Green Home Improvement

Beat the Credit Crunch – Go Green!

How energy saving windows can help reduce your carbon foot print and lower your energy bill. Green issues and carbon emissions in particular are becoming a growing concern to the general public. Investing in green homes has even become a government priority. Not only will green homes contribute to reducing carbon emissions, they could also save the British economy £12.6 billion a year. Green homes could start producing large savings by the year 2020.

The government is hoping the widespread of energy saving windows and eco-friendly wall insulation will play an important role in reaching these goals set by the UK government. That is why the British government is setting up schemes to support green insulation such as double glazing. These schemes were introduced into the UK government’s 2009/2010 budget in the hope that they will create jobs in the building industry.

Schemes to support the widespread of green insulation will also benefit individuals. Fitting energy saving windows will save households considerable amounts on their energy bill, as well as reducing their carbon emissions.

Tags: double glazing windows reducing carbon emissions traditional insulation

Roof Materials For Your Log Home

Your roof is a great opportunity to make a dramatic statement to the world. This colorful creation is going to sit atop a unique, custom home, and no matter what material you choose it’s going to look awesome. There are more choices on the market today than ever before, and an extra investment will probably make a bigger impact here than elsewhere in your home. Even asphalt shingles have taken on a new personality. Here are some varieties modern technology has made available to us (my cost estimates are very broad, and only meant for comparison’s sake).

Asphalt (or Composition) Shingles: (also known as three-tab shingles) The most commonly used shingles, these are made from a mixture of asphalt and fiberglass. The ceramic granules protect the asphalt from the sun’s UV rays. We tend to buy them according to life expectancy, which starts at 15 years for the thinnest shingles, 25-30 years for the next level. Their lifetime depends on the environment and how well the roof is vented. This roof will cost around $50-$150 per 100 square feet.

Laminated Fiberglass Shingles: Also called architectural or dimensional shingles, this shingle is still made from a mixture of asphalt and fiberglass, but is built much thicker, giving it a more three-dimensional look. Architectural shingles make the roof look more textured, are larger than a standard shingle, and come in an amazing variety of shapes. They are usually guaranteed for 40 years and could easily cost twice as much as standard asphalt shingles.

Tags: asphalt shingles composition shingles fiberglass shingles

Green Home Renovations – How to Take the First Steps

If you are renovating your home there are many decisions that need to be made. You may be wondering which contractor to use or which areas to renovate first. What many people should think about (but don’t) is how to make sure that the renovation process is as environmentally friendly as possible. Here are a few things that you need to consider.

Your home’s energy supply
You may want to consider how your home will be powered. A home renovation can be the perfect time to add a solar panel or to convert from burning fossil fuels such as oil or natural gas to using biomass boilers or a heat pump system. You may even want to use a combination of several different heating methods. For example, you may want to use a heat pump system in combination with a biomass system.

Environmentally friendly heating systems are those that are as close to carbon neutral as possible. A biomass system only releases as much carbon as was absorbed by the plants or trees during their lifespan.

Tags: burning fossil fuels home renovation toxic gasses

Going Green With These Wood Alternatives

When it comes to building an eco-friendly home or to completing a “green” remodeling project, one area that you should certainly pay close attention to is to the use of wood. Many homeowners enjoy the look of wood and want to include wood in their construction and remodeling projects as much as possible. Fortunately, you don’t have to give up on wood completely in order to have an eco-friendly home. Rather, when searching for wood products to use with your home, you should keep these things in mind.

FSC Certified Lumber
If you plan to purchase lumber for your construction product, you can make it greener by selecting umber that is Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified. In order to achieve FSC certification, the umber needs to have been grown in a sustainable forest. Purchasing lumber that originates from sustainable forests is important because sustainable forestry focuses on maintaining the health and well-being of the ecosystem. To accomplish this, the amount of goods and services taken from the forest are kept at a level that the forest is able to maintain without reducing the quality of the soil or watershed features while also maintaining a good seed source for the future.

Recycled and Reclaimed Wood
If you want to install hardwood floors, you might want to consider purchasing flooring that was made from recycled or reclaimed woods. Not only is this wood made from timber that was cut decades or even centuries ago, which prevents the need to cut down additional trees, the weathered character of this wood can be simply gorgeous.

Tags: forest stewardship council watershed features wood alternatives

Looking For Green Fabric? Try Bamboo!

If you are interested in living green, then you absolutely must consider the fibers that you use in your daily life. From your towels to your clothing, fabric is an area of the home that you can use again and again, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t consider starting with the best, most sustainable fibers available.

