If you like to consider the environment in your buying choices however, wooden flooring can leave you feeling a little uneasy. Once the trees used for hardwood flooring are cut down, it is many years before the tree can be replaced and meanwhile you have played a part in a huge deforestation problem.

For that reason it makes sense to choose bamboo flooring. As bamboo is part of the grass family, when it is cut down it simply regenerates within a very short period and meanwhile the roots hold the soil together and help prevent erosion often seen in deforested areas where rainwater washes away the soil.

Many people however do not like the look of bamboo compared to wood. It can look a bit plain compared to the delicate grain patterns in beech, mahogany or oak wooden flooring. Although the bamboo can be dyed to produce different colors resembling any wood, the grain patterns are still missing. This problem can be resolved however if you use strand woven bamboo flooring. The strands of bamboo are fused together in such as way that they look just like the patterns you get in a wooden plank. You no longer get the lack of interest that you might get in a bamboo floor and you can get the wooden floor look without destroying the environment.

As well as helping the environment you will be saving quite a lot of money too. Bamboo planks are much cheaper to produce than hardwood flooring and many of the cost savings are passed onto you as a consumer. Why not help your budget and the environment next time you are looking for flooring for your home?

This limestone based floor material is not as well-known as its popular cousin, marble, but it is becoming more popular.  One of the nice features is that its natural coloring is perfect for those who prefer neutral tones. Due to organic features like iron and such, the stone can be walnut-hued, or tan or even nearly ivory in coloring.

When used for the floor, this stone is finished in one of four ways. The leading finish is what is called honed, and this is a smooth look with a matte appearance. Those who appreciate word play will like the fact that two of the other types of surfacing are called tumbled and brushed. As one might expect these tousled floors are rich with textures.

Travertine tiles are not happy to just be underfoot. They aspire to greater heights. As such they can be found in other places like in the shower and climbing up buildings as cladding. Counters and even walls are also homes to this versatile material.

Since this a natural material, it has some enemies when it comes to spills and splashes. Because of its limestone background, it has a particular problem with things that are acidic in their nature, just as most people have problems with those with acid tongues. If the little people living in a home are prone to spill their orange juice or the adults are sloppy with their coffee, travertine tiles are going to react badly. In these cases, a sealer can be a floor’s best friend.

In the realm of baby needs, many baby items can be replaced by the exact equivalent with a product line that is much more eco-friendly.  For instance, replace disposable diapers with reusable terry nappies – not a huge sacrifice, and you will find they are much cheaper too in the long run anyway.  Terry nappy second uses include as rags, car polishers and spill cloths. Secondly, if you are not keen on using pre-loved clothing on your baby, then why not purchase eco-friendly garments made from natural fibers such as organic wool, hemp, bamboo or organic cotton?  These clothes will have a much lighter footprint on ther earth than their polyester and synthetic cousins, and they will the much-enjoyed added benefit of looking and feeling much softer and more luxurious on your baby’s skin.  Everybody loves a baby clothed in soft cuddly clothes.

What about the cot?  Many cots are made from wood sourced from environmentally and culturally damaging deforestation sites in the endangered areas of the world.  Much better to source a cot made from local timbers, grown sustainably and ethically, or to co-sleep with your baby which has the added benefit of helping the family get a better night’s sleep, and also contributes to a better success rate of breastfeeding due to proximity of baby and mother and the mother’s sleep gains from having baby near her – and did you know that breastfeeding alone reduces your baby’s footprint on the earth by a huge amount?

Every can of formula required many dairy cows to be raised and kept and milked for that formula to be made.  For the first six months either breastmilk or baby formula is all a baby needs, and he or she will continue to drink breastmilk or formula for the entire first year of life.  So every breastfeed given reduces a baby’s carbon footprint by not requiring dairy cows to be farmed and formula to be manufactured.  The benefits to breastfeeding are enormous and include better overall life-long health and more bonding opportunities for mother and baby.

It’s simple to reduce your baby’s carbon footprint by doing the little things that all add up – and then you will be able to say, “Yes!  My baby is very green!”

The traditional type contains a fragile filament surrounded by equally fragile thin glass. The longest lasting may last up to 3000 hours. The fragility leads to a lot of waste, as many lamp filaments are broken by vibration before they’re ever used.

One “improvement” on the traditional lamp is the compact fluorescent light (CFL). While these are more economical to operate, they contain small amounts of mercury, a well-known environmental hazard. Because of the mercury content, there are special requirements for disposal of defective lamps, and some manufacturers even recommend disposing of carpets and bedspreads where a CFL bulb has broken. In contrast, the GU10 LED bulb contains no mercury and it burns only 5% of the energy of a traditional bulb, and each lamp lasts 50,000 hours or more.

Two other areas of environment concern from traditional lighting are heat and “light pollution”. Traditional bulbs burn hot. Not only is this a safety issue from minor burns from touching a hot bulb to house fires started by overheated features or proximity of combustibles, but a number of light bulbs can also impact air conditioning expense in summer.

“Light pollution” occurs as light disperses beyond the immediate area where it is needed. When you look toward a nearby town or city at night and see a “glow” on the horizon, you’re seeing light pollution—a phenomenon that is increasingly being blamed for environmental imbalances and disruptions, especially to nocturnal animals. In comparison, LED GU10 lights are more “focused” and can be directed to a specific area.

Using these new lamps can save 95% of energy costs while lasting years longer. Add the other environmentally-friendly features, and you can really go green the next time you need to change a light bulb!

Starting with the most obvious, installing energy efficient bulbs is a great way to reduce the light’s power draw.  This is a double win when it comes to recessed lights because they are much more difficult to change bulbs in than standard light fixtures.  Energy efficient lights last a heck of a lot longer than regular incandescent ones, so you have to replace them much less frequently.  There are now recessed lights that come built with LED lights in them, so you’ll never have to change them during their energy sipping life span.

Another way to reduce your power consumption is by insulating recessed can lights.  While this doesn’t directly affect the lights themselves, it does greatly reduce the amount of draft that comes in around the light fixture.  Attic temperatures are very different than the ambient inside temperature, and leaks will cause your AC or heating bills to skyrocket.  Heating and cooling is one of the biggest expenses in home utility use, so any improvements are going to reduce the amount of energy that you use.

For a very simple fix, install dimmer switches on your recessed lights.  LED bulbs are great for dimming, but CFL bulbs are slowly gaining the ability to do this.  When you can find a light bulb that pleases your eye and is able to be dimmed, you’ve set up a combination that will save you a ton of wasted electricity.

Reducing the amount of energy that you use is crucial to protecting what we have left in natural resources.  The simple tips outlined in this post will help you do that with recessed lights, which are normally not very eco-friendly!

I started looking at what I was using to clean my home with a little more hesitation after reading a few stories about the dangers of using different cleaners. Many readily available cleaning products can actually poison the air that you breathe. Others can cause serious damage to your family’s health if certain precautions are not taken. Most cleaners are also not good for the environment. For example, we all know that drain cleaner is a dangerous chemical, but do you ever think about what it is doing to the water supply? You would never pour it directly into a pond or the ocean, would you? Of course not, but where do you think it ends up after clearing your drain?

You can actually make your own drain cleaner that is safe for you and the environment. Simply make a mixture of 4 parts baking soda, 4 parts salt, and 1 part cream of tartar. Blend the mixture well and pour it down the clogged drain. Follow the mixture with a pot of boiling water. This will do a good job at keeping your drain clean and by simply repeating this monthly you can keep your drain clear.

Other cleaning products like CLR Cleaner and many other bathroom cleaners are nothing more than acids. These products simply melt away your messes. If you read their warning label, most of these products recommend using them only in a well-ventilated area. Ever wonder why you need to be in a well-ventilated room? Well, the acids can burn your lungs. Also, you must be very careful to completely rinse away any possible residue left by these products, the residue is extremely dangerous to you and your family.

A safer bathroom cleaner is white vinegar. Yeah, it may smell, but it does a great job cleaning and sanitizing. White vinegar also is extremely inexpensive. You can buy a gallon jug of it almost anywhere and it’s safe for your family and the environment!

Homemade cleaners are going to help keep your family heathy, and will save your wallet along the way.

Washable furnace filters are environmentally friendly in that they are clutter free and are ready for recycling by the user without changing the functioning of the device. Besides remaining clean after they are washed, the filters are not thrown away to form garbage that is a health hazard as in the temporary furnace filter commonly used. They absorb the dust particles that float in the air and make the air fit for breathing even when the windows are closed. Their contents are washed off by spray and the filter recovered for reuse.

