Easy, eco-friendly home improvements don’t have to involve spending tens of thousands of dollars on solar panels. You don’t have to put in a wind turbine on your land, or suddenly shower only once a week to be eco-friendly and go for green home improvement. Home improvements that are “green” can be easy on the budget. Remodeling an eco home involves some clever planning, a willingness to try something new, and the ability to think out of the eco-box and to say that it IS easy being green!
First, start with your lawn. You can go green easily here. Stop poisoning your lawn, your pets, your kids, your neighbors, and your water supply with pesticides on your lawn. Go organic, and this green home improvement will make a difference. Organic lawn treatments aren’t just part of building an eco home lifestyle; green living through organic treatments leads to a healthier, lusher lawn. Check out garden and lawn catalogs such as Gardens Alive for details on having organic lawn care products shipped straight to you. You apply these treatments the same way you apply the mainstream chemicals-but without the damage to your lawn and the environment.
Next get a “reel” mower. Reel mowers are the old-fashioned push mowers that use no gas. Gas is on the rise; why spend money burning fossil fuel when you can burn calories? Buy a reel mower online for about $120 or-even better-recycle an old reel mower by buying one used on CraigsList.
Foiled by high cooling costs this summer? “Foil” the sun by lining high-sun windows with reflective aluminum foil. Sounds silly, but it works-face the shiny side of the foil toward the sun, and it will reflect the sun away from your windows, reducing the heat load coming into your house. Keep the house cool without using more air conditioning, save on energy costs, and follow green living principles-all for the price of a few rolls of foil.
Green living and eco home lifestyles don’t have to be expensive. Green home improvement can start with something as simple as a reel mower and a roll of aluminum foil, lead to hanging clothes on a clothesline, to installing bamboo flooring and ceramic tile heat. Whatever your price range, you can make green home improvements that make sense and help the environment.
