These Upgrades Will Make Your Home Eco-Friendly Instantly
Your home is where you feel the safest and most comfortable. It’s your very own sanctuary. Big investments or purchases like a house require upkeep and regular maintenance to ensure everything is in good condition.
If you’re taking steps to reduce your impact on the environment, whether by eliminating single-use plastics or opting for reusable cotton rounds, then you can go a step further and convert your home into a green space.
Building an eco-friendly home brings about many advantages for the environment and your own (e.g., increases your property’s resale value, less maintenance over time, and reduces house bills). With the wealth of resources you can find online, it’s easier to create a more efficient and greener home now more than ever.
If you’re planning to get started with this sustainable home journey, we’ve got you covered. Below are some cost-efficient tips for an eco-friendly home that will instantly upgrade your space. Let’s dive into it!
Consider shopping for pre-owned items
Conserving energy and water isn’t the only way to be environmentally-friendly. Purchasing pre-owned home items instead of new ones is also an excellent way to save Earth.
New products use virgin materials and consume more energy to build. Additionally, you’re keeping the secondhand or used items from going to the landfill. You can also ask your relatives or friends to let you know if they’re going to replace a piece of furniture to see if they could hand them down to you instead of throwing them away.
Catch rainwater for gardening
If you have a home garden and lawn, then you’ll probably agree that your water bill wouldn’t cost as much if you didn’t have one. Plants need regular watering, which requires you to use a lot of water to keep them alive. Thankfully, collecting rainwater solves this predicament.
You can get a rainwater barrel to harvest water. Leave it out when it’s about to rain, then use the collected water for your garden and lawn. Not only does this help you conserve water and reduce your bill, but it also makes your plants happy.
Invest in solar panels
One of the best ways to make your home eco-friendly is by using renewable energy like solar power through solar panel technology. In a nutshell, this technology captures sunlight and converts it into electricity.
Solar energy is free, except for the installation and purchasing of solar panels. While the initial upfront costs of installing solar panels run expensive, it can save you a significant amount of cash on your electricity bill in the long run, especially if you will rely on it one hundred percent.
Opt for environmentally-friendly appliances
If you have the money and think it’s time, swap your old home appliances with eco-friendly upgrades. Choosing energy-saving appliances may seem like an expensive move, but it will make more financial sense over time.
Energy-efficient home appliances operate and perform just as well as standard models, but they consume less energy. This green change will help lower your carbon footprint while also saving you big bucks.
Replace regular light bulbs with LED bulbs
Something as simple as switching your light bulbs with LED light bulbs will make a massive difference in the green home you’re creating. With energy-efficient light bulbs, you use less electricity and replace it less frequently since LED light bulbs last longer than your traditional bulbs. Talk about saving more money while saving mother Earth.
Plant your own herbs
Growing your own herbs is worth a try, whether you already have a garden or not. Herbs don’t take a lot of space and can survive in small pots. They are also relatively low maintenance since you can place them inside the house by a sunny window.
With this, you can make your favorite dishes tastier with fresh herbs. They smell heavenly as well, making it a big plus if you plan to grow them inside the house.
Get a recycling bin and compost bin
This upgrade doesn’t cost much, and you’ve probably started recycling already if you have long begun switching to a sustainable lifestyle. Recycling glass bottles, papers, jars, and other household items prevent these things from adding to the landfill. You can repurpose bottles for your propagations, reuse jars as containers, and turn paper into wrappers.
On the other hand, a compost bin allows you to eliminate leftovers and turn them into fertilizers for your plants. You can find compost bins designed to be neat and odor-free. It’s a fantastic way to reduce household waste.
Wrapping it up
No matter how big or small steps you take turning your home into a more eco-friendly space, your contribution will bring drastic changes to the environment and make the world a better place for future generations. Imagine if there are hundreds of people like you with the same mindset. A small upgrade like using rainwater for watering plants already makes a big difference for the environment.
Enrique Hormillo
Enrique Hormillo is a Business Development Executive at SolarNRG Philippines. Its parent company, SolarNRG Netherlands is one of the largest suppliers and installers of solar power system in Europe. Enrique’s experience stretches beyond business development as he also works as a Marketing Director for a motorsport store -- further solidifying his business acumen.