4 Ways to Make Your Home More Eco-Friendly

What do you do to help protect the environment? There are many small ways in which you can contribute to this great battle of keeping our planet healthy, and some people are making an effort to implement an eco-friendly approach to their lifestyle.  

It’s great to take a walk or use public transport when you’re going somewhere instead of taking the car. Also, it’s wonderful to see that fewer plastic bags are being used. Still, there is much more that can be done inside your own home to make it more environmentally-friendly.

Reduce the use of thermostat A lot of energy is used to maintain a certain temperature in your home. Even if you don’t turn the thermostat up when it’s cold, you can end up spending a lot of energy in case the windows and doors in your home do not seal properly. This way you will waste a lot of energy because you will be cooling and heating your home more than it is necessary. There are some easy ways to insulate or seal your doors and windows. What is more, you don’t have to turn the thermostat up when it gets colder outside because it’s designed to maintain the preferred temperature regardless of how hot or cold it is outside.

Decrease water usage Reducing water usage in households is something most people find difficult. Still, you don’t have to drastically change your lifestyle if you’re looking for a way to decrease water usage. All you need to do is replace the old nozzles in your home with the ones that use low-flow and high-pressure. These nozzles are easy to clean and they will turn the water into a fine mist which will significantly reduce the amount of water you use to do the washing-up. Also, since the pressure of the water is much higher, the stream will be spread over a larger area, thus decreasing the amount of water required to finish your tasks. Use eco-friendly roofs You don’t have to change the roof of your house, but what about your terrace? If you have a beautiful yard and garden, you will want to spend time outside, but still be protected from the elements. Getting a roof over your terrace is a great idea, and what is best, they don’t have to be flat. There are tilted retractable roof systems available on the market, and they are designed to cover even large areas (more than a hundred square meters). They are made of PVC material, which is waterproof, durable, and comes with a five-year guarantee. 

Use more natural light Electricity has given us the possibility to see even when the sun goes down, but people generally tend to overuse it. We are so used to having the lights on, that we keep them even when it’s a bright, sunny day outside. If you’ve caught yourself doing this, you can start making your home more eco-friendly simply by opening the blinds. By utilizing natural light as much as possible, you will get used to keep the lights off until you actually need them – when the evening comes or it’s cloudy outside. If every household would turn off their lights for just one hour a day, the overall impact on the planet would be enormous. You may think that it takes a lot of energy and hard work to reduce your home’s negative impact on the planet, but that doesn’t have to be the case. There are simple and easy energy-saving changes which will lower your bills, while at the same time you will be living green and not sacrificing your comfort. 

Guest Post by: Chloe Taylor

Chloe is an art historian, recreational ballet dancer and a contributor at smoothdecorator.com. She is passionate about photography, dancing and music. Her biggest dream is to travel the whole world with her husband and take stunning photographs of beautiful places. She also enjoys learning and writing about home design, since she is crazy about aesthetics. You can find Chloe on FB, Twitter, and G+.

Thanks a lot for this article Chloe!   Follow Me:  Facebook | Instagram | Twitter