There are hundreds of reasons why it is important to create
a home lifestyle that is environmentally friendly. Not only is it critical for
the planet, but it will also save you substantial amounts of money, and help
your children, other family members and friends learn why looking after our
Earth is so important. While many people want to create an eco-friendly home,
it can be difficult to know where to start. Luckily, we’ve got a few
inexpensive and easy tips you can use to help you on your road to
sustainability and eco-friendliness.
1. Insulate
Ensuring that your home is properly insulated is a fantastic
way of saving dollars on your electricity bills. While it is easiest to
insulate the walls, basement and attic of a house as it is being built, insulation
can be added with relative ease at any time. There are also a number of new
insulation materials that are particularly environmentally friendly, including
products created predominantly from recycled newspaper, treated with compounds
to make them naturally fire retardant. This is an excellent choice of
insulation to add to an existing home because it can easily be blown through
small holes drilled into walls.
2. Know your paints
All paints are not made equal. A majority of paints and
stains contain high levels of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which are
toxic chemicals, harmful to both you and the environment. However, it is
possible to purchase paints and stains which have been made without the use of these
compounds, or that contain levels low enough to ensure they are safe. Ask your
local paint or hardware specialist for details on paints low in VOCs to do the
right thing for your health, your family, and the environment.
3. Say goodbye to the dryer
While clothes dryers are convenient, they are also
incredibly energy inefficient, to the point where Energy Star doesn’t even give
them ratings! Many people don’t realize that it is incredibly easy to dry your
clothes simply by hanging them on a rack. In most instances, clothes will dry
overnight this way. If you have an outdoor space where you can hang a washing
line, your clothes will dry even faster. When it comes to bulky items, you may
need to use the dryer briefly to start the drying process, but just remember to
use a gentle, low setting with low or no heat. By reducing the amount that you
use your dryer, you will not only notice a large difference in your electricity
bill, but also in the lifespan of your clothes. Using a dryer is harsh on
clothing, and can shrink, tear, mark, stretch and generally cause damage to a
wide variety of materials.
4. Compost
The average household produces a phenomenal amount of food
waste every year. Unfortunately, a majority of this ends up in the normal trash
system, which takes valuable resources and lots of energy to remove. However, these
food scraps do not need to be considered waste, and are in fact often still
rich in nutrients. These nutrients may not be of any use to you, but they can be
a great food source for an abundance of plants in your garden. Creating your
own vegetable patch is another fantastic way of making your home and lifestyle
more eco-friendly, and using your food scraps and waste as compost is a perfect
way to dispose of and recycle them. Composting will also have the long term
effect of increasing the quality of the soil in your garden, which will make it
easier to grow a wide variety of delicious fruits and vegetables.
