How to make your Home Eco-Friendly

In our nowadays society, everyone talks about eco-friendliness and how important it is to save our planet.

However, many people just talk and do not act at all according to their proposed values.

But what about you? Are you ready to really take action to save our environment?

In this guide, you learn everything you need to make your home as eco-friendly as possible.

Many tips are independent of the kind of home you are living in.

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It doesn’t matter if you live in a small flat or in a big house.

There are plenty of actions everyone of us can take to improve our ecological footprint.

Depending on the purpose of the respective room, there are different ways for making your home more environmentally-friendly.

And they are not even difficult, don’t worry!

Enough talk, let’s go into detail.

Let’s start with the bathroom.

How to improve the eco-friendliness of your bathroom

The biggest causes of environmental pollution and a waste of resources in the bathroom are a waste of water and the use of excessive amounts of detergents.

In our current society, almost everyone of us takes quite long showers every day, which leads to enormous amounts of water we waste every day.

Moreover, also for our toilets, we use plenty of precious water over time.

Since due to global warming, water will become a quite precious resource in the near future, it is crucial to take action to reduce our water consumption in the bathroom.

There are several ways how we can reduce water consumption.

The obvious one is to simply shower for a shorter period of time.

A second one is to use water-saving showerheads so that less water is used every second.

It may not feel much different to you, but you can simply shower for the same time and use less water due to a more efficient showerhead.

This is an easy way everyone of us can save water and therefore increase our ecological footprint.

However, this is not the only way you can save precious water.

You should also make sure that you use a washing machine that is water-efficient, meaning that it only uses amounts of water that are really necessary for the cleaning process.

Many washing machines use excessive amounts of water, although this would not be necessary.

By switching from water-consuming to water-efficient washing machines, you can not only reduce water consumption but also save money since every gallon of water you consume costs.

Not only can you save water, but also electricity in your bathroom.

The production of electricity implies significant air pollution and also contributes to global warming, since large amounts of greenhouse gases are emitted into the air.

A significant way you can save energy in the bathroom is to buy an eco-friendly dryer, which can save plenty of energy compared to old outdated ones.

For a reduction in detergents, you should use less washing powder.

Studies have shown that many of us even use excessive amounts of detergents, which not only hurts the environment but also can lead to skin issues since detergents often contain harmful chemicals.

Thus, by reducing the amounts of detergents, you can improve your health and also contribute to less environmental pollution.

A further step would be to switch from conventional to eco-friendly detergents.

There are some companies that try to produce detergents that are more friendly to the environment.

An easy step to improve your ecological footprint would be to support those companies and buy their products.

By doing so, you can also significantly reduce the detergents issue.

To improve your ecological footprint even further, make sure that you use towels made from organic materials.

You can also use recycled toilet tissue in order to save our precious natural resources.

By taking all or only a few of the measures mentioned before, you can significantly improve your ecological footprint regarding your bathroom.

However, there are even many other rooms to consider.

Let’s move on to the kitchen and let’s see how we can improve our lifestyle here in order to make it more environmentally-friendly.

If you want more information on how you can make your bathroom greener, check out my ultimate guide on how to make your bathroom eco-friendly.

How to make your kitchen more environmentally-friendly

In your kitchen, make sure that your dishwasher is eco-friendly in terms of water and energy consumption.

Many old models still use excessive amounts of water and energy to clean your dishes.

If you still use an old one, consider switching to a new model in order to improve your eco-footprint.

If you are a coffee lover, you will likely also have a coffee machine.

However, is your coffee machine suitable for the use of compostable coffee capsules?

Check out the manual of your coffee machine or do some research online!

You can save plenty of precious resources by using compostable coffee capsules instead of conventional ones.

If your coffee machine is suitable to use organic capsules, make sure to order them instead of conventional ones from now on!

In order to save energy, it is also crucial that you switch from conventional pots to pressure cookers.

Pressure cookers are a much more efficient way to cook, especially for dishes like potatoes that have to be cooked for a quite long time.

In contrast to conventional pots, pressure cookers lose much less energy since use a closed system and the steam will mainly stay inside the pot.

As a result, they need much less electricity for the same effect, thus increasing your eco-footprint and at the same time reducing your electricity bill.

If you still use your oven for making your toast, you should consider buying a toaster oven since it usually consumes much less energy.

