People are now focused on how to make their homes sustainable with all these talks of green living and climate change.
Below are 5 steps to create a sustainable home:
1. Energy Usage
Take advantage of nature to decrease energy usage. There are times when it’s inevitable not to use a lot of energy to survive. During the cold months, your energy consumption will be impossible to minimize because of the need for a heating system. So what you can do is to try to decrease your energy consumption on warmer seasons. Like for example during spring or summer, you may take advantage of the longer daylight hours by minimizing the usage of electricity. This strategy can cut up to 25% of total energy consumption per year.
2. Water Usage
It’s not only your energy consumption that you must try to curb to have a sustainable home. Same goes for your water consumption. According to the American Water Works Association or AWWA, the daily water usage of each person is 69.3 gallons. If you multiply this amount to the number of the whole population then you can just imagine how much water we use per day. You may decrease your water usage by installing a water saver toilet. Another way is to use a dipper instead of the shower because running water allows for too much wastage. Lastly, you can set up rainwater tanks to collect rainwater. This is a very good way to make your home self sufficient and it can provide you a very good back up water supply.
3. Home Materials
The materials of your home will do wonders in reducing your energy consumption. Do you know that straw when mixed with clay can make a very good heat insulator? And, it is very cheap. People have been using this for centuries but the people of today have yet to rediscover it.
4. Home Design
Not only the materials but also the design of your home can help in making your home sustainable. If you are about to build your home, make it face the right direction. A home that has a very good orientation will have up to 40% increase in energy efficiency. On the other hand, if you already have a house, you may make some remodeling and install skylights. Skylights are very effective in bringing light and heat into the house and are 3 times more effective than vertical windows.
5. Outside Home design
Practice hydrophonic gardening. It is about growing any kind of produce in different parts of your home such as window sills and spaces that have access to sunlight. Your home will be sustainable if you grow your own herbs and vegetables.
Start making changes in your home now. You don’t have to start off big, just take small incremental steps and eventually you’ll be able to create a sustainable home.
