Pune

Small and measured steps can help one create a home that is not only energy efficient, but a better place for all to live in.

Home is the sanctuary where people relax after the noisy and cluttered lives outside. Everyone wants it to be the place where life thrives and families evolve. Nonetheless, it is quite difficult to ensure that this sanctuary remains serene and away from the worldly disorder as one tends to stray to easier and more convenient ways to make their lives comfortable. Many a times, while creating a comfortable space for ourselves, people tend to ignore the impact that the setting has on the environment. With the changing times and pollution-related issues becoming more rampant than ever, it is extremely important to shift to ways that are ecofriendly and help the planet also become a better place to be, besides the home.

While changing the brick and mortar to make a house eco-friendly is not doable, one can always adapt to smarter and smaller measures and reduce carbon footprints, thereby making this planet a better place for all. So, if you are also looking forward to revamp your home, here are a few tips that can help you achieve a real sanctuary at home.

While colouring the walls, stay away from conventional paints. Switch over to zero VOC (volatile organic compounds) paints and help creating better quality air indoors as well as outdoors.

While getting the lamps, make sure you replace all halogen bulbs and low efficiency lighting devices with high efficiency LED lamps. While CFLs are also better than conventional halogens, the mercury content in them is extremely harmful for the environment and can also be life-threatening at times. Therefore, it is advised to switch over to LEDs completely, saving energy and thus carbon footprints. Replace low energy appliances at home with energy efficient, star-rated appliances that will bring down your energy consumption significantly. It is time to sell off those appliances which have no or low star ratings and replace them with appliances that come with high energy ratings. This not only helps one gain financially with reduced energy bills, it also helps in reducing carbon footprint on the planet.

Get mattresses that are created following natural process sans chemicals and other toxic elements.

Increase heating and cooling efficiency. Generally, heating and cooling systems, depending on the time of the year, are the largest consumers of energy. Even the smallest of steps can help you reduce your energy consumption. To start with, check whether the windows and doors are able to seal the gaps properly. If they are not, energy is sure to get leaked, thereby needing more electricity to get the desired temperature. Window insulation kits can also be used to get the desired effect.

Use environment-friendly cleaners to clean the house. This will reduce the emission of harmful chemicals into the air, enabling a better quality of air.