By doing so, you can further reduce energy consumption and the related adverse effects.

Instead of buying bottled water, try to use filtered tap water. In many regions around the world, tap water quality is excellent.

However, many people still buy bottled water.

This is especially bad for our environment when it comes to bottled water in plastic bottles.

Consuming this kind of water leads to enormous amounts of plastic waste.

Part of this waste will likely end up in our oceans, where it will hurt many animals and plants.

Thus, if you still use bottled water, you should consider switching to tap water in conjunction with a good water filter system.

If you host parties or other events that involve the use of cutlery and plates for one-time occasions, make sure that instead of buying plastic items, you buy biodegradable plates and cutlery in order to avoid plastic waste.

To improve your ecological footprint even further, you could also use biodegradable waste bags and recycled aluminum foil.

For more information on how you can improve your ecological footprint in your kitchen, check out my article on how to make your kitchen more eco-friendly.

As you can see, there are many ways how you can improve your behavior in an environmentally-friendly manner in the kitchen.

But what about your living room?

How to make your living room more eco-friendly

In your living room, the focus clearly lies on saving energy.

This includes electricity, but also to reduce your heating bill.

In order to make your living room more efficient in those terms, you should consider installing smart home devices, which automatically regulate the air temperature in the most efficient manner.

This also includes using smart meters for your heating system.

By using these devices, you don’t have to manually turn on and off your heating all the time.

You can simply set your preferred inside air temperature and the system will do the rest.

Wouldn’t that be convenient?

Not only could you save plenty of energy, you can also save yourself work.

In order to make your home even more energy-efficient, you should also consider replacing your windows if they are already quite old. Old windows are often quite energy-inefficient.

By switching to new ones, you could significantly reduce your energy consumption since more of the heat can be kept inside.

Thus, not only will you improve your ecological footprint, you could also save plenty of money in the long run by replacing your old windows with new energy-efficient ones.

You can also further save energy by switching from conventional light bulbs to LED lights. LEDs usually consume far less energy since they do not produce plenty of heat like conventional lights.

By replacing your conventional lights with LEDs, you can significantly reduce your electricity bill and also improve your ecological footprint.

In order to reduce your electricity bill even further, make sure that all your electronic devices, including your TV, computer and smartphone, are energy-efficient and consider replacing energy-consuming items.

Here is a comprehensive guide on how to make your living room more eco-friendly.

Now that you got plenty of tips on how you can improve your eco-friendliness in the living room, let’s take a look at the sleeping room.

How to make your bedroom greener

In the bedroom, the focus of our environmental efforts is on the use of organic materials for the furniture.

For instance, you should make sure that you buy mattresses that are made out of organic materials.

Moreover, make sure to use organic bedding.

Not only will this be beneficial for our environment, it will also improve your health since our body usually likes organic materials compared to synthetic ones.

In conjunction with this, make sure that you also buy organic mattress covers to improve the fraction of organics in your bedroom even further.

Depending on your sleeping room, if you use curtains, make sure that they are also made of organic materials.

Organic materials are much easier to process and to get rid of compared to synthetic ones since synthetic materials are quite similar to plastic in the elemental structure and are therefore hard to recycle.

You should also make sure that your cupboards are made out of organic materials like wood.

However, you should make sure that this wood is produced under sustainable conditions.

A good material in this regard is bamboo, since it grows quite fast and is therefore almost impossible to deplete.

Thus, not only for cupboards, but also for many other items like chairs or tables, bamboo is the way to go if you want to increase your ecological footprint!

Similar to the living room, also make sure that you use LED lights and also replace your windows to make your sleeping room more energy-efficient.

If you want even more tips for your bedroom, check out my extensive guide to make your bedroom more eco-friendly.

We’ve already seen many ways to make our kitchen, living room and bedroom more environmentally-friendly.

Let’s move on to the kid’s room and see what we can improve there.

How to make your kid’s room more environmentally-friendly

For your nursery room, make sure that you use organic and recyclable materials when it comes to buying furniture instead of furniture that is made of plastic.

Not only will it be better in terms of environmental friendliness, it will also be better for your kid’s health since natural materials are often better for our body.

Thus, try to buy cupboards, beds and shelves made from organic and also sustainable materials like bamboo.

You should also buy toys from organic and sustainable sources whenever possible.

By doing so, you can further improve your ecological footprint and can also educate your kid about the importance to save our environment.

Your child will understand and integrate this knowledge in his or her behavior and when he or she turns into a grownup, he or she will be much more likely to also behave in an eco-friendly manner.

Therefore, there is also an important education aspect when it comes to furnishing the kid’s room.

In order to make this education process even more effective, you could also pin posters with environmental missions on the walls so that your kid can further integrate the importance of eco-friendliness from an early age on.

In addition to the things mentioned before, similar to the other rooms, make sure that you integrate LEDs instead of conventional light bulbs and also replace old windows with energy-efficient ones.

For even more information on this topic, check out my comprehensive guide on how to make your kid’s room more eco-friendly.

If you have a house and frequently work from home, you likely also have an office room at home.

There are plenty of ways how you can increase your eco-friendliness in your office.

These actions are shown in the following.

How to make your office more eco-friendly

Even in our nowadays society where plenty of electronic mediums are available, we still use plenty of printing paper every day.

Most of this paper could be saved by using electronic devices instead of printouts.

Thus, make sure that you make printouts if they are urgently necessary.

Try to present your stuff using Microsoft Office solutions or other software in order to save paper and to preserve our natural resources.

You should further make sure that instead of conventional paper, you use recycled paper in order to improve your ecological footprint.

In addition to that, you should also make sure that your printer works in an eco-friendly manner.

This should include the use of low amounts of toners. It should also include that your printer is quite energy-efficient in order to save electricity.

If you have an old model, consider switching to a more eco-friendly printer.

This is not only true for your printer, but also for all other electronic devices you use in your office.

For instance, if you consider buying a new computer, tablet or laptop, make sure that the models you buy are efficient in terms of energy consumption.

Also make sure to check reviews in order to buy models that have long durability so that our natural resources can be preserved.

If you want even more information, take a look at my extensive guide on how to make your office eco-friendly.

After making your office more eco-friendly, let’s move on to your hallway.

How to make your foyer more eco-friendly

Apart from the use of LEDs instead of conventional lights and the use of furniture made of organic and sustainable materials which we’ve already discussed in the previous analysis, it is also crucial that you use floor mats and carpets made from organic materials.

Moreover, make sure that your shoes also come from sustainable sources.

Additionally, make sure that all of these items are produced with the help of fair labor, so that people in poor countries get a fair wage and can provide for their families.

As we have seen in the previous analysis, there is plenty to do inside your home.

However, you can also improve your ecological footprint even further by also making your outside property more energy-efficient.

Thus, let’s move on to your garden.

How to make your garden greener

If you live in a house with a garden, make sure that you use biodegradable flower pots.

Thus, when the time comes to replace them, these pots can be recycled in an efficient manner in contrast to flower pots made out of plastic which often have to be burned in order to dispose of them.

Even for umbrellas, there are some models that are much more eco-friendly than others.

Make sure that you buy an eco-friendly and also long-lasting umbrella in case you need one in order to improve your ecological footprint.

Also make sure that you use garden chairs made from organic materials like bamboo instead of buying plastic chairs.

In order to improve your eco-friendliness even further, switch from conventional to a solar-powered lawnmower.

Not only are they quite eco-friendly since they use solar power to do their work, there are also models that do not even require your work as they are fully automated and keep your lawn in shape even if you are not at home.

In order to generate your own electricity, you could also use home wind turbines.

These turbines are micro-versions of conventional wind turbines used for electricity generation.

If you have space in your garden, this would be an optimal green way to produce energy and therefore to reduce the need for conventional power.

We all enjoy a good barbecue.

However, barbecues are often quite unfriendly to our environment as our grills emit large amounts of harmful substances in the air.

But what if I tell you there is a completely environmentally-friendly way to do your barbecue?

In fact, there are grills using solar energy instead of coal! How cool (or hot) is that?! By switching to a solar-powered grill, you can reduce the emission of harmful gases into our atmosphere and improve your ecological footprint.

If you want to learn even more about this topic, check out my ultimate guide on how to make your garden more eco-friendly.

As we have seen, there are several ways to improve your ecological footprint in your garden.

But what about your roof?

How to make your roof more environmentally-friendly

The obvious way to make your roof more eco-friendly is to install solar panels.

In fact, if you install plenty of solar panels on your roof, you might be able to be fully independent of the public energy system since you will be able to produce enough electricity by yourself.

Thus, you contribute to the expansion of green energy and avoid the consumption of energy made of fossil fuels.

Moreover, can also reduce your electricity bill in the long run.

If your house is quite old and energy-inefficient, you should also consider insulating your roof in order to keep more heat inside the house and therefore to reduce your energy consumption.

Since this insulation can be quite complex, you should contact and expert to give you further advice on this topic.

There are also roofing materials containing small wind turbines that will generate some amount of electricity.

Thus, if you consider getting a new roof, you should inform yourself about this new technique, since it might be a good substitute or also a complement to solar panels.

If you do not want solar panels on your roof, at least make sure that your roof is made out of renewable materials in order to improve your ecological footprint.

You could also consider planting your roof to support the local insects like bees.

Now that we’ve considered many ways how you can make your home inside and outside more eco-friendly, we also have to talk about improving our waste management.

How to make your waste management at home more efficient

You should try to separate your waste in an efficient manner.

If you don’t know enough about waste separation, contact your local authorities in order to learn about it. Efficient waste separation is crucial in order to make your trash more recyclable.

Moreover, try to reuse more of your material belongings.

Many people throw away plenty of stuff, even if it would still be working.

You don’t have to buy new things all the time, rather stick to your things and keep them longer if they still work properly.

You should also take efforts to learn how to repair things so that you don’t have to buy new things all the time.

In case something is broke, you may be able to fix it and still use it after the fixing process is done.

It is also crucial that you avoid buying single-use batteries.

Instead, buy rechargeable batteries since you can use them multiple times and therefore save precious resources.

If you have enough space, you can also create a compost site.

On this site, you can dispose of all your organic waste instead of disposing of it in the garbage.

By doing so, once these organic materials are decomposed by microorganisms, you can use the end product as a natural fertilizer for your garden instead of buying conventional fertilizer which often contains harmful ingredients.

Thus, there are plenty of ways to improve your waste management at home.

But what about your travels?

How to make your travels more eco-friendly

Many people love traveling around the world to see new places and to experience new cultures.

However, traveling also implies plenty of air pollution, especially if you use planes.

Thus, it is crucial that you at least be aware of how you can reduce your adverse impact apart from that while you are traveling.

It is crucial that you only buy travel gadgets that are energy-efficient and/or made out of recycled or renewable materials.

For instance, this could mean buying a backpack made out of recycled material. It could also mean using solar chargers instead of conventional chargers.

Moreover, there are even many ways how to make camping more eco-friendly.

The same is true for eco-friendly and sustainable hiking.

There are a variety of products which aim to improve your ecological footprint whilst you are traveling out there!

There are also numerous other ways to make your travels greener.

Check out my extensive guide on how to make your travels more eco-friendly for more information on this topic.

Finally, let’s look at some eco-friendly accessories which you can use in your daily life.

Eco-friendly accessories

The good news when it comes to accessories that almost all items for your daily life can also be bought in an environmentally-friendly way.

For instance, you can buy a watch that is made out of sustainable wood instead of steel.

You can also use natural beauty products instead of conventional ones which often contain harmful ingredients.

Instead of using paper-based books, you could also switch to electronic media in order to save resources.

If you want more information on the best green accessories, check out my extensive guide on eco-friendly accessories and gadgets.

Conclusion

There are so many ways how you can make your home more eco-friendly.

In every room of your house, there is plenty to do in order to improve your ecological footprint.

I have to admit that it is initially plenty of work.

However, you should consider what it really means to improve your ecological footprint.

It means that you can improve the living conditions of millions of people worldwide.

Thus, always remember that we in our Western world are the people who have the power but also the great responsibility for our planet.

Always keep that in mind when you make decisions that could protect or also destroy our planet!

About the author

My name is Andreas and my mission is to educate people of all ages about our environmental problems and how everyone can make a contribution to mitigate these issues.

As I went to university and got my Master’s degree in Economics, I did plenty of research in the field of Development Economics.

After finishing university, I traveled around the world. From this time on, I wanted to make a contribution to ensure a livable future for the next generations in every part of our beautiful planet.

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