How to be more eco friendly at home

With the hike in energy prices and the ever growing concern over global warming, it's no wonder we're all taking more interest into energy efficiency and eco living.

The sudden increase in the energy price cap has struck fear in many homeowners over how they will cope with the soaring costs; so many homeowners are seeking ways to improve their energy efficiency to not only help with the cost of bills, but to look at ways of making more sustainable lifestyle choices too.

What can we do to help live more eco friendly?

We look at some easy changes that we can all make to live more environmentally friendly👇

1. Use Eco-Cleaning Products

A lot of mainstream cleaning products containing detergents, preservatives, or foaming agents are made from various toxic chemicals that wash up into streams and rivers, causing water pollution that enters ecosystems and damages biodiversity.

Switching to products that contain sustainably grown or raised ingredients and non-synthetics reduces the risk of exposure to toxic chemicals that are harmful to humans as well as the environment.

You can also easily make your own natural cleaners by mixing vinegar, lemon juice and bicarbonate of soda. This is a sustainable and cheaper alternative that reduces toxic chemicals and packaging waste in your home.

2. Wash Your Clothes Less

Synthetic material sheds microplastics in the washing machine, which find their way to the ocean. The ocean floor holds over 14 million tonnes of microplastics. This number is increasing with textiles contributing 500,000 tonnes yearly. 16% of the microplastics released into the oceans come from washing these synthetic clothes. The toxic fibers degrade ecosystems and are ingested by sea life and eventually mammals, including humans.

Over washing your clothes at high temperatures will also affect their quality over time. It’s also a great waste of water and energy from your washing machine. Also, be sure to only buy non-toxic detergents and avoid the use/overuse of tumble dryers.

3. Turn it off

Energy conservation is one of the most important things you can do to reduce your carbon footprint. Leaving your electricals on standby needlessly uses up energy – hit the off switch and you could see huge improvements, most noticeably in your energy bills!

4. Compost

If you have let your food go that little bit too far past its ‘best by’ then you need to be sure to compost it rather than putting it in the bin. Not only will this help create a natural fertiliser and keep your garden green, it’ll also reduce the amount of waste going to landfill – and as it won’t break down anaerobically, there will not be a build-up of methane gas.

5. Invest in eco friendly technology

An advantage of buying a new build home is you have brand new appliances that are already extremely energy efficient. For those who have the budget, even bigger improvements can be made by purchasing a heat pump to heat your home. 

6. Changing your beauty habits

Simple changes like switching to package-free bars of shampoo, conditioner and body wash rather than plastic bottles not only reduces your plastic waste but they also last much longer, meaning the cost-per-use is a lot lower.

Ditching the face wipes and using flannels and cleansers to remove your makeup instead also has a huge impact. Not only do wipes get thrown into our sewer systems and blocking the drains, but they also take up to 100 years to biodegrade in our landfill. 

The most important thing about trying to live a greener lifestyle is to not beat yourself up if you forget your reusable cup or bag-for-life. Doing whatever you can through being more conscious about your choices and habits will have a positive impact on your consumption and contribute to living a more sustainable lifestyle.