Top 5 Ways You Can Make Your Home Environmentally-Friendly
Over the past several decades we’ve begun to truly realize the importance of being good stewards of our environment. Regardless of your thoughts on “going green,” though, it can often feel like our individual efforts won’t do much to help our planet. On the contrary, every effort to reduce your environmental impact makes a difference. Plus, practically speaking, most of the things you can do to reduce your carbon footprint will save you money in the long run and improve your health -- it’s a win-win!
How to Make Your Home Environmentally Friendly
1. Stay on Top of Maintenance Tasks
Keeping a clean house doesn’t just make your place look and feel better -- it’s also essential for maintaining a healthy interior environment. The accumulation of dirt, dust, and debris can reduce the air quality in your home and prompt the growth of mold and mildew. While these issues might not pose a major threat to the environment at large, they can cause allergic reactions, trigger respiratory problems, and more. In addition to keeping your surfaces clean, properly maintaining your appliances can prolong their lifespan, optimize their performance, and reduce your home’s energy output as a result (i.e. cleaning fridge coils, changing air filters, etc.).
2. Be Water-Wise
Most homeowners use (and waste) more water than they realize. After all, water is used for so many residential applications -- showers, dishes, laundry, cooking, cleaning, and so on. All of this water use translates to energy consumption, which translates to dollars. So, if you want to lower your energy bill and help out the environment, focus on optimizing your use of water. To do this, first make sure your home is free from any leaks. Then, make a daily effort to reduce the amount of water (hot water, especially) you use -- take shorter, cooler showers, reuse dishes and glasses, invest in low-flow shower-heads, turn off the tap when brushing your teeth, etc. These seemingly small actions can reduce your water use by hundreds of thousands of liters.
3. Switch Out Your Lights
The way you light your home can have a major impact on your energy costs and the environment. Those classic incandescent bulbs are inefficient compared to more modern alternatives, such as CFL (Compact Fluorescent Light) bulbs and LEDs (Light-Emitting Diode) -- LEDs are currently the most efficient option. Best of all, these efficient lights last longer so you won’t have to worry about purchasing new bulbs on a regular basis.
4. Apply Low-VOC Paints
When it’s time to make home improvements, opt for products and processes that limit the number of harmful materials that may get released into the air. To be more specific, for interior painting projects, go with paints labeled “zero-VOC” or “low-VOC,” as these products indicate a lack of volatile organic compounds -- chemicals that can lead to short- and long-term negative health effects and harm the surrounding environment. Fortunately, most paint manufacturers now offer plenty of low-VOC products, whether you’re seeking standard paint for walls and ceiling, specialized coatings. Sealing the garage floor, basement floor, or another concrete surface with low-VOC epoxy or polyurea coatings can help you keep dust, dirt, and debris at bay with the peace of mind of having minimal toxins in the air.
5. Get Rid of Those Popcorn Ceilings
This final method of making your home more environmentally-friendly won’t apply to all homeowners, but those who still happen to have popcorn ceilings would be wise to have them professionally removed and resurfaced. These outdated ceilings may contain asbestos and shed plenty of dust in a room over time -- plus, most people don’t find them visually appealing. If you do wish to remove this textured feature, hire popcorn ceiling removal experts to get the job done. These experts are equipped to carefully scrape away your ceiling’s material while containing any and all debris in order to maintain your home’s air quality and cleanliness.
The five methods listed here are just a few key and actionable things you can do to make your home more environmentally-friendly at scale. At Anderson Painting, our painting, flooring, and renovation specialists can help you cultivate a healthier, happier home. We use efficient, low-VOC paint products, offer certified popcorn ceiling removal services, and more. To learn more about us and all we do, call today at 919-610-1855 or email us at info@andersonpaintingnc.com!
