In late 2018, my husband and I bought a mid century home in the suburbs of Los Angeles. In addition to salmon pink wallpaper, baby blue carpet, and asbestos-laden popcorn ceilings, our home came with basically no energy efficiency features. With both budget and the environment in mind, I set out to transform this home into a model of how homes can be retrofitted for a sustainable future. This page documents some of the changes we implemented in our first seven years of homeownership.
The Impact So Far
When we first moved in, the house interior would easily reach 90 degrees if the A/C was not turned on and during heat waves (95 degrees or hotter), the A/C would run constantly just to maintain 80 degrees inside. Now, we do not need to run the A/C at all during typical summer days and during heat waves, the house will not exceed 83 degrees without A/C. We've also found that we can run the A/C for 2-3 hours before noon (when solar is abundant and energy is cheap) then not need to run it at all in the afternoon when demand is high to maintain a comfortable temperature. Our water usage is also consistently in the lowest 10% for our area without feeling deprived.
Building Envelope: Insulation, Windows & Doors
Los Angeles is famous for its beautiful year round weather, but that's not quite true in the San Fernando Valley, where it frequently swings between 30 and 110 degrees Fahrenheit throughout the year. Despite that, homes built after WWII did not generally include insulation in the attic or walls or even deep roof eaves to shield the windows so these homes get hot in the summer and cold in the winter. According to the Department of Energy, over 55% of household energy use is spent on heating and cooling the home. By improving the building envelope (e.g. the physical barrier between conditioned and unconditioned space, like walls, windows, roof, etc.), the home's temperature can be better regulated without additional energy inputs. This is the most important, but often most expensive part of retrofitting a more climate-resilient home.
Our home had blow in insulation in the attic, but it was thin, dusty, and likely lacked flame retardant. We replaced this with batts of R-30 fiberglass insulation, then latter repurposed that batt insulation to insulate the crawlspace and returned to blow in that deep-buried our HVAC ducting. As we have renovated each room, we have been sure to add R-13 fiberglass insulation to all exterior walls or blow-in. As of October 2025, the building envelope has been fully insulated and we have noticed the house is dramatically more comfortable and with reduced temperature differences between rooms. Without A/C, the maximum temperature is no more thn 83 on the hottest day.
Most of the windows in the house had been replaced with double pane windows. However, the two sliding glass doors to the backyard and the garden window in the kitchen were still single pane and drafty. One of the sliding glass doors and the garden window have since been replaced with double pane, low E windows and the difference is noticeable. The final sliding glass door is on our list when we redo the addition. For the western and southern windows, we installed a film to help reflect the sun and reduce heat entering the home.
The front door was a west facing solid wood door that would swell in the summer and stick or shrink in the winter and turn drafty. We replaced this with an insulated Energy Star door with low-E glass with the hope that it would no longer stick or let in drafts. The performance has improved, but it still swells in summer.
Climate Control
Building envelope improvements don't eliminate all needs for heating and cooling, so we sought ways to improve those systems directly. One of the first things we did was install a smart thermostat (we opted for the Ecobee, as it was HomeKit compatible). This installation allows us to set custom schedules, including cooling the house when solar energy is abundant, as well as to adjust the temperature when we're away.
The smart thermostat also allowed us to enroll in a pilot program with the LADWP. Under this program, LADWP can adjust the temperature settings during periods of high demand to shed load (in exchange for an annual Amazon gift card). Generally, this has meant our A/C is automatically set to 82 degrees when it is over 100 degrees outside (we generally set it at 78). In September of 2021, I noticed that the thermostat had been set lower than usual (around 72) with a note that they were pre-cooling our house in anticipation of a high demand event. This way, the house would be sufficiently cool that the A/C would not need to run at all during this high demand period. I'm pleased with this more proactive approach, which could help prevent some of the complaints from a similar program in Texas.
In 2024, we replaced the 4 ton A/C and forced air furnace with a 2 ton reversible heat pump.
Electrical, Lighting & Solar
The other 45% of home energy use is on running appliances, lighting, etc. Our very first order of business was to replace all the incandescent bulbs with LED versions. According to the Department of Energy, LEDs use at least 75% less energy than incandescents and last 25 times longer, resulting in less waste in power and the landfill.
More intensively, we rewired the entire house and we set our sights on the panel box. 100 amps, overloaded circuits, and no grounding. Unacceptable. We upgraded to a 200 amp panel that could safely support modern appliances, solar panels, and a future EV charging station. We also replaced most of the light switches with Lutron smart switches. We can control our lights from our phone and ensure that no lights or fans are left on when we're away. My husband also wrote a script that turns on several lights for 3 minutes when we come home, so we don't have to leave a light on all night just for when we return.
As we've replaced appliances, we have prioritized Energy Star rated versions that use less electricity. To date, we've upgraded our dishwasher and fridge.
