The following contribution is from another author.
Many of us want to do more to live a more sustainable life. Making some changes around your home can help you to save power and live a much greener life. This is not better for the environment, but can also help you to save a lot of money on your household bills, thanks to all the power you save.
- Save water. Water wastage is a big problem, especially in areas prone to drought. There are lots of small lifestyle changes that you can make to use less water at home. Turn the tap off while you brush your teeth. Switch from baths to showers, and try to keep your showers short. Install a low-flow shower head. Only run the dishwasher when it’s full. Save water from doing the dishes, or fit a water butt, so you can use this water to water the garden, instead of running the tap.
- Fit solar panels. Solar panels can be used to generate some of the power for your house. You may not be able to power your whole home, but you can generate at least some to reduce the amount you need to use, and reduce your electricity bill. In some areas, you may be able to get tax breaks due to using solar panels, or there may be grants available to help you have them fitted.
- Install a smart meter. A smart meter monitors the power you’re using in real-time. This is useful both for keeping track of what your bills are likely to be, as well as for tracking the power you use and seeing where you can make changes. Seeing the meter go up can be enough incentive to make you change your habits in order to use less power.
- Use energy-efficient lightbulbs. One of the easiest changes you can make is to get rid of your old lightbulbs and change to energy-efficient bulbs instead. Not only do they use a lot less power, but they also last a lot longer, so you won’t need to spend money on replacing them quite as often.
- Use natural cleaning products. A lot of cleaning products are packed with a lot of toxic chemicals that are both bad for the environment and bad for you to breathe in. if you can, swap some of your products for natural cleaning products. Lots of natural products, like white vinegar, bicarbonate of soda, and citrus fruits, can be used to make natural products that will clean your home just as effectively as an over-the-counter product.
- Make your own compost. Save things like kitchen scraps and leftover food and turn them into compost (as recommended by Columbus, Ohio garden doctors). This not only reduces your food waste but gives you great compost that you can use in your garden to help your plants grow big, strong, and healthy. All you need to do is put a compost bin in your garden, and you can compost a lot of things, from table scraps to teabags, to reduce your wastage and throw out less.