Bamboo is one of the world’s most sustainable resources for the following incredible reasons, in no small part because it is one of the fastest-growing plants on the planet. This amazing plant can be harvested annually and will then regenerate itself from the roots, replacing the crop naturally without the need for re-planting or crop rotation. These properties, in addition to making this an extremely low-demand crop, make it an attractive farming operation.

While many traditional fibers, namely cotton, require extensive farming support, bamboo is notably low-maintenance. For example, cotton requires annual re-planting, a fairly complex harvesting system, and numerous chemical additives. Additionally, it is a somewhat sensitive crop that can expose the farmer to losing everything in the case of drought or flood, both of which are frequent in the major farming communities. Bamboo, in contrast, is both drought and flood-tolerant, making it a low-maintenance, easy-to-grow crop.

Tags: fabric

Eco Friendly Home Renovation

Have you ever seen a home that is not only hideous, but is completely out of place in its environment? Maybe all the trees have been removed, the lovely little stream has been dammed and filled in, or the construction of the home is obviously inundated with synthetic materials. Of course, people have the absolute right to live in a home that pleases them. But today, an increasing number of home owners are renovating their homes in an environmentally friendly way.

The number of companies that specialize in selling renovation materials that are good for the environment is increasing. The best place to look for a company that focuses their production on green materials is either online or by asking at your local construction supply store’s information desk. A green company tends to sell products that are not treated with chemicals as well as being environmentally-minded when harvesting or producing these goods. Paint has long been an item of environmental controversy, and now it can be found with no volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the mixture. Another example is that some companies now make insulation made from recycled goods like cotton or cork or even bamboo. There are hundreds if not thousands of other great environmentally friendly materials that are sure to suit your needs, whatever they are.

Wood is an important material whether you are building new or renovating your home. Green companies make sure to not disturb the environment, particularly fragile communities, when harvesting trees for lumber production. Generally any wood that is certified by the Forest Stewardship Counsel should be safe to use. Other companies are using recycled goods, like plastics and some types of woods, to create household construction items. It is even possible to have kitchen counters that are made with recycled paper, imagine that! Not only do green materials help the environment in one way or another, they are often very durable and demand less maintenance compared to traditional construction materials.

Tags: forest stewardship lumber production volatile organic compounds

The Right Home Trend of the Decade

Environmentally conscious or “Going Green” continues to be the ideal home improvement option for homeowners today. Even if you can’t afford a set of custom solar panels, you can make your home more environmentally friendly and more efficient without breaking the bank. Below are the top five:

Ideal Home Improvement #1: Update your heating system. If your furnace is old, replace it with a new, more efficient one, preferably a model with an Energy Star label. The same holds true for your water heater.

Ideal Home Improvement #2: Stop the gaps around your home. Plastic insulation foam is perfect for filling in in those drafty areas around windows and doors. Rolling out new insulation in your attic can help to stop drafts as well.

Tags: blackout curtains energy saving light bulbs energy star label

You’re Living Green – Is Your Home?

In modern times, many of us have taken a step back and examined the way we’ve been living. How much gas do we consume? Are we wasting water? Our health has risen in our concern lately, too. The impact of poor food choices and living with too much work and not enough exercise has sapped us of energy and left our bodies tired.

So, some of us have made a change. We’ve traded in gas guzzling SUVs for fuel efficient hybrids. Maybe you’ve even started carpooling. You water your yard only every other day to keep from wasting water, especially during the summer heat. You’ve left fast foods with the calories and cholesterol problems they present behind and gone green and gourmet.

Today you’re exercising, eating right and feeling proud about all you’re doing to keep yourself and the earth healthier. But do you realize that your home might be more damaging than your car ever was?

Tags: cholesterol problems dripping faucet one hundred years

A Green House is a Clean House

With the havoc that has been set upon the great mother earth, we as citizens of her many countries should find ways of helping keep her calm as much as possible.
To begin, go green in your home. It is quite simple and you may find yourself saving money.

There are many things that you can begin to do that will have great affect on the way you live. To go green in your home, here are some simple and quick ways to get started.

1) Look at all the items around your home, what can you reuse? What will need to be recycled? If you find sheets of paper that have been written on one side, use the other for notes, grocery lists, etc. Butter tubs, etc, these can be used for leftover storage, small wares storage; for example crayons, nuts, bolts. Milk jugs, for other drinks kept in the fridge, for watering plants, potting soil storage, plant starter pot, how about a scoop.

Tags: garbage company nuts bolts small wares

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