With the recent Climate Action movement gaining significant momentum, it is always worth looking into how you can take steps to participate in your home. Advances in smart-home tech, small renovation projects, and a little bit of effort to go green can enable homeowners to live in an energy efficient and sustainable manner. Some changes can even save you money!
Let’s take a look at a few ways to turn your home into a ‘green-house’.
Smart-Home Technology
From thermostats to energy efficient light bulbs, the smart-home world has blown up for consumers and no longer requires a call to your tech friend to set these products up.
Nest, Ecobee, and Mysa offer thermostats that can be programmed with ease to control your homes temperature use throughout the day based on your schedule and needs.
Philips has long been a household name for lightbulbs, and they lead the way with smart-bulbs that can be both fun and energy efficient. Their Hue lineup has colourful options that you can set to recognize your home arrivals and departures to ensure your lights are never left on.
Blinds are an obvious solution to bring in more natural light and avoid using energy to light your home. Motorized blinds such as PowerView by Hunter Douglas make life a little easier by automating your window treatments to match your wake up and away times.
Watering the lawn has been timer-based for quite awhile now. Adding smart home technology solutions such as the Rachio 3 can take lawn irrigation to the next level. This device helps monitor weather and soil conditions to determine optimal times and need for keeping your lawn well fed.
Composting is the New Recycling
No one is arguing the importance of recycling. That said, composting has taken a leap forward in many households. While homeowners with yards have long had an accessible option for composting, this better form of waste disposal is making its way into condominiums. Several municipalities have mandated that condo owners dispose of their food scraps and certain paper products in this much more sustainable way than through the garbage. If you don’t have a compost bin, pick one up at any local retailer, hardware store, or online!
Water Control
Most areas with water in your home can generally be upgraded to a more efficient system. Low-flow faucets, shower heads, and toilets are simple changes that can be DIY projects or one-time plumber costs. Nebia is a next generation shower that offers an incredible shower experience while cutting down on energy and water use. One of the biggest changes a homeowner can make is by switching a hot water tank to a tankless on demand system. These new generation solutions bring in warm or hot water as needed rather than storing and maintaining water in a tank that wastes loads of energy.
High Efficiency Appliances
Appliances are expensive, no doubt. However, if you are due for a new washing machine or any other major appliance, it’s definitely worthwhile to see if there are any high-efficiency options that suit your needs. These can help with both sustainable living and cost savings due to lower energy consumption.
Natural Cleaning Products
One very simple switch you can make in your household is switching to natural and plant-based cleaners. In almost every supermarket, you’ll find green alternatives to traditional cleaners. From all-purpose sprays to laundry detergents, there are naturally derived ingredients available for all types of home products. Even simple home-made cleaning sprays and pastes using vinegar, lemon juice, baking soda, and warm water can be highly effective.
Renovations
If renovations are due, why not go green? Basic additions including rugs and curtains can help to insulate a home and retain warmth. Getting more advanced can mean building in solar panels to help power your home, such as using Tesla’s Solar Roof. If you are undergoing renovations, double or triple glazing windows can go a long way to insulating your home.
Going green is not just a trend. It’s the way of the present and the future. As we have seen in recent events, there is no time like now to make a change. With any of the above steps, you can begin contributing to a healthier world and creating a sustainable future.
If you have any questions on how to make your home more eco-friendly or about the initiatives in Vancouver that are being undertaken by the real estate community, feel free to reach out to me anytime at adil@adilkhimani.com
Thank you for reading,
Adil