With over 300 sunny days a year, solar in Los Angeles is a no-brainer. We installed a 10 panel array (330 W each) capable of generating 3.3 kilowatts per hour. See Solar Panels to see how the production compares to our usage over time. We're currently considering expanding the array to cover all of our usage plus an EV in the future, as well as tie into a 20 KWh battery storage system.
Natural Gas Elimination
The typical Los Angeles single family home uses natural gas for heating and cooking as this was historically a cheap fuel and the pipelines were built in as the area was developed. However, with the war in Ukraine, we saw natural gas prices shoot up thanks to a volatile global market. We've also learned more and more how much using this fossil fuel contributes to indoor air pollution and increases house fire risks, especially after earthquakes when pipes break and leak. In 2024, my husband was diagnosed with a rare leukemia associated with significant benzene exposure - we believe he developed this cancer as a result of working near the Aliso Canyon leak in 2015. Natural gas became enemy #1 and we wanted it out of our house ASAP.
In 2023, we replaced our gas range with an electric version that includes an induction cooktop. While cooking is only a tiny portion of home gas usage, it is a major contributor to poor air quality since the gas flame is inside the house. Induction cooking is more efficient and much faster than traditional resistive electrical cooking as electromagnets are used to heat the pans directly. Another bonus - by heating the pans directly, less heat is released into the kitchen, keeping it nice and cool. We have loved this upgrade, 100% would recommend.
As mentioned above, we replaced our gas furnace with a heat pump - we've found the heat to be significantly more comfortable, as it doesn't blast us directly. It's also significantly quieter.
Finally, in 2025, we replaced our natural gas tankless water heater with an 80 gallon heat pump water heater. The tank water heater serves as an emergency source of drinkable water, is highly efficient, and qualified for several tax credits and rebates. With that, we became an all-electric household.
Indoor Water Efficiency
Los Angeles requires that all homes sold must be fitted with low flow shower heads and toilets, so the seller replaced the 5-gallons-per-flush (gpf) toilets with more reasonable 1.28 gpf versions. The shower heads were also replaced, but cheap and flimsy, so we picked up replacements on clearance. After we moved in, we installed an aerator on the kitchen tap to slow the flow of the water without sacrificing pressure or power.
As part of our kitchen renovation, we replaced our old dishwasher with an Energy Star rated version that reduced the water per run from 10 gallons to 4.
We also installed a Flume water monitoring device that alerts us to leaks and helps us keep an eye on our overall usage.
With our heat pump water heater, we added a recirculating pump and a timer to make sure that the water in the pipes is already hot when we need it. This cuts down on wasted water waiting for the shower or tap to heat up.
Lawn & Irrigation
The previous homeowner was a single man. So you can imagine our surprise when we received our first water bill and saw that he had been using 16 HCF (hundred cubic feet) or nearly 12,000 gallons of water every two months (more than double what we currently use as a household of three).
How? The aforementioned high-flow toilets and faucets definitely didn't help, but ultimately, we believe it was landscaping. The gentleman had kept both front and back lawns and dozens of plants lush and green with plenty of water - with a significant leak to boot. We ripped out the front lawn and replaced it with over 500 square feet of raised beds for growing vegetables, and drought tolerant plants and succulents. To irrigate that garden, we installed a Rachio smart controller that waters only when needed and drip irrigation lines buried under several inches of mulch to minimize evaporation. Unfortunately, the heat waves have still been frying my summer plants, so I've been experimenting with shade cloth, ollas to promote deeper, less frequent watering, and prioritizing drought resistant seed varietals and native plants.
In early 2025, we turned sixteen 55-gallon plastic drums into a rainwater capture system with over 800 gallons of storage capacity. Unfortunately, we did this after most of the winter storms, so we excited to see how this system performs in the next rainy season.
Behavior
As a self-proclaimed sustainability fanatic, I don't mind going a little out of my way for the more sustainable option. But I know its not realistic to ask everyone to do the same so I focus on more structural or one-off ways to make a difference. But I would be remiss not to mention the behavior changes we've implemented to run a more sustainable household.
Minimize the use of climate control by closing windows and blinds, using fans, and dressing appropriately for the weather
Capture water in shower as its warming up to water plants
Hang dry all our clothes (we don't own a clothes dryer)
Develop relationships with neighbors to borrow items and tools instead of purchasing new
Source secondhand furniture and household goods
Walk, bike, or use public transit for local errands when possible. My partner carpools to work.
What's Next?
Install a cool roof when roof needs replacement
Add awnings over western and southern windows to keep them out of direct sunlight
EV charging station and electric vehicle
Replace concrete patio with permeable pavers to reduce stormwater run off
Laundry-to-landscape gray water system
Last Updated 10/3/2025