Saturday, May 7, 2011

Simple Steps to a Greener Home Part 3

Simple Steps to a Greener Home - the conclusion:

I wanted to end this series of greening your home by talking about ways to make your bedroom greener, using energy saving appliances and devices, and recycling and repurposing products you were going to throw away.

A Natural Bedroom:

When shopping for mattresses and bedding look for stores that sell products that are made from recycled, sustainable or organic materials. One such store is ABC Carpet & Home.

When you buy a new mattress get one that is made from 100% organic cotton. Cover your new mattress in an encasement cover, which is also made out of 100% organic cotton. This will help keep dust mites and other microorganisms out of your mattress helping it to last longer and stay healthier longer too. All of which saves you money and helps you get a more restful sleep.

Find sheets that are (you guessed it) made from 100% organic cotton that are dyed with low impact natural dyes. The prices for these items are comparable to those made the non-Ecofriendly way. Ecofriendly products are continually coming down in price as more and more people are purchasing more and more of these products.

Energy saving:

When shopping for new appliances look for appliances and products with the Energy Star logo. This logo is only given to products those meet rigid standards of proven energy savings, and who doesn’t like to save money.


Change all your incandescent bulbs to compact florescent light bulbs. They give off 70% less heat and last 10 times longer than incandescent bulbs. They also use substantially less energy saving you money.

Reuse and Re-purpose:

Look for recycled products for your home, such as paper products. Paper towels, tissue, toilet paper and printer paper can be made out of recycled paper. There are a few companies that use recycled paper that you could not tell the difference from the old way of making them.

Before you throw out any item ask yourself, “Can I use this item for something else or another purpose?”. If your answer is no consider giving it away or donating it to Goodwill or another thrift store like it. Where I live we have an artist who takes in castoff metal and wood. He makes beautiful sculptures with these items that, If not for him, would end up in landfills.

Also if your items are just not salvageable at all consider taking them to recycle centers. There are such centers in most communities or close by. Old metal appliances and even cars can be turned into cash at your local recycle center. Glass, paper, metal, these centers sell the reclaimed materials to companies that make new products out of them, keeping those materials out of landfills.

These are just a few ideas to make your home greener. I am sure you can think of some more. Until next time be courageous in your designs.






























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