7 Easy Green Home Improvements

Entry #1930, December 12, 2012

Moving home is an opportunity to turn over a new leaf. If you’ve always wanted to start an eco-friendly life, this offers up a unique chance to begin living in a green way. Consider these easy ways to improve your home, when you’re planning for the future.

1. Green-Fingered

Being caught green-handed is always a good thing. Learning how to garden effectively can be great exercise and provide you with a variety of edible veggies. Learn to walk before you run and start off small. Plant between four and five vegetables that’ll provide you with a constant supply of vitamin-rich foods throughout the year. Think of all the wonderful soups and stews you can make with ingredients you grew in your own garden! You’ll save money too on trips to the supermarket.

Plant a garden for your home

Image via: Brickman Group

Get the kids involved. This can be educational and fun! Everyone could have their own patch. Activity-promoting companies, such as Playrite, emphasise the importance of going green in the garden for nutritional health in later life.

2. Clean Green

Household products are saturated with chemical content, and although the companies involved promote their bacteria-killing qualities, these substances are harmful to everyone’s health. Use homemade remedies to fight the grime in your house. From lemon juice to bicarbonate of soda, it’s amazing what effective and safe cleaners you have in your kitchen cupboards.

3. Illumination

Saving money and being green go hand-in-hand. Energy saving bulbs do exactly what they say on the tin: they illuminate your home more efficiently than normal lights. Safe, cheap, and long-lasting, eco-friendly bulbs help slash your energy bills and reduce your carbon footprint. Remember to turn off any lights you’re not using though!

4. Retire Your Car

Keep your vehicle in the driveway for longer by utilising the local public transport systems. Not only will you get to know your local area better, but you’ll save so much money on fuel. Great for keeping fit too, it’ll encourage you to stretch your legs and find your nearest bus stop.

5. Water

Start cracking down on your water use. Stop running the tap while you brush your teeth and use the dishwasher less frequently. Use the dirty water from your dishes to water your plants.

Try and save water in your kitchen and bathroom

Image via: D&M Images

6. Insulation

Before you move in, make sure your loft is properly insulated. It acts like a nice woolly hat that keeps you and your house warm during the cold months. Moderating your heating is important in any eco-friendly house so install heat interface units and keep your home cosy, without contributing heavily to global CO2 levels. Oh, and you’ll need a big, fluffy jumper.

7. Recycling Area                 

Guilty of trashing the odd tin can? Make this a thing of the past by setting up your own recycling corner, complete with colour-coded bins. This is a great opportunity to educate your kids about the importance of recycling. You can even keep a bin for empty boxes that are wonderful craft materials for little ones.

This post was contributed by Gail Newland, a miscellaneous blogger on behalf of Ener-g group.

For more green living ideas on Stagetecture, click here.