Los Angeles Home Comfort Tips

Whether you’re an L.A. native who has lived in your home for a decade or a new transplant to our beautiful city – and new to your home too – feeling comfortable is probably on the top of your list of priorities. We spend a LOT of our lives in places where we’re not comfortable like work, school, the grocery store, a first date, a job interview, and a whole host of other places where everything feels rigid, awkward, too hot, too cold, or utterly unwelcoming. Your home should be different.

At home, you should feel like the atmosphere, the look and feel, the temperature, and even the air you breathe is catered to your preference and desires. You are the king or queen of your own castle, and it should feel that way year round. We’ve rounded up some of the BEST, easiest ways to improve your home comfort whether your home is old, new, or somewhere in between.

Embrace Your Space

Whether you’re in a minimalist one-bedroom home with a partner or roommate or you’re living in a four-bedroom family home with kids and pets, it’s important to love the space you’re in. This means that every room in your home is functional for your needs and that whether you’re working to transform tight spaces or happy spreading out, you can make it yours.

How to make your L.A. house a home:

There are many different ways that you can make your house feel more like home. House Nerd suggests tips like:

• Diversify where you buy your home goods from.
  If everything in your home comes from IKEA, Target, Crate & Barrell or Pottery Barn this year, your home is going to look more like a catalog of stock images and less like an expression of you and yours. Pick up pieces as you go, and don’t take ALL your cues from the store display.
• Display sentimental or personal items.
  Your home will feel less staged and more comfortable when you see yourself reflected in every space. This might mean hanging photos, shelving books that mean something to you, or putting up your kids’ artwork.
• Add some greenery.
  Your home can really feel like you and like a place where real life happens when you infuse your spaces with plant life. Add a hanging pot, a succulent, or a 6-foot tree wherever it suits you, and watch how that little touch of green can impact your environment.
• When all else fails, relax.
  Don’t worry so much about how your home will appeal to others. Instead, focus on making it work for YOU, and watch how quickly you become more confident and comfortable in every room. That comfort will be contagious when you entertain, and you’ll feel proud to share your home with others.

Revamp a Room Affordably

We all have those rooms that were the last to get the golden touch. Perhaps when you moved into your space you made the living and dining rooms the oases that they should be – ripe for entertaining – but the poor bathrooms lack the luxe finish.

Brainstorm ways to start giving these rooms the attention they need without a pricey, stressful overhaul. Swap out hardware, paint an accent wall, or add a new texture with drapes, a rug, or even a set of fresh towels in the half bath. A quick touch-up will feel like self-care when you walk into a room and feel at home instead of ill-at-ease.

Breathe Cleaner Indoor Air

This might seem like a rookie tip, but you’ll be surprised how many people aren’t giving their indoor air quality enough attention. For many homes, swapping out filters as recommended is enough to breathe easy. However, Los Angeles can fall victim to smog, emissions, wildfires, and other outdoor influences that can seep indoors. Indoor air cleaners and purifiers can help ease the burden on your filter and help your HVAC system (and your lungs) work as they should.

Control Humidity in Your Home

Imbalanced humidity is the enemy of comfort. Too much humidity and you’re going to feel clammy, phlegmy, and overcome by that sticky, summertime feeling you DON’T want. Especially here in California, humidity just isn’t that common, so having an excess of humidity in your home will feel strange and uncomfortable for you. Likewise, if your home is too dry, you’ll feel it too. Dry eyes, bloody noses, itchy skin, and red, dry eyes are all signs that your home needs a humidifier.

A professional can come and analyze your home to let you know where your humidity level stands and how to rectify any imbalance but you may be able to identify that need for yourself, too. Once your humidity level is within an ideal, comfortable range, you’ll feel so much better.

Invest in Home Security

If you and your family don’t feel safe, you can’t feel comfortable. Security and comfort go hand in hand. For you, this may mean installing security cameras or an alarm system or having regular pest control appointments to avoid creepy crawlies.

It is also essential that your home is equipped with working and reliable smoke detectors and CO detectors. Learn more about the dangers of carbon monoxide here. Once your home is secured with these measures of safety, you can rest easy knowing that you are doing everything you can to keep your family safe.

Upgrade to a Smart Home

While technology can sometimes feel like a burden, it isn’t the enemy. Smart and conscientious scientists and technicians work to improve our world by inventing and improving technologies to make life easier, safer, and more comfortable for us.

