Eco-Friendly Options for Building a Green Home

Many people believe that to have a green home, they have to sacrifice their personal taste or style. However, fact of the matter is that with so many environment friendly housing options available, you do not have to compromise with your individual choices, no matter whether you want to build a new house or remodel the existing one. The markets are flooded with a wide array of products, made from recycled materials. These products provide a better alternative to traditional products, because of their several added benefits. For example, polymer and rubber roofs imitate slate roofs, but weigh less and require less maintenance. Besides, counter tops made using recycled concrete and glass also offer an attractive appearance, along with excellent durability.

There is also no dearth in the lumber options, when it comes to building a green home. Wood flooring, cabinetry and doors can add an elegant touch to the house. However, a careful choice is a must. Rather than buying products made from old timber or endangered tropical hard wood, look for the ones made with wood that has been grown in the certified forests. You can even consider purchasing products made from wood, which has been reclaimed or recycled from riverbeds or old buildings.

The variety of green materials, which are available for the outdoor projects, has also grown significantly. For instance, you can buy lumber, which is not treated with arsenic. Such lumber is less toxic and thus, good for both, you as well as the environment. Composite decking or railing made from fiber and resin also makes a wonderful option for people, wishing to support the "green movement". It is not just simple to install but even very simple to maintain the same. Having high efficiency windows in your house would also help you save a lot of energy. Windows with low emissive glazing can substantially reduce your monthly energy costs, for both, cooling and heating your home.

If someone wants to cut back your everyday energy usage, then buying appliances with energy star ratings would be a great idea. Energy star labeled dishwashers and washing machines can help you considerably decrease water wastage. Installing low flow toilets is another way to reduce wastage of water. Photo-voltaic panels are quite popular, when it comes to saving energy. These panels are designed to generate energy from sun for heating the house during winters. Installation of photo-voltaic panels can also provide you with tax credits, rebates from the utility company and many other perks by the government.

This clearly shows that there is no shortage of green options for people, who want to build a new home or remodel their current house. By thoroughly exploring the options, you can surely enjoy superb results. If you cannot manage to make the green changes on your own, then there are many professional interior designers, architects, builders and contractors out there, who can brilliantly assist you with how to go about building a green home, using a variety of eco-friendly options.



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Some Green Home Renovation Ideas

There are many houses out there, which are completely un-befitting in their environment and have been constructed with harmful synthetic materials. People, of course, have the right to buy a house which pleases or delights them, but what if the same house poses threat to their health and environment? This is the reason why today a growing number of people are renovating and upgrading their houses in an eco-friendly way. In fact, the numbers of companies, which specialize in producing and selling green renovation materials, have also increased significantly in the recent couple of years. The green products sold by these companies are not actually treated with toxic chemicals that can result in damaging consequences to the environment.

For instance, traditional paints that involved environment controversy for a very long time are now available with no VOC's. Nowadays, some companies even make insulation using recycled materials, like cork, bamboo, cotton etc. There are loads of eco-friendly materials being sold in the market, which can surely suit your individual requirements. Wood is another very important material in renovating a house. Green companies do make sure that the environment is not disturbed while harvesting trees. There are also other companies, which use recycled goods, such as plastics, for creating household construction products or items. Not many know that it is also possible to install kitchen counters made with the recycled paper.

When choosing the green materials for renovating your house, you would find lots of materials that are not only safe for the environment but also more durable and easier to maintain, as compared to the traditional renovation materials. As the markets for sustainable materials are lesser than the traditional materials, you may have to perform some extra online searches and look for a good building supply company to get what you are seeking. Apart from employing green home renovation materials and products, there are numerous other ways in which you can make your house environmentally sound. For example, for brightening up your house, you can install skylights that use the natural sunlight, rather than the traditional lighting which consumes a lot of energy.

You can use the solar energy, not just to heat your outdoor pools, but also the interior of your house. There are many companies out there which offer services to integrate the solar panels on the roof of a house in such a way that they seem like the normal roof tiles. These solar panels use the energy of the sun to heat the house and thus, contribute in considerably reducing the monthly electricity bills. In addition, replacing traditional windows with dual-pane windows, opting for natural insulation and choosing flooring options made from recycled materials, are all the ways to make your house environment friendly. Being eco-conscious and going for greener alternatives, while renovating one's home is the best way to support the "green movement". So, implement these green home renovation ideas and see what difference they make to your life.

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