We all want an environment-friendly house, but it’s not as easy as it sounds. As with many things, it seems what’s easy is often bad and what’s good tends to be time-consuming and expensive.
The good news is that it’s very possible to make a ‘green’ home on a budget if you know how. So how do you do that? We’ll go into more detail in the paragraphs below.
1.Fluorescent Light Bulbs
It seems like these things come up every time somebody talks about going green, but there’s a reason for that. Fluorescent bulbs produce the same amount of light with far less energy, which in turn cuts down on greenhouse gas emissions.
There are some things we should mention before going any further. Fluorescent bulbs can save energy and money provided you don’t misuse them.
Don’t change your lifestyle. Just because the bulbs are cheaper doesn’t mean you should be using them more. At some point, this just nullifies the effect.
Also, these bulbs contain mercury, which means that you have to dispose of them carefully. Mercury is a toxic substance that can cause damage to multiple organs, so look into taking precautions.
2.Turn Things Off
People have a habit of forgetting to turn things off when they’re not in use. In the case of TV sets, some people prefer to leave them on standby.
While standby does save some energy, it’s still more environment-friendly to turn it off when not in use. The same goes for any other electronic device we use.
Just turning the TV off can save us 23.8 million pounds per year–over thirty million American dollars.
Another great way to save power and money is to switch to Powervine Energy. This is a green energy company based in Ohio that allows you to get your energy from someone other than the power company.
3.Keep the Blinds Open
We use a lot of energy and money turning on our heaters, but we don’t always have to. There are ways to heat your home without electricity.
One such method is to open the blinds and let the sun shine through. Granted, not every day is a sunny one and the sun won’t heat your whole house.
Even so, the sun can provide some heat, which is that much less you need to turn your heater up.
4.Make Compost
There are a lot of great ways to use trash to your advantage. You could take biodegradeable items and put them together in a compost container.
The best place for this container is outside, where it’s more likely to get heat, moisture and nutrients, which are all necessary to turn garbage into compost.
You could also leave the dead grass on your lawn after you mow. This allows the old grass to decompose, which in turn fuels new grass.
5.Houseplants
The process of photosynthesis allows plants to feed, and they do this by bringing in carbon dioxide and releasing oxygen. This natural process cleans the air, taking out carbon dioxide and replacing it with breathable oxygen.
The opposite is also true. We breathe out carbon dioxide, which keeps the plants ‘breathing’.
The bamboo plant, in particular, can do a lot for the environment. You might want to look into it and see how you can use it for the greater good.
Keeping an Environment-Friendly house on a Budget
Keeping a more environment-friendly house doesn’t have to be expensive. Some of the simplest things can make a big impact.
You could try changing lightbulbs or just turning things off when you’re not using them. Houseplants can help clean the air in your home. Some of your trash could be turned into compost to help more plants grow.
Try opening the blinds so that the sunlight comes in. This will provide some heat so you don’t have to turn the heater on as high.
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