While some “smart home” technologies might be extravagant for your lifestyle, and not everyone needs a refrigerator that carries on conversations with you, there are some smart home upgrades that could make you happier and more comfortable. For example, an Amazon Alexa or other smart device can play music for you, turn your lights on and off at your request, make phone calls, provide answers to your questions, and a lot more that could make life easier.

A smart thermostat is also a good move for individuals looking to upgrade the comfort in their home. The more control you have over your temperature and home environment, the more comfortable you’ll be. Not only does a smart thermostat give you more control over your home comfort, but it can also help you save more energy over time, leading to lower utility bills. (And who doesn’t like to save money while keeping comfortable?)

Feel Cozy Year-Round

So much about home comfort comes down to temperature, doesn’t it? When you’re too cold, it won’t matter how beautiful your wall décor is or how fluffy those bath towels look folded in the master bath – you’re going to be uncomfortable. Similarly, if you’re feeling sweaty in these hot SoCal summers, nothing will make you feel comfortable until the air conditioner steps up to save the day.

At Brody Pennell, we like to think of ourselves as home comfort experts. We’ve been in the business long enough to know exactly what it takes to keep L.A. homeowners comfortable year-round. Below, we’ve put together a little guide with our top 5 expert tips for keeping your temperature RIGHT where you want it.

How to Control Your Home Temperature

• Learn to program your thermostat.
  When your thermostat is more intuitive to your patterns of life and knows when to level your temperatures up or down, you’ll be able to feel comfortable and catered to all the time. Don’t want to bother changing the temperature every time you leave and return? Invest in a programmable or smart thermostat that will automatically adjust the temperature for you for optimal home comfort and energy savings.
• Consider zoning your space.
  If you and your family members tend to prefer different levels of warm and cool temperatures OR if parts of your home tend to retain heat or feel more drafty, zoning could help you keep things more comfortable throughout your home. When you use zoning to customize the comfort levels in each room of your home, you can make sure that everyone stays comfy, no matter what their preferences are. You can also use zoning to help balance temperatures throughout your space to make sure that the comfort you feel in the kitchen travels with you to the den, your bedroom, and beyond.
• Don’t work against your HVAC system
  Being cognizant of your lifestyle and how it impacts your home comfort will allow you to help your HVAC system perform at its best. For example, by turning off lights, drawing window blinds closed, or using fans wisely, you can help make sure your air conditioner isn’t working too hard. This will save you money on energy costs, keep your AC in better shape for longer, and prevent wear & tear. Similarly, by running your heat just a little lower, keeping your filter clean, and warming your home with a fireplace or space heater when possible, you can keep your heat pump or furnace happy and functional for much longer. Using your heater more efficiently will result in cheaper operating costs and more comfort for you.
• Have your system properly maintained.
  Having your system maintained both DIY and by a professional can extend its life and help ensure that the system keeps working effectively and efficiently. Proper maintenance can also help you get ahead of a major issue, preventing the need for costly repairs or uncomfortable downtime for your system. Though there are some maintenance tasks you can perform yourself, like changing your air filter, you may want to call in the professionals for help with other tasks like cleaning and lubricating your equipment. When your HVAC technician is staying abreast of issues, he or she can help you avoid waiting so long to repair that the system fails and you’re uncomfortable in your own home.
• Replace your unit when it makes sense.
  HVAC systems – air conditioners, furnaces, heat pumps, ductless systems, and all of their components – have a lifespan. They do not live forever. This means that at some point, your system will need to be replaced. Heed the warnings of your HVAC system itself and consult with a professional if you think you’re getting close to needing a replacement. Waiting too long could result in system failure that will leave you sweaty in July, frozen in the winter, and unhappy with the atmosphere of your home. Here are some signs that your system might need to be replaced.

If you find yourself in the market for a tune-up, a repair, or maintenance on your HVAC system OR if you would like to consult about upgrading your HVAC system, contact Brody Pennell today!

Ultimately, feeling comfortable, safe, healthy, and happy in your home doesn’t have to be expensive, impossible, or difficult to attain. With a few tweaks and more focus on the important things, your home comfort is 100% in your control.

Which tips will YOU be implementing this summer? What else do YOU think makes a home more comfortable? Let us know on Facebook or poll your friends by hitting the SHARE buttons below!