How to Be More Eco-Friendly at Home

Bill Gassett is a thirty-two year veteran to the real estate industry. He loves providing helpful information to buyers, sellers and fellow real estate agents to make excellent business decisions. His writing has been featured on RIS Media, The National Association of Realtors, Inman News, Placester, RESAAS, Credit Sesame, Realty Biz News, and others. Bill is a top real estate agent in Holliston Mass and was the number one RE/MAX agent in Massachusetts for 2018. Reach out to Bill for any real estate needs you may have.

Posted on Wednesday 8th May 2019

How to Be More Environmentally Conscious in Your Home

Are you interested in learning some tips on how to be more Eco-friendly at your home? Not a bad thing right? Most recent scientific research seems to indicate that our natural environment is under serious threat from many of the things we do in our daily lives. Sure, you can drive your car less, but how do you waste less natural resources at home?

It is easy to be more Eco-friendly at home. Many simply make it too complicated, and that stops many of us from having a go at making our homes more environmentally friendly. Perhaps we can look at it a different kind of way. Did you know that making your home more Eco-friendly can save you a serious amount of money?

Solar Panels Can Save You Money

The first thing you need to do is to take a look at how you use energy. So what is energy? The energy you use in your home often comes from gas, oil, and electricity. The funny thing is that we think of it as power but never as energy. Homeowners who have installed solar panels often think of both differently. They think of them as energy and start to find out how they can conserve energy.

Solar panels can save you a lot of money on your electricity costs. However, the first thing you need to do is to add up how much energy you use now. Your electricity supplier will be able to tell you how much you use per month. Armed with this information, you can contact a company which provides solar panels.

Your monthly energy usage will allow for the company to calculate what solar panels are right for your home. There are several options, and most companies providing solar panel systems can tailor make a solution for your home. The right system will quickly start to save you money.

If you are in the market to purchase a home that has solar panels, it is essential to understand how much the solar is contributing to the reduction of energy. How much will you be saving in energy usage each month? Are you generating such an abundance that you can sell it back to the solar company? These are some questions you'll want the answers to.

You'll also want to find out if the panels are leased or owned. It is much better to own the panels than leasing them. Selling a home with solar panels can be far more challenging when you are renting with solar panels. Transferring from one owner to the next can at times be difficult.

When buying or selling a home with solar power it is vital to become educated on the pros and cons.

Be More Eco-Friendly in Your House

Wind Power in the Home

Wind power is the other option you want to consider. It is surprisingly easy to install and will start to produce energy immediately. Wind power has come a long way in recent years, and although it may not be the perfect solution for the main part of your home, it is often an excellent way to go for stand-alone buildings such as garages.

Change the Way You Cook Your Food

Installing alternatives forms of energy may force you to look at the way you use energy. Most of the energy we use in the home is used when heating our homes or cooking food. Changing the way you cook your food can save you energy and money at the same time. As a matter of fact, most homeowners who change the way they cook food, save as much as 1/3 of the entire energy consumption. That is also a third of your energy bill.

Instead of using traditional kitchen equipment such as gas stoves or ovens consider switching to steamers or using crock pots. You be surprised how much energy cooking your food in a different way will save you very quickly.

Cleaning Your Home Differently

You can both save money and the environment by cleaning your home in a natural way. Instead of buying detergents which are packed with artificial ingredients, you can use natural cleaning products. By now you are probably asking yourself what natural cleaning products are and where you can find them.

Finding your own natural cleaning is easy, and many of them can be found in your local supermarket. Fruits acids are some of the best natural cleaning agents on the planet. Next time you are in your local store, pick up some lemons. Cut them in half and use them to clean your sink. Your kitchen will both smell great and be cleaner than ever before.

Use LED Light Bulbs

Not only are LED light bulbs more efficient but they also last much longer than conventional bulbs. Not only will you be using less energy but also will not be purchasing new light bulbs as often. LED light bulbs come in a variety of designs and brightness levels as well. You will be able to design the lighting for each of the rooms in your home to the specification you like best.

Stop Throwing Away Plastics

It will be some time before we are going to be able to completely get rid off plastic products from our daily lives. In the meantime, you will have to try to think of ideas on how you can reuse plastics.

Some plastics can be recycled, but the ones which can't still end up in landfills. Reusing plastics do not have to be complicated. They can be reused in many different ways. For instance, plastic bottles can be used as insulating materials in a greenhouse during the winter, and as flower plots.

The list on how you can reuse plastics is rather endless. Check out sites like Pinterest for fun and creative ideas. Get your entire family involved. How to be more Eco-friendly at home is not something just for one family members; it is a learning experience for all of you.

Recycle-Recycle-Recycle

If you are reading an article about leading a more Eco-friendly lifestyle at home you're probably environmentally conscious and already recycling. There are always room for improvements though. Just about everything in your house can be recycled not just paper and plastic.  Before you throw something in the garbage, take the time to find out if you could recycle it instead.

Do You Have an Older Home?

If you have an older home and especially an antique, there are always ways in which to save more money. One of the best energy efficient upgrades for an older home is adding more insulation. Older homes has no where near the standards of today's new construction. Homes built between the eighteen and nineteenth century could potentially have minimal insulation. Being a real estate agent for as long as I have, I'll encounter numerous homes that could be improved upon.

Home buyers love knowing a home has great insulation. If you're going to be selling you can be confident in knowing that insulation is an improvement that could help sell your house among many.

Final Thoughts

Did you enjoy these tips to be more Eco-friendly in your home? Going green in your house can save energy, money and help the environment all at the same time. You can feel good knowing you are doing your part to make our planet more sustainable.

More Great Eco-Friendly Articles Worth Reading at Green and Save

Use these additional green articles to have even more ideas at your disposal to be Eco-friendly.

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