Common Reasons Why Your Home Is Failing To Be Truly Green
The extent of climate change in the world calls for immediate action to try and save our planet. There are many things you can do at your home to reduce your consumption of resources and make your home greener besides purchasing locally produced products, avoiding plastic, and using fewer chemicals. However, before taking any action, you should find out what makes your house less eco-friendly.
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Your actions around your home also contribute to making it less green. Leaving lights on is one of the most common ways of wasting energy and the easiest to rectify. Ensure that you always turn off the lights before leaving a room or invest in a smart home system and use energy-saving bulbs and appliances.
You also consume too much power when you take too much time staring at an open refrigerator, leave electronics plugged in when not in use, and run the dishwasher when it is half full. Furthermore, it is also harmful to plug in the chest freezer when it is empty, not changing air filters, using hot water to wash clothes, and failure to program your thermostat or setting it too high.
Lack of Insulation
Excellent insulation lowers the rate at which heat moves in and out of your house; it reduces heat loss during winter and minimizes its entry in the summer. Loss of energy dictates how cool or warm you how is so lack of insulation means you have to use the air conditioner more to keep your home at the desired temperatures. Your home must have the proper insulation in every area, from the foundation to the roof.
There are more benefits of efficient doors than just how well they insulate, of course, but if you wish to make your home fully green, purchase doors made of fiberglass, aluminum, and steel. Additionally, fill floor, door, and window gaps, contemplate double glazing.
Too Much Waste
Using renewable energy at your home, such as water, solar, wind, and geothermal, lowers the maintenance costs and saves you money. It also eliminates your reliance on imported energy because you can source it locally and decreases the prevalence of diseases caused by pollution. Above all, it lowers your carbon footprint leading to environmental conservation.
Production of fossil fuels takes many years, and upon depletion, it is hard to renew hence making them less sustainable. Production, transportation, and consumption of these fuels also produce a lot of waste, making your home less green.
Therefore, adopt renewable sources and practice recycling things like paper, glass, and plastic materials. Doing so minimizes the amount of waste that goes to landfills, save energy, and conserve natural resources like water, minerals, and timber.
Bad Kinds of Cleaning Products
Conventional cleaning supplies usually have toxic chemicals such as methyl chloride, ammonia, and bleach. These products are not only harmful to the environment but also harmful to your skin and eyes. When washed down the drain, the products build up in the water table, causing harm to animals and plants and even making water not suitable for human consumption.
Prolonged use of chemical-based cleaning products may cause allergic reactions, rashes, and dry skin. It is more problematic for people with asthma or eczema; therefore, it would be best to opt for eco-friendly products for the sake of your health and make your home greener.
Poor Water Conservation
The world continues to face water scarcity with each passing day, so everyone must do their part to conserve this scarce but vital commodity. Leaving water running, not fixing leaking faucets, using excess water to wash your car, taking long showers, and flushing the toilet too many times causes more water consumption.
The kitchen contributes to a lot of water wastage at home; your decision to not reuse water makes your home less green. Therefore, you can collect the water while washing vegetables and fruits for other activities like watering your plants.
The size of the house
A smaller eco-friendly and energy efficiency has less impact on the environment than a bigger one with the same features. Therefore, the size of your house contributes to how green it is, so make sure you carefully plan or space when constructing a house.
Maintaining a bigger house requires more energy and resources because you not only have more room to keep warm or cool, and it also needs more water and uses more cleaning supplies. To minimize your impact on the environment, consider your lifestyle and needs to determine which square feet to allocate to various parts of the house.
Poor Building Materials
Different building materials have varying impacts on the environment. Some elements produce more wastes and consume more energy during production, lead to pollution, and contribute to plant endangerment than others. Less durable, toxic materials and those that need frequent maintenance make your home less green.
Roofing materials that take longer to cool absorbs sunlight makes your house less energy efficient, so it would be best to consider a roof that consumes less heat and cool quickly at night. The design of the home may also lead to more consumption of building materials. Non-recyclable materials also harm the environment as they end up in landfills when you remodel or demolish the house.
Bad Location
You will consume more energy if you have to walk or drive longer to get to work, school, shopping malls, and other places. Buildings that sit on newly developed land also need new streets, water, and sewer pipes and utility lines. The surrounding landscape is also a key factor; failure to take advantage of the land’s natural characteristics leads to more consumption of resources like water and even costly lawn care.
The location of the home in the property can either allow you to utilize natural resources like sunlight. If you do not receive proper natural light, you will have to use more energy to keep your home well lit and warm. Absence of wind cover and shade, you will not receive protection from the winter winds or summer heat.
We all have a role to play in the fight against global warming. Practicing conservation at home goes a long way in making the world more sustainable.