Tips and Tricks on How to Make Your Home Environmentally Friendly

Designing and building your own green home is a great way to reduce energy consumption and the overall impact you have on the environment, but some of us do not really have the chance to start from the beginning. A new and energy optimized home is a big project, so we have outlined several deep-impact changes you can make in your home and, that way, reduce your carbon footprint and be one step closer in making your home environmentally friendly.

Everyone who is a little bit environmentally minded and has already taken some steps in making their home energy efficient, knows that there are more important changes that are crucial for making your home 100% environmentally friendly. These include recycling, energy-saving appliances, energy-efficient bulbs and lowering your electricity and water consumption. So, to make a change that will positively impact your family, your home and your environment for many years to come, these are the changes you can consider making.

Insulating Your Roof and Walls

Lowering the thermostat is a good way to reduce your heating bills, but your home will also stay warmer and it will consume less power if you consider investing in sustainable and good insulation. Homes that are a little bit older don’t have proper insulation, and this is one of the biggest causes of lost heat. So, if you invest in proper insulation, this will be a financially wise way to make your home greener and to save money on energy bills. Don’t worry, your home will make up for the cost of the insulation in only two or three years. A home that is well insulated stays cool in the summer and warm in the winter, so you will forget about blasting the air conditioning and you’ll cause less gas emissions. You can choose from two main types of insulation, reflective and bulk.

Installing Double-Glazed Windows and Fixing the Leaks

Installing double-glazed windows can have a great effect on the amount of energy you are using to heat your home, similar to proper roof insulation. These types of windows can now be found in many attractive styles, to fit in with the design of your home. Not only will your home be environmentally friendly, but it will also look architecturally attractive. Think about the last time you checked whether you have any leaks in your windows and doors, because if you do have them, you are practically throwing away a crazy amount of both energy and money. So, make sure to thoroughly check for any air leaks and seal them with weather stripping.

When we are talking about leaks, something that is as simple as a leaky faucet or a worn out toilet flapper can waste 10.000 gallons of water in one year. When you compare this cost to the fact that millions of people do not have clean water, you will realize that you need to be serious about maintaining your home’s plumbing.

Investing Solar Panels

This may be a little expensive to install, but solar panels can really reduce your energy expenses and carbon footprint. One of the benefits of solar panels is that you can also benefit from government feed-in tariffs and get paid for all the electricity you will generate. Solar panels are also great in adding value to your home. And, the best part is that the installation costs are becoming more and more affordable.

Electronics are everywhere around us. Laptops and cellphones are items that need to be recharged, so you can consider investing in a solar powered battery charger. This way, you will eliminate carbon emissions that get produced from recharging electronics.

Recycling

Many cities now have recycling programs, and this is one of the simplest ways to reduce the waste you are creating. Recycling things instead of just letting them rot in a landfill will make our environment a much better place. For example, paper based items are one of the largest contributors of waste, and this can be avoided by recycling. So, take those old newspapers, junk mail, magazines and other paper-based items that are just lying around your home and have them put to better use.

Besides recycling, you can even consider purchasing items that have been recycled. Items like paper, glass, cardboard and plastic products are all things that can be recycled so, next time you head out shopping, you can look for the recycled versions of some of the items you usually use.

Composting

Your home and your garden can produce a really big amount of waste, and all of this can be broken down to compost that is valuable for your lawn and garden. The fact is that huge amounts of food are wasted every year in many homes; leftovers, scraps and various peelings are dumped and take up a lot of space in landfills. Most of that food can be broken down into compost and used around your home.

Some of the popular food composters include tumblers, worm composter and many other composting bins. Even your garden has the power for composting things that will otherwise be thrown away. For example, grass cuttings often get left in piles to dry or get dumped in the trash. Instead, they can be used as a compost.

Lighting

Many people, including you, do not really give a second thought on how it affects energy, when they flip the switch for the light after a hard and long day. Those bulbs that illuminate your space are a big contributor to unnecessary energy consumption. Lighting, as a matter of fact, takes up 14% of the total energy consumption in your home. So, go through your home and change all incandescent bulbs to LED bulbs which have become extremely popular in the last few years, and for a good reason. LED bulbs use up to 75% less energy and last even 25 times longer than regular incandescent bulbs.

We know that electricity makes it easier to function, but many people are overusing it. Are you one of those people who keeps the lights on, even if the weather outside is bright and sunny? If you are, you need to start being more eco-friendly. Start opening those blinds so that you can use natural light. Many companies that use some of the best environmental software offer automated lighting systems, which means that you can control everything from your phone, computer or tablet and, at the same time, monitor them from any location.

Reusing and Upcycling Everything Possible

Like we mentioned, recycling is a great place to start in your intentions towards making your home environmentally friendly, but you can also do something that can be even better. You can reuse and upcycle everything you can find around the house. For example, if you are using pasta sauce that comes in glass jars, instead of recycling them, you can put them to good use in many different ways. You can store food leftovers, turn them into a piggy bank, keep your spices in there, or even use them to grow small kitchen herbs and spices. There are many other creative ways to reuse them; you can even play with your kids and come up with other ways to put them to a good use.

Fixing Instead Of Throwing

Believe it or not, a crazy amount of textile is wasted in the U.S. because people are throwing away clothes instead of mending them or donating them to secondhand stores. We know that, over time, some clothes will not be salvageable with sewing or a patch, but you should not discard it until it comes to that point. But, if you tend to change sizes and you have clothing that is still good and wearable, make sure to donate it and thus reduce waste.

As you may see, there are some things that need some extra effort and some that don’t, but overall, it is not necessary to make some drastic changes in your life to make your home environmentally friendly. After we have given you some suggestions, you can even come up with some other creative things that you can do on a daily basis. Focus on making the environment a better place – your home is a great place to start.