorite, because they make shade wherever, not just areas close to the house. SunSetter’s Large Oasis Freestanding Awning, measuring 16 ft. by 10 ft., can provide 160 sq. ft. of shade. (Cost: $1,549 manual; $2,099 motorized.)

A cloth gazebo (aka patio tent or canopy) is another option that’s great for entertaining. You can go simple and inexpensive ($50 for Target’s Outdoor Patio Pariesienne Gazebo Canopy, though online reviews indicate you get what you pay for). Or you can step it up with the Garden Oasis Lighted Gazebo, complete with lights and netting for $700 at Sears.

Long-term re-leaf

Growing shade trees is the greenest—and slowest—way to block the sun on patios and decks. There’s nothing as cool as sitting under the shade of an old oak tree.

If you can’t wait 20 years for a little shade, plant a quick-growing variety which, in tree language, means it grows a couple of feet or more each year. You can rush the process by paying more and buying big trees, and you’ll see a return on your investment. Here are some species to consider.

• American Elm: (Zones 2-9) Grows rapidly up to 100 feet tall and 120 feet wide. Adapts to varied climates and soil conditions.

• October Glory Red Maple: (Zones 4-9) Provides a 35-foot spread and grows to 40 feet high.

• Sawtooth Oak: (Zones 4-9) Dark green summer foliage turns yellow to brown in fall. Wildlife will love its acorns.

• Chinese Pistache: (Zones 6-9) Wonderful wide canopy and grows in all but the coldest zones.

• Natchez Crape Myrtle: (Zones 7-10) Lots of long-blooming white flowers and cinnamon-colored bark.

How do you block the sun from baking your patio or deck in summer? Did you plant a tree a few years back that is now rewarding you with lots of shade? We’d love to know!

By: Lisa Kaplan Gordon
Published: May 24, 2011

Is your AC making ominous noises? Maybe it sounds fine but isn’t cooling. Here’s a list of common air conditioning warning signs and their likely causes and fixes.

“Let comfort be your guide,” says Tom Hutchinson of Hutchinson Plumbing Heating Cooling. Air conditioning is all about comfort, so the simplest way to evaluate your system is to ask: Am I comfortable?

Air conditioning and HVAC units don’t last forever — 12 years is an average lifespan — and the moment they fail is usually when you need them the most.

The good news is that not every system malfunction spells total doom. Many nuisances are so cheap and easy to fix, you’ll kick yourself for not doing them sooner.

Warning sign #1: My air conditioning won’t turn on

Possible cause: Often, the most likely culprit is the easiest to remedy: the thermostat isn’t set correctly, or power isn’t reaching the AC unit.

The fix: Check to see that the thermostat is set to AC or “cool,” that the temperature setting is correct, and that the battery is fresh. Second, check the circuit breaker: It could simply be a tripped fuse.

Cost: Free

Warning sign #2: I’m not as comfortable as I was last year

Possible cause: “Airflow is paramount to comfort,” notes Hutchinson. If you aren’t comfortable, the problem usually can be traced to issues with airflow.

The fix: Change the filter. (You should do this as part of regular HVAC maintenance anyway.) Depending on the quality of the filter, the amount of people living in the house, and if there are pets, the filter should be changed every 30-90 days.

Outdoors, make sure there’s at least 24 inches of clearance on the sides and 5 feet on top of the unit. Also, check to make sure there are no obstructions to the home’s cold air returns and registers.

Cost: $5 to $20, depending on filter.

Warning sign #3: My utility bills are abnormally high

Possible cause: A spike in operating costs typically signals inefficient operation. After a dirty filter (warning sign #2), the most likely culprit is a choked condensing coil. Located within the outdoor unit, the coil has countless cooling fins — much like a car radiator — that can accumulate dust and debris.

The fix: Call out a pro for a spring tune-up.

Cost: $75 to $150

Warning sign #4: Weird noises during startup and operation

Possible cause: Rattling, buzzing, or ticking? The good news is that the cause might be little more than a loose screw. The bad news is that it could be caused by a bum blower motor (indoors) or bent fan blade (outdoors).

The fix: If you’re lucky, a simple tightening here and lubricating there will fix the problem. If not, you might require a new fan motor or fan blade.

Cost: $75 for an inspection and tune-up; $750 for a new motor.

Warning sign #5: The AC shuts off before or long after I’m comfortable

Possible cause: Improper placement of the thermostat can wreak havoc on one’s comfort. The unit might be in direct sun, too close to a register, or near a hot oven. Also, a remodel might have you spending more time where the thermostat is not.

The fix: Relocate the thermostat.

Cost: Free if you’re handy (and plan on reusing the same unit), up to $150 for a new programmable unit and somebody to install it.

Warning sign #6: There’s a puddle of water next to my furnace

Possible cause: During normal operation, the system generates moisture in the form of condensate. That water collects in a pan and flows out a line either into a floor drain or sump basin. An accumulation of water signals a blockage or disconnection of the tube.

The fix: Inspect the tube for crimps, clogs, and disconnections. Also, if the water flows into a sump basin, ensure that the sump pump is in good working order.

Cost: Free to clean out blockage; $20 to replace line; $50 for new sump pump.

Warning sign #7: The air coming out of the registers doesn’t feel as cold as it used to

Possible cause: The refrigerant lines aren’t insulated.

The fix: The outdoor unit is connected to the indoor system by two copper refrigerant lines, which should be covered with an insulating sleeve. Make sure that it is. Also, the system may need its refrigerant re-charged.

Cost: $5 for insulation and up to $150 for a system re-charge.

Warning sign #8: My AC unit refuses to kick on at all

Possible cause: Burnt-out compressor

The fix: If the compressor fails, the unit won’t run. The only fix for this is a costly replacement of the equipment.

Cost: $600 to $1,000. It might be wise to replace your air conditioner if it’s more than 8 years old.

By: Douglas Trattner
Published: May 30, 2012