In ensuring that the indoor air remains green, people will be saving their health bills for the air they consume inside their houses will have been filtered off by more than 95% while ensuring that the odors that emanate from unclean air are also removed from the interior of buildings. The air conditioning device, that uses electrostatic energy to harness the foreign particles in the air has also added benefits like having destructive action over microbes that permeate air in close places and on unclean furniture that cause diseases. This is done by depriving them of the moisturized habitat necessary for their cell splitting.

The electrostatic energy is a natural form that has no consequential effect on the environment and it filters the buoyant dusty matter by electronic force. The particles are removed from the filter by washing it. Washable furnace filters are available internationally and in all of the United States. Buying online is convenient and helps you find the best quality and prices.

For example, cleaning the counters doesn’t have to mean spraying harmful toxins into the air. Why harm anyone around you when a little warm water mixed in with vinegar or baking soda is virtually the same thing? Take charge and annihilate the germs lurking in your home with safe all-purpose cleaners. Avoiding poor indoor air quality will also help in ways that you wouldn’t expect. Newer homes are being stuffed with tougher insulation, which keeps the toxic substances within your walls.  Open up the windows to let in fresh air as often as possible.

Antibacterial cleaners, although a good idea, actually only cause bacteria to grow that can survive the normal soapy cleansers, and therefore are more harmful and harder to get rid of. The FDA even found that these soaps work only as well as regular soap and water, rendering them pointless. And if the germs in your carpet are as bothersome as the ones on your hands, baking soda lifts odors right from the floor, in addition to making the fridge smell good. Simply sprinkle a little on and vacuum away!

Also, be sure to dispose of any harmful chemicals safely. By throwing them down the drain, there is a risk that they could end up in the water supply and right in your system. If the idea of toxins in your home scares you, then be sure to leave your shoes at the door when you return every day. Antifreeze, pollen, animal waste, oil, and all other kinds of bad news gets tracked in from outside, and then children and pets ingest it when they crawl around on the floor.

It is much simpler to live a greener lifestyle than most people realize. Ordinary, everyday tasks can be easily altered to incorporate saving the planet along with saving your family. Besides, what good is a healthy family if there is no world left to live on?

For more tips on green living:

Home Turned Green
Home Turned Green | Insulation Installation DIY Guide

Purchasing green home cleaning supplies is relatively easy with almost every type of store carrying some type of eco friendly cleaning supplies, and it doesn’t have to cost a fortune. Look for sales and coupons on name brand cleaning supplies. Discount stores carry lines of green cleaning supplies, as well as the big warehouse clubs. Warehouse clubs sell larger quantities, which are great to buy to keep at the office. The big hardware stores also sell large quantities and often have discounted prices. Many brands are offered online at a discount at big drugstore and discount store sites with many offering free shipping.

Another option is to make your own green cleaning supplies. It’s relatively easy with the purchase of a few simple, inexpensive ingredients. A great way to get perfectly clear glass is to mix white vinegar with water, spray and wipe clean. Baking soda is an excellent scrubber that works great on bath tubs and kitchen sinks. Lemon essential oil can be found at craft supply stores or online. Lemon oil is an excellent furniture polish, or can be mixed with water and use to clean wood floors. Another oil, Tea Tree, is an excellent disinfectant that can be used to wipe down baby furniture when added to witch hazel. Recipes and ideas for making your own cleaning supplies can be found online.

Using green cleaning supplies is an inexpensive and easy way to protect the environment and your home or office!

That is where a hot water heater blanket comes in to save the day. It might cost as little as 10 dollars, and would benefit you in quite a lot of ways. For instance, think about your hot water storage system – if it’s more than a few years old, then it might not be insulated properly. If the sides of the tank are warm, then you need a hot water heater blanket. The jacket of this reduces the heat loss by a large percentage, and thus increases your savings at least up to 10% of your water heating costs.

However, there is one major thing that you need to take into consideration. That is that some water heaters’ manuals specifically state that a hot water heater blanket shouldn’t be used. So before you go out and buy one, check what the manual says. This could help you from wasting money.

A hot water heater blanket is quite easy to install, and you will also get a set of instructions. If you have an electric heater, it would probably be a good idea to view the Department of Energy’s guide to installation. If your heater runs on gas or oil, then the installation would probably be a little more difficult. Therefore it would be a good idea to get in a plumber for the job.