Our parents used to tell us “you can’t have dessert if you don’t eat your vegetables”. This sage advice can neatly be applied to the relationship between energy efficiency (the vegetables) and renewable energy (the dessert). The reason is that unless your home is in tip-top energy shape, investing in renewable energy, like solar and wind, simply doesn’t make any sense.Energy efficiency means making your home perform the same functions using less energy. In other words, by investing in a high efficiency air conditioning unit and adding insulation, weather stripping and air sealing, for example, you can keep your house to the same cool temperature while using less energy. In essence, you get the same for less! And by making your home more energy efficient first, your solar array won’t need to produce as much power. In other words, you will save money in the long run by reducing the size of the system you need to purchase, because you won’t need as much electricity. What’s best about energy efficiency is that it is the most cost-effective way to reduce energy consumption, go green, and save money on your utility bill. So before installing your solar array, go for the low-hanging fruit (or vegetables in this case) by investing in energy efficiency.