While the vast majority of environmental damage is caused by massive corporations and world governments, rather than you, it is important to remember that collective action can have an impact in helping the world become more environmentally friendly.
There are changes you can make in your home to reduce your environmental footprint, maximize efficiency and save some money on utility bills at the same time. While corporations are the main culprit for inefficient use of resources, collectively improving home energy efficiency can help reduce our personal impact on the environment.
So what changes can you make around the house to make your home greener? Let’s find out!
Insulate your home
Firstly, an area that has had a lot of coverage recently thanks to the ‘Insulate Britain’ protests that have taken place in the UK over the last few months. This has resulted in a lot of talk about how much energy could be saved if all homes were properly insulated, thus being much more energy efficient.
While properly insulating your home, with cavity insulation or new double glazed windows can be quite costly, you can improve the insulation of your home with a few small changes. Using thermal blinds on your windows will help insulate your home and reduce heat leakage. In addition to using thermal blinds, you can also use weather stripping on exterior doors to reduce heat loss and keep interior doors closed to prevent heat dissipation.
Participate in permaculture
Another area where you can help the environment from your home is to participate in ‘permaculture’ if your home has enough space for you to establish a small vegetable plot or space in your garden. Permaculture is the concept of small-scale, nature-inspired farming that helps rebuild your area and reduce your carbon footprint by growing fruits and vegetables at home instead of buying them.
If you have garden space or even the space for window boxes, you can participate in permaculture and help rebuild your area, which is good for birds and insects. All you need is a space where you can plant and grow some plants. In the long run, this will be beneficial to your local area and reduce the environmental impact of your eating habits.
Prioritize Energy Efficiency
Energy-efficient appliances and devices can slowly and quietly increase your electricity usage, which is bad for your wallet, as you will find yourself with large utility bills, but also bad for the environment, as they waste a large amount of energy.
A simple solution to this is to upgrade the devices and appliances in your home as your budget allows. Even small changes, such as switching from old style filament light bulbs to energy efficient bulbs can save a great deal of energy in the long run, other small devices such as kettles and toasters can be upgraded to more energy efficient models. Even larger things, such as kettles and kitchen appliances, can usually be upgraded to be more efficient, but they generally come with a higher price tag.