Searching for ways to be more sustainable has dominated popular culture for the past few decades, but technology has now reached a point where green alternatives are rather affordable. Whether it is small things around the home that add up or large-scale projects you can incorporate into your energy generation, there are ways to make your home more eco-friendly. Consider what you can do around the home to improve your carbon footprint—even small changes in your everyday schedule can make a difference in the future.
Change up How You Do Laundry
Most of the energy used during laundry is spent heating up the water for your clothes. By skipping the hot water and instead clean your clothes with cold water, you can greatly reduce the energy consumption of your laundry cycle. Unless you need to remove stains from clothing or fabrics, there is minimal difference between washing with hot and cold water.
Line Dry Your Clothes When Possible
As with heating water, a lot of energy is expended when trying to dry your clothing. If the climate and weather permits, laying clothes out to dry in the sun will benefit sustainability and increase the longevity of your clothes, as dryers have a tendency to makes clothes deteriorate faster.
Upgrade Your Lights
Replacing old, incandescent lightbulbs with LEDs is a great way to passively make your home more eco-friendly. Because of their modern design, LEDs consume far less energy than older bulbs, using only a fraction of the wattage to produce greater light.
Save in the Long Run
Because LEDs use less electricity, they can help reduce your energy bill significantly. Switching to LEDs is a sustainable alternative that can save you money with no added hassle.
Regulate Your Home’s Temperature
Heating your home in winter and cooling it in the summer eats up a lot of energy, but it is something that you must do again and again to maintain the house’s climate. This extreme energy consumption occurs because the air inside the home escapes through windows and doorways, or the air outside seeps in the same way.
Insulate Your Windows
The best way to combat this is to insulate windows and seal up the little cracks through which air can escape or enter. Going one step further, you can purchase blinds to hang over your windows to better keep the air inside. This all means you will use the thermostat less because there will be less warm or cold air to replace.
It All Adds Up
Going green doesn’t have to mean installing a windmill in your backyard. It’s as simple as changing out your light bulbs or implementing simple home renovations. A little goes a long way, and going green can even save you money in the long run.
