5 Ways To Make Your Home Eco-Friendly
It is no secret the type of impact the human race has had on its environment just in the last 200 years since the Industrial Revolution took hold across the globe. People are increasingly more aware of the impact their way of life has on the world around them and looking for ways to live better. Even your home can be a drain on the environment and its resources. So how do you combat that, you ask? Here are five ways to turn your home into an eco-friendly haven for you and your family.
1. Solar Panels
Home solar panel installations have come a long way in the past couple of years. What was once cumbersome and expensive has become much more affordable and hassle-free. Depending on how much electricity you use and how many panels you have installed, it is entirely possible to go completely off the electrical grid.
2. LED Lighting
The technology of the simple light bulb has undergone its own evolutionary process. LED light bulbs last five times longer than fluorescent (CFL) bulbs and nearly 30 times longer than incandescent bulbs. They also use approximately 75% less energy than your standard light bulb so not only are you not littering landfills with thousands of light bulbs in your lifetime, you are reducing your environmental impact via energy production. As a bonus, LED lighting has an overall better light quality as well; you are getting a better product in the long run as well.
3. Green Cleaning Practices
This topic has been making more headlines in recent years and for good reason. Not only do you make your home safer, your air cleaner, and your health better by using less hazardous materials while cleaning, but you also impact the environment for the better. You’ll notice most eco-friendly products utilize sustainable manufacturing methods in addition to the renewable, natural, and non-toxic ingredients in their cleaning formulas. All of which is great news for the global ecosystem.
4. Recycled Furniture
This eco-friendly practice is more than likely new to many of you. We aren’t just talking about DIY upcycling either. There is a whole industry built around using recycled materials to create new and beautiful furniture pieces. If these materials don’t find their way into landfills, they are not polluting the environment. You get an interesting article of furniture and the environment has one less item polluting it.
5. Low-Flow Fixtures
Installing low-flow water fixtures has a two-fold impact on the environment:
- Reduces water waste by about half, in some cases
- Energy savings through decreased water heating
Per year, a low-flow showerhead can save 2,700 gallons of water, a low-flow faucet can save 700 gallons, and a low-flow toilet can save 13,000 gallons. This is a significant amount of water that is being prevented from superfluous use.
Reducing your ecological footprint doesn’t have to be complicated, expensive, or time-consuming. Many of these one-time solutions not only end up saving you money in the long run but also last a long time, making it a worthwhile investment into the health of the planet and humanity.
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Photo. Vivint Solar
