Are you concerned about environmental issues? If so, you may be on the lookout for ways to help increase your home’s eco-credentials. Increasingly, people are becoming environmentally aware and concerned about issues such as climate change and plastic pollution. This means that more people are finding ways to live an eco-friendly lifestyle and minimize the damage that their actions cause to the planet. However, the scale of the issues that the earth faces can make it challenging to know where to begin making changes to improve the situation. 

Your home is a great place to start on your journey towards a greener lifestyle as it is the environment that you have the most control over. Even the smallest changes that you make to start living in an eco-conscious way will soon make a big difference. Here are some of the changes that you may like to consider when trying to create an eco-friendly home:

Try Renewable Energy

Changing the way that your home is powered is the single most effective change that you can make to your home’s carbon footprint. Switching from using mains electricity to generating your own power will help the planet and significantly reduce your electricity bills. You could even be able to eliminate your electricity bills completely. 

Solar panel installation is the most accessible way for homes to generate renewable energy. Over the past few years, there has been an increase in the amount of American households having solar panels installed, which could be attributed to increased concern about climate change. Take a walk through any neighborhood, and you are likely to see many homes with solar panels on their roofs, all doing their bit to reduce their carbon footprint while lowering their electricity bills at the same time. 

Another benefit of having solar panels installed is that you could also be adding value to your home. Many potential buyers view solar panels as an improvement to a property so they can add value to the reselling price.

If you are considering having solar panels installed at your home, you may also want to get a Tesla Powerwall installed at the same time to store any surplus energy that your solar panels generate. You can then use this stored energy later in the day or whenever you need it.

Improve Your Insulation

Heating your home and keeping it cool throughout the year can become expensive. If your home does not have the right insulation, you may be losing the cool or warm air you generate. Improving the energy efficiency of your home plays a significant role in reducing your carbon footprint. Ensuring that your house is adequately insulated will help to improve efficiency and also keep it at a more comfortable temperature. If your home feels particularly cold, you may have poor insulation, especially if your house is older. You may find your heating and cooling systems need to be turned up high for you to feel any benefit from them. If this is the case, a lot of the warm or cool air you are generating is escaping from your home.

Most of the warm and cool air that escapes from your home does so through your windows, doors, and roof. Improving the insulation in your roof will help to stop the heat from escaping. There are many different types of insulating materials available, so you may want to consult a specialist to assess your current insulation and to find one that best suits the needs of your home. 

If your windows and doors are letting drafts in, they could be reducing the energy efficiency of your house. When you need to replace your windows and doors, you may want to shop around to find energy-efficient replacements. Not all new windows and doors have energy-savings benefits, so you will need to search specifically for options with green credentials. 

Reduce Water Waste

Water is an essential resource and vital for all living creatures, but it is often wasted. If you are hoping to become more water-conscious and to reduce the amount of water that you waste, there are several ways you can achieve this.

You may want to re-use rainwater where possible to cut down on your use of mains water. Having a water storage container in your yard will allow you to harvest rain, which you can use to water your plants and flowers.

Shutting off the faucet while you brush your teeth will also help cut down the amount of water you waste. Keeping the tap running while you clean your teeth sends gallons of water straight down your drain, so turning off the faucet will help you to save water at least twice every day. 

Many people choose to shower rather than soak in the tub to save water. However, if you take a long shower, you may not be saving as much water as you think. To cut down the amount of water you use when washing, you could use a timer to limit yourself to a three-minute shower. Your showerhead also impacts the amount of water that you use. Waterfall-style showerheads can use a lot of water, so changing to a water-efficient showerhead could help you to save even more water.

If you want to save electricity and water at the same time, you could change how you do your laundry. Running your washer with half-loads of laundry can cause a lot of water waste and unnecessary electricity consumption. Waiting until you have enough laundry to wash a full load will help you cut down on electricity and water use, plus it means that you spend less of your time doing the laundry!

Make Small Changes

Making significant changes such as having solar panels installed on your home and improving your insulation can make a significant impact on your house’s eco-friendliness. However, smaller changes can also make a difference. Gradually introducing a few simple changes to your daily routine can create many benefits.

One of the small changes that you may like to make around the house includes switching to environmentally-friendly cleaning products. If you want to cut down on your use of plastic, then you could try making your own household cleaning products rather than shopping for proprietary brands.

Reducing the amount that you use your drier can also help to cut down on your carbon footprint and reduce energy usage in your home. Instead of using your drier all-year-round, why not try to hang your laundry outside and let it dry in the fresh air?

Changing your lightbulbs for energy-saving bulbs will also help to reduce your energy consumption considerably. Energy-saving bulbs not only help to save on your energy bills, but they last a lot longer too, meaning you didn’t have the hassle of replacing them often, and you also reduce the waste involved in the manufacturing and packaging of the bulbs.

Are you ready to Create an Eco-Friendly Home?

As you can see, there are many changes that you can make to ensure that your home has a low carbon footprint and causes minimal damage to the environment. Simply starting with small changes can make a difference and help you to play your part in protecting the planet. When you combine each of these small changes, they will soon add up, and you should start to see the benefits of living in an eco-friendly home environment. Even if you start by making one small change, you will soon begin finding new ways to make your home greener.