The government wants more people to live in sustainable homes. And rightly so. Everyone has to take responsibility for cleaning up the planet.
But many people feel like there’s not much they can do to improve their living situation. Yes, they’d love to reduce their reliance on resources and cut CO2 emissions, but they don’t always know what to do.
Fortunately, this post is here to help. We take a look at some of the things you or I could do to make our homes more sustainable and protect the planet from unnecessary harm.
Educate Yourself On Sustainable Living
The first step is to educate yourself about sustainable living. The topic is often far more interesting and revealing than people realise.
For instance, sustainable living is more straightforward than many people imagine. The changes you need to make are often minor, and you don’t need to move to a yurt in the countryside.
If you live in an eco-conscious community, you can talk to your neighbours about what they’re doing. Try to find out the strategies they use and get tips for how to bring down the costs. For example, the government subsidises a lot of green installations, bringing down the price for you.
Reduce Consumption
Another approach is to buy less unnecessary stuff for your house. Filling it with clutter is bad for your state of mind and the environment as a whole.
Stay clear of fast fashion, one of the most egregious examples of conspicuous consumption. Avoid the temptation to buy loads of clothes all the time, just to keep up with fashionable models in magazines.
Instead, focus on buying high-quality items that will stand the test of time. If your clothes fill more than a standard closet, you probably have too many.
Improve Your Material Choices
Another way to make your home more sustainable is to improve your material choices. Opting for more environmentally-friendly options can be an excellent way to reduce planetary externalities.
For example, you could go for eco-friendly DIY building supplies if you are renovating your home, or doing up someone else’s. Biodegradable materials prevent microplastics from entering the environment and causing harm.
You could also choose greener options, like bamboo. The plant grows rapidly, doesn’t require much water or land, and is completely biodegradable, permitting safe and easy disposal.
Wicker is another excellent material for interior furniture. Again, it has minimal environmental impact and people have been using it for centuries.
Lastly, you could look for opportunities to use recycled materials and content. These are often cheaper and prevent waste from occurring. For example, if you move into a new house, ask the existing owner whether they can include their possessions in the price. This way, you can avoid having to buy everything from scratch.
You can also go to charity shops and look for pre-owned items for the home. People sell everything, from light fittings to sofas.
Conserve Water
Another way to protect the environment is to conserve water. Using less reduces the energy your home consumes and prevents you from depleting local water sources.
There are numerous ways you can conserve water, including:
- Allowing the rain to water your garden
- Choosing plants for your garden that don’t require as much water and are better suited to the local climate
- Taking shorter showers
- Collecting rainwater in tarpaulins or using commercial systems for showers, washing machines, and other non-drinking activities
- Fix leaky faucets and pipes
- Fix damage to exterior water pipes damaged by foundations or subsidence
Improve Energy Efficiency
Finally, you’ll want to find some ways to improve energy efficiency in your home directly. Reducing overall energy usage will have a positive effect on the overall CO2-intensiveness of your life.
One option is to switch to LEDs. These can bring down the cost of lighting your home by up to 90%, depending on the system you currently have installed.
You can also reduce energy usage by switching to a heat pump. These don’t deliver the power of a regular boiler, but they will work over time and use less energy while they’re doing it.
Finally, you could add power strips to your home. These let you switch off all electricity supplies to your appliances, preventing phantom electricity drains from occurring during the day, and putting up your bills.
Wrapping Up
So there you have it: what you can do as an ordinary person to make your home more sustainable. Taking small actions at a local level will eventually enable the government to achieve its grander and larger